Review: Jeopardy

While on vacation with his parents in Mexico, young Lee Aaker (star of “Rin Tin Tin” apparently) fools around on a wonky pier, and when dad Barry Sullivan attempts to rescue the kid from a serious injury (I would’ve let the foolish little shit to fend for himself, it was his own dopey fault...but I digress), he himself becomes trapped under the wreckage, and at further risk of drowning. Racing against the clock (four hours or so until the tide comes in), Barbara Stanwyck (quite good in what must be said is a slightly uncharacteristic meek part) must go for help. What she finds is sleazy escaped crook Ralph Meeker, who wants Stanwyck to drive him out of trouble with the law, and then maybe, if he takes a mind to it, he might possibly help her. He might also help himself to the vulnerable (but ultimately resilient) woman. And she, in turn, might just do anything it takes to get her husband and son out of trouble.


Unlike most people (particularly Leonard Maltin), I reckon this uneven 1953 John Sturges B-movie (from the A-level director of “The Great Escape”, “Bad Day at Black Rock”, “The Magnificent Seven”, and “Gunfight at the OK Corral”) concludes much better than it begins, not the reverse. The climax is really the only part where anything much actually happens, the rest is just build up- or more honestly, padding. It all starts out too slowly, with nothing going on (and nowhere to go, unless you wanted the film to run about 20 minutes long), but perks up when slimy Meeker (doing a pretty fair Robert Mitchum I must say) finally joins the party.


Well-acted (Sullivan’s never been a fave of mine, but he works really well with the kid, and Stanwyck- a definite favourite of mine- does well opposite Meeker), economically directed (though Sturges has done much better), but there’s just not enough material here (even though it only goes for about 70 minutes), you keep waiting for it to soar and it never really gets there.


The screenplay is by Mel Dinelli (“The Spiral Staircase”), from a Maurice Zimm (“Creature from the Black Lagoon”, “The Prodigal”) radio play. Only if there’s absolutely nothing else on TV.



Rating: C+

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