DESTINATION BIG HOUSE. Republic Pictures, 1950. Dorothy Patrick, Robert Rockwell, Jimmy Lydon, Robert Armstrong. Director: George Blair.

   A schoolteacher alone in a mountain cottage helps a wounded man, not knowing he’s a racketeer on the run from the gang he’s double-crossed. When he dies, he leaves her his fortune of $80,000, much to her bewilderment and dismay.

   There is a bit of cynicism involved here, concerning the way small towns can turn on people, with just a hint of gossip. Other than that, a straightforward action thriller, with clear-cut motivation and nobody left guessing at the end who was doing what to who.