The Long Wait

source: The Long Wait

Moviecut—The Long Wait

THE LONG WAIT is a lesser-known film noir of the era, made after the first wave was effectively done and dusted. Anthony Quinn is cast against type in this one in a Bogart-style as an amnesic hero trying to work out whether he himself is a villain or not. Sadly, this is something of a plodding little movie, light on action and suspense and heavy on the chit-chat. A great deal of the running time, too much in fact, is given over to Quinn's relationship with various women, some of whom are the usual femme fatales, while the bad guys seem particularly unimposing for the era. Passably entertaining, but if you're looking for oomph you won't find it here.

Im not a massive fan of Mr Quinn to begin with--- so it will be no surprise that i watched this so called noir movie with impedipous astonisdhment (ie) tthe banal dialogue and amatuer over acting throughout -the wooden actors trying to be realisticly dramaitc is truly laughable -the scritpt is total rubbish--& the story is so stupid-I fast forwarded most of the banal stuff but stoped now & then to relisih being gobsmacked how bad the movie actually was / is ect-- so if like me you enjoy watching a terrible movie to demolish it after wards wiih scathing reviews--- then you willl love this this movie trust me--ive just watched it on ( ff speed )--so Im actually going to watch it all over again later in the week to enjoy laughing even more at how banal it is -yes of course I gave it two stars for the amusement factor I got while viewing it thats only fair is it not ---

Sure had a long wait to see this having read the book. Its last showing on UK tv seems to have been well over half a century ago prior to it turning up on the indispensable Talking Pictures yesterday. So often a film you've long wanted to see turns out a disappointment, certainly not the case here. In one sense almost a classic Noir of an amnesiac trying to piece together his past, menaced by criminals and the law and becoming involved with four glamorous women, with the requisite Noir atmosphere enhanced by the lighting and Franz Planer's superb photography. On the other hand it also falls into the category of a lone individual taking on the crime syndicate that holds sway over the town. At the centre is a convincing, well-judged performance from Anthony Quinn as McBride, bringing what could have been a stock character to life, his quick-temper cooling as he starts to figure out what is going on. The stunning Peggie Castle, so unforgettable in the previous year's Spillane, I The Jury, features prominently in the slightly sadistic but most memorable scene toward the end.

It's worth every minute of the long wait in order to experience one of film noir's most indelible moments. A single, unforgettable set piece - stark, surreal, sensual and sadistic in equal measure. Opening with a crane shot, Anthony Quinn and Peggie Castle, battered and bruised by brutal bad boys (Gene Evans and Bruno DeSota), with no means of escape, seem about to bid a torturous farewell to the game of life. Castle, in particular, is stunning as the used and abused moll, bloodied and beleaguered, but demonstrating unquenchable defiance...... and it's not even the climax, which, when it arrives delivers an ironic twist, prior to the movie's playful romantic joker in the final scene. Quinn is the ultimate three time loser. Following a horrific road accident, he temporarily loses the use of his hands, loses his memory and discovering that he is a murder suspect, stands to lose his life. Fortunately, he hasn't lost his marbles. Moreover, having a head that's emptier than a hermit's address book, strangely works in Quinn's favour, quickening his thoughts, sharpening his awareness and heightening his survival instinct. His grim, relentless determination to clear his name, break the web of corruption which is strangling the town and find the killer, leads to close involvement with beautiful women of varied repute and to the bank where he was previously employed as a teller. A sadly neglected and under appreciated picture, of genuine weight and substance, my one minor misgiving is that so momentous a movie be marred by so mundane a moniker. Still, at least it's better than: The BIG Wait.... Just!

If you liked Mirage, rent The Long Wait. It came ten years earlier, but it feels like a poor man's Mirage. Anthony Quinn stars in the film adaptation of Mickey Spillane's novel. He survives a terrible car accident, with amnesia and burned hands as his souvenirs. He has no memory of his past, but when he finds out he's wanted for murder, he has to work quickly to prove his innocence. This is actually a pretty entertaining flick, with plenty of eye candy and good acting from Tony. The only detriments were the leading ladies in the film. They looked so much alike, I kept getting them confused, and their collective talent was maybe one tenth that of a normal actress. The only way I was able to excuse it was to believe they were all cast as favors to producers, and in the story, they all were supposed to look similar. Tony is trying to find a girl from his past, and he-and the audience-can't tell if she's Peggie Castle, Shirley Patterson, Dolores Donlon, or Mary Ellen Kay. I didn't really like being confused, but that was the point. Charles Coburn adds a bit of class to the movie and somewhat makes up for the lousy acting of the four women. Really, though, it's Tony's show. Without him, it would be a terrible B-picture with low energy and bad pacing. Tony's incapable of giving a low energy performance, and he adds a fantastic spice to the tension-filled scenes with the ladies. And if you're wondering how many of the girls he romances, the answer is all of them. Want to rent it now?

Girls, guns, fists, and fedoras abound in Mickey Spillane's hard-boiled yarn about an amnesiac (Anthony Quinn) who can't remember if he stole a quarter mil from his boss (a doddering Charles Coburn) or killed the town's D.A. ...not to mention the fact that his girl went and got plastic surgery, so he doesn't know who she is, either. Could it be Venus (a smoking hot Peggie Castle) or one of the other babes who swarm around the craggy Quinn like moths to a flame when he's not dodging bullets? Far-fetched fun for fans of obscure fifties noir with as much sex & violence as the Code allowed -and some of it is quite surreal, especially a bound & gagged Castle crawling across the floor as if in an S&M fever dream. Director Saville and leading lady Castle filmed Mickey Spillane's I, THE JURY the year before (in 3D, no less) but that "Mike Hammer" mystery was more of a sucker punch thanks to Biff Elliot's powder puff PI. It's too bad he and Tony hadn't traded films...

Once the dreadful title song is over this proves a surprising but welcome departure by Victor Saville into Mickey Spillane territory, which shares with 'Kiss Me Deadly' a formidable foursome of females (one of whom actually tells the hero "Oh mister! I haven't been kissed like that for a long, long time!" and a sense of humour that somewhat disqualifies it as a bona fide film noir. Anthony Quinn (who inevitably turns out to be called "Johnny" and finds himself surrounded by guys in big suits shooting at him) gains in assurance as the film progresses back in the days before winning his first Oscar turned his head.

Mickey Spillane's "The Long Wait" stars Anthony Quinn, Charles Coburn, Peggie Castle, and Gene Evans. Quinn plays Johnny McBride, who survives a horrible car crash but winds up with burned hands and amnesia. A clue leads him back to his home town where he, unbenownst to him, is wanted for the murder of the DA. And there seem to be people who don't want to ask too many questions. However, he learns one thing - a woman he knew back then, Vera West, who has left town, can tell him what actually happened. Johnny also learns that rumor has it that Vera, to escape the bad guys, has had complete plastic surgery and changed her name - but she's back in town with her new identity. Johnny meets several women, but which one of them if any, is Vera? Johnny proves himself a chick magnet as he becomes involved with each of these women, who work for a man named Servo - but Servo takes orders from someone else. Unfortunately for the viewer, the potential Veras looked alike and it was hard to tell them apart. They weren't familiar enough to this viewer to be able to tell them apart. The film has an amazing scene where a bound Peggie Castle crawls up to a tied-up Johnny, supposedly for a final kiss, but to get his gun. Stylish pulp for sure. This is a real Mike Hammer type of story - dames, brawls, and misogyny.