christopher-underwood Once or twice this almost slips into melodrama but a strong cast with a strong script and magical direction and cinematography keep this moving wonderfully. Described in my Blu-ray booklet as a, 'sun-kissed noir' and it is hard to argue with as the bright and sunny cinemascope visuals collide with the devilish doings of the three bad dudes in town. Filmed in copper mining town of Bisbee, Arizona, the industry is woven seamlessly into the story as the various inhabitants criss cross each others lives and we learn remarkably much as they interact with each other. There is a marvellous scene in a drug store which sells everything (I even noticed a rack of pulp paperbacks) where we follow one character in, another is already in there and there is a brief exchange as unnoticed one of the bank robbers enters to make a crucial phone call. There are also great shots as the train crosses the desert, skies as good as any of Ford's. I'm not especially a fan of Victor Mature but he does well here mixing home life, work life and heroism. Not by any means action and hip talk all the way but convincingly and entertainingly structured to great effect. Oh and just watch out for Ernest Borgnine as an Amish farmer.

Spikeopath Violent Saturday is directed by Richard Fleischer and adapted to screenplay by Sydney Boehm from the novel of the same name written by William L. Heath. It stars Victor Mature, Richard Egan, Lee Marvin, Stephen McNally, J. Carrol Naish, Tommy Noonan, Ernest Borgnine, Virginia Leith and Sylvia Sidney. Music is by Hugo Friedhoffer and cinematography by Charles G. Clarke. Stand Pat and Resist Evil. A simmering powder keg of criminality told in beautiful De Luxe and CinemaScope, Violent Saturday is one of the definitions of a slow burn movie that pays off with explosive aplomb. The town of Brandenville is the scene of a planned bank robbery by a trio of baddies led by Harper (McNally). The narrative has the trio arrive in town and plan for the robbery, as they move about the populace, a whole bunch of sub-plots pop up to maintain maximum interest and to of course set up the drama involving the robbery and the subsequent attempts at a getaway. I don't blame him – she moves like a Swiss watch. The characters are prime noir dwellers, they range from thieving dames and tramp wives, to a peeping tom, a drunkard husband and also a guilt ridden father, and this before we even get to the villains! Who, with Marvin in prime Benzedrine sniffing scumbag mode (he thinks nothing of hurting children), are truly shifty operators personified. The Arizona locale is beautifully utilised by Fleischer and Clarke, belying the harsh side of the human condition that comes roaring out the Brandenville traps as the pic enters the final third. There's some murky moralising in said last third that irritates, more so when it involves a badly miscast Borgnine as a Quaker! While one character strand is annoyingly left dangling. So it's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. In fact some of the cast were less than enamoured with either their work on the film or the attitude of others around them. Yet, and while understanding the reticence of some to not afford it film noir status, it has the requisite characterisations and nasty bite to keep noiristas very happy indeed 7.5/10

bob-1070 Yes, it has some nice location work, and there's a good sequence after the robbery, at the farm. Other than that, I can't recommend this film. Its 90 minutes feel like 2-1/2 hours. There is a tremendous amount of dull soap opera which is not particularly compelling, and never pays off. The entire film feels padded, and would be more suited to a 1-hour TV anthology from the 1950s or 1960s, like the old "Kraft Suspense Theater." We waste time with a subplot about a destitute librarian. We learn some worthless information about Lee Marvin's past. We watch in utter boredom as Lee Marvin and J. Carroll Naish take forever to get off a train which, for no particular reason, is carrying the Amish family that appears later. Lee Marvin is constantly using an inhaler, and you expect this is going to pay off eventually, but it never does. The fact that Victor Mature works for Richard Egan turns out to be meaningless. And Egan's messed up personal life, which occupies a ridiculous amount of screen time, adds up to very little. Watch this one with your hand on the fast forward button...you'll need it.

lastliberal Interesting movie about small town stories against the background of a bank robbery. Lots of good actors in one place.Shelley (Victor Mature) has to keep an eye on his boss Boyd (Richard Egan) for his father. Boyd's wife Emily (Margaret Hayes) is fooling around with the local golf pro. At the library, Elsie (Sylvia Sidney) is stealing from women's purses to pay her bills. And, the bank manager (Tommy Noonan) has a roving eye for Linda (Virginia Leith), a local beauty. He sneaks out at night to watch her undress.The gang from out of town is watching everything. Lee Marvin is stepping on a little boy's fingers, while Harper (Stephen McNally) and Chapman (J. Carrol Naish) are gathering intel.The robbery goes off as planned, but what they didn't know was that Shelley's son was upset that Georgie's dad won a medal at Iwo Jima, and Shelley had to stay home and keep the copper coming. Shelley gets in the middle of things and becomes the town hero.Also featuring Ernest Borgnine as an Amish farmer that finds being a pacifist is sometimes tough when you family is threatened.Mature may not be a great actor, but I do enjoy watching him.