Dangerous Mission (1954)

Avalanche of Action!

Dangerous Mission is directed by Louis King and written by Charles Bennett, W.R. Burnett, James Edmiston and Horace McCoy. It stars Victor Mature, Piper Laurie, Vincent Price, William Bendix, Betta St. John and Dennis Weaver. Music is by Roy Webb and cinematography by William E. Snyder.

Produced by Irwin Allen and filmed in Technicolor 3-D, Dangerous Mission is an absolute riot of a film. A campy classic awash with laughs and corner cutting techniques. Plot for what it’s worth finds Louise Graham (Laurie) hiding out at the Glacier National Park after witnessing a gangland murder. Two men turn up and show great interest in her movements, Matt Hallett (Mature) and Paul Adams (Price), both of whom have different motives in mind.

A super cast, super scenery, even some super action scenarios that point where Irwin Allen was heading in the annals of cinema, yet it’s also a pretty laborious story acted out by film stars in zombie mode. King, Allen and the ream of writers (did they all get to put one plot point in each?) insert an action scene wherever possible, but it all feels like cheap gimmicks over story telling worth. In fact some scenes have absolutely no worth to the story what so ever!

Technically it’s suspect as well, the editing is awful, as is the back projection work, so to the fake sets and the sight of dummies being flung about the place. On the plus side there’s bullet brassieres and square shoulder padded suits, while Mature – when he breaks off from his pissing contest with Price – gets to dally in heroic machismo by fighting the might of electricity. Wonderful! It’s a fun movie for all the wrong reasons, but still fun none the less. 5/10