Mon 24 Feb 2025
A Movie Review by Jonathan Lewis: PICKUP ALLEY (1957).
Posted by Steve under Crime Films , Reviews[5] Comments
PICKUP ALLEY. Columbia Pictures, 1957. Victor Mature, Anita Ekberg, Trevor Howard, Bonar Colleano. Directed by John Gilling.
Victor Mature portrays Charles Sturgis, a federal narcotics agent tasked with bringing down the enigmatic Frank McNally (Trevor Howard), a man also responsible for the death of his sister. Sturgis travels widely – there are a lot of shots of planes taking off and landing – in order to bring McNally to heel.
There are a couple of subplots, but essentially the gist of the film is about a federal agent seeking to bring a devious international criminal to justice. Sounds compelling enough, right?
Let me be blunt. For an international thriller, Pickup Alley aka Interpol is remarkably unadventurous. Dull, even. Part of this is Mature’s fault. But the script doesn’t help, either. Sure, you have the on location shots of Lisbon, Rome, Athens, and other cities.
And then you’ve also got Anita Ekberg as a drug courier tasked with moving heroin from city to city. That must count for something too, right? Sadly, no.
When all is said and done, this British crime film punches well below its weight and remains a case of ‘what might have been’ had the producers used the locations more to their benefit.
Overall assessment: a structurally sound film with a not particularly captivating story about the international narcotics trade.
February 24th, 2025 at 11:59 pm
Jon, I am not disputing anything you have written, but as an extra added attraction, this is a Warwick picture and they are all below par.
February 25th, 2025 at 5:23 am
The films of Director Gilling often spent promising ideas on remarkably muted movies, and this is the only film of co-writer A J Forrest, but the writing is also credited to John Paxton, whose credits include MURDER, MY SWEET, CROSSFIRE and THE WILD ONE.
Go figure.
February 25th, 2025 at 8:50 am
Although the film was based on the 1955 nonfiction book INTERPOL by A. J. Forrest, a novelization by “Edward Ronns” (Edward S. Aarons, best known for his lengthy series of 42 books about CIA AGENT SAM DURELL) was published by Avon Books in advance of the film’s release.
February 25th, 2025 at 10:36 am
A short list of things I did not know before about this film and book it was based on. Thanks, guys!
February 28th, 2025 at 11:46 pm
Trevor Howard is the best part of the film, otherwise it meanders a bit, not that I wouldn’t want to read the novelization.
I like it a little better than the general reviews here, but first saw it much younger with less critical eyes when it was closer to the standard exotic thriller of the time.