Bankrupt businessman James Nevill decides he is worth more dead than alive, so he pays an ex-friend to kill him. An interesting setup with a nice twist in the third act! Montgomery Tully’s direction is rather bland and unexceptional, but he tells the story in a linear and straightforward fashion. Here, DP Walter J. Harvey frames the story in a utilitarian style that is neither visually inspired or tonally anesthetizing; the photography is rather neutral and doesn’t get in the way of the story.
Nevill (Dane Clark) shouts a lot and pushes people around, but he’s the President of Amalgamated, a corporation that does something or other, and he must answer to the Board of Directors. His rather shady dealings bring the company to bankruptcy so he decides to hire his one-time buddy Paul Kirby (Paul Carpenter) to murder him so his wife Andrea (Thea Gregory) can benefit from the insurance policy. But the deal actually pays off so Nevill must track down his buddy before the contract can be carried out! As the brief story progresses, we witness Andrea’s estrangement, Nevill’s secretary getting rather chummy with her boss, a triad of life-threatening encounters, and some bar brawls. So, who is trying to kill Nevill? The story has a neat but not unexpected twist in its final minutes which is full of talking and exposition, explaining all of their motivations leading up to the denouement. It seems all kind of silly, but the film doesn’t overstay it welcome.
Final Grade: (C)
