The Secret of Convict Lake (1951)

The Convict Conundrum.

The Secret of Convict Lake is directed by Michael Gordon and collectively written by Anna Hunger, Jack Pollexfen, Oscar Saul and Victor Trivas. It stars Glenn Ford, Gene Tierney, Ethel Barrymore, Zachary Scott, Ann Dvorak, Barbara Bates, Cyril Cusack, Richard Hylton, Helen Westcott, and Jeanette Nolan. Music is by Sol Kaplan and cinematography by Leo Tover.

I came here to kill one man. I don't mind killing a couple of others if I have to.

It's winter time here at Diablo Lake, and the five convicts who have survived the escape find themselves holed up in a remote village. Their reasons for being there differ, more notable though is that the men of the village are away prospecting, meaning the village is only currently populated by women.

It's a fine bubbling broth of scenarios, each convict is different, ranging from unstable psycho type, alpha male, twitchy youngster, simpleton and on to the calm likeable one who doesn't appear to belong in this company. So with the reasons for the men being here established, narrative then jostles with the inner fighting of the convicts, and the various emotional strands of the women folk. Suffice to say there is sexual tensions, mistrust, misrule, macho posturing and of course secrets to be born out.

Violence is sporadic but potent upon arrivals (one instance especially grabs you by the throat), and with the mystery of the men's crimes a constant question, intrigue makes for an enjoyable companion. Tech credits are uneven. The studio bound feel of the village sequences which fill out 90% of the pic are an itch, making you hanker for the more expansive snowy terrains that greeted us at story beginning. However, Tover's monochrome photography is suitably mood compliant, even if Kaplan's score isn't, while the lead actors are giving good value to offset some of the histrionics elsewhere.

Perhaps not the firecracker it could have been, given all the elements involved - particularly annoying that a strong feminist bent subsides into token play - this is none the less a most interesting piece that holds attention throughout. 7/10

Zachary Scott is quite menacing in this chilly tale of half a dozen escaped convicts who find themselves caught up in the wintery weather on the look out for shelter - and for $40,000! When they arrive at a remote village they discover that the men are all away and that under the imperious guidance of "Granny" (Ethel Barrymorre) it's the wives and children who are left. Not that they'd expect much danger in the middle of winter with the snow knee high everywhere around, but they have weapons and know how to use them. The dissolute looking men wander into town and beg for food and shelter, which grudgingly the women give them. "Greer" (Scott) is aware of the rumoured fortune, though, and pretty soon he and the gang are looking to take the cash - and anything else they can get. The one exception amongst this motley crew might be "Cranfield" (Glenn Ford) convicted but adamant he was framed, and by a man from this small community too! A fire seriously dents their stores and the courageous intervention of the men redraws their boundaries and that ends up making things more perilous and just a little more romantic for "Cranfield" too. The alpine atmosphere helps sustain the tension quite well as does the nasty Scott and though it does descend a little into a sentimental sludge at times thanks to an unremarkable effort from the usually stronger Gene Tierney, there's still enough of the threatening criminal mentality to keep it edgy until the rather rushed but fitting denouement. One of Ford's more robust efforts too.