Marketic
It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.
FeistyUpper
If you don't like this, we can't be friends.
Aubrey Hackett
While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.
dougdoepke
Gimmicky plot that doesn't work despite the key ingredients. In 1957, Jack Palance was one of the most interesting actors around. His skeletal face and intense manner looked nothing like the pretty boy stereotypes that dominated male leads of the day. So why does this opportunity to play dual roles fall as flat as it does. I'm not sure, but the uninspired pacing of director Russell Rouse fails to generate much needed excitement. Then too, the script is not just confusing but fails to present Palance with a clear concept that can be acted out with his usual intensity. Where there should be a contrast between the bad brother Arnie and the sympathetic brother Bill, Palance ends up playing both in a confusingly similar fashion. That sort of ambiguity may play well with art house audiences, but here it drains the film of much needed dramatic tension. Then too, Barbara Lang as the moll shows why it takes more than a shapely figure and a good dye job to make an actress, even in the Marilyn Monroe-driven 1950's.The film has two things going for it-- filming at unusual San Quentin locations, along with cult actor Timothy Carey in a brief but typically memorable role as Palance's cell mate. Note how real inmates (I think) try to get a moment of fame in the prison scenes, one of which apparently includes the actual mess hall. In a better film, these scenes would have contributed greatly, but here they simply pass without impact. One can only speculate as to the explosive potential of vintage Palance and the incorrigibly oddball Carey confined together in the same cell. Too bad, director Rouse and the writers didn't realize what they had. Just watch Carey's rolling eyes wheel away from whatever the mouth is saying as though they're hooked up to two unruly strangers. A potential clash between the exotics Palance and Carey would have created an exceptional moment for cult admirers everywhere.All in all, the slack direction and sloppy script sabotage what could have been a memorably offbeat B-film.
moonspinner55
San Quentin inmate Jack Palance hatches quite a scheme to get out of jail--get his lookalike brother to trade places with him in prison for a day while he constructs a foxhole to hide in, leading to his and his brother's escape. Filmed on-location in Cinemascope at San Quentin prison, with officers and inmates used as extras. It's a ludicrous plot, but the director keeps everything very low-keyed, and Jack Palance is excellent in demanding dual role. Extraordinarily silly, but so well-made you may be absorbed and interested despite yourself. Harold Stone is steely-eyed and cunning as a prison guard and Edward Platt(later of TV's "Get Smart")is believably sympathetic as the nicest prison warden you'll ever see. Barbara Lang also good as the convict's wife, obviously cast for her platinum hair and curvy figure, but giving a grounded, natural performance without showy airs.
yenlo
This was the very first motion picture I can remember seeing on television. It must have been in 59 or 60 on the old NBC Saturday Night at The Movies and I was either three or four. It has stuck with me all these years and I have never seen it since. I do remember the Jack Palance character attempting to switch places with his twin brother in California's San Quentin penitentiary and a washing machine agitator being used as some type of grappling hook device. I'd love to see it again after all these years.
sassa-5
I have never seen the film , publicized, as a VHS release. Not only was Jack Palance the star, but he had a blonde as "Ruth" played by Barbara Lang. I know that she is a Broadway Bombshell and a striking clone to Marilyn Monroe. She was in movies such as " Hot Summer Night." Also according to information, on the website, she was known by credits to have starred in the 1985 film, " Weird Science" as Lucy. I would love to know more about her career and her mother was Maureen Knight (Silent Film Star). I even have a surprising collection of her publicity stills...what a mystery to some fans. Thanks for the great website. Kyle
