Old Blue Eyes Gone Bad

Suddenly
(1954) – A criminal gang comes to a small town to assassinate the
President.

Director:
Lewis Allen                                          Starring: Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden

Why
I Liked It: Can’t Take Your Eyes Off Old Blue Eyes

Let
me get one thing out of the way at the start. In the early days of
colorization (a terrible, blasphemous practice that should consigned
to the lowest rings of Hell. In my opinion), there was the Sinatra
movie that rendered his iconic blue eyes as brown. I mean, come on.
COME ON! The man’s nickname was Ol’ Blue Eyes, for the love of
all that’s holy. This is the movie. As a B movie the
only reason to spend the money to colorize it is that it stars
Sinatra (and the fact that it fell out of copyright). So what
incompetent boob….

(Deep
breath) I’m alright now. Give me a second to gather myself.

(I
HATE colorization. Seriously. Hate.)

This review is NOT of the…colorized version.

Anyway…

This
is a nothing little movie that no one would remember if it wasn’t
for Sinatra’s presence. It’s worth remembering because this is
the only time the singer ever played a villain. The other reason to
remember it is because of the chilling performance he gives. Here his
small stature, he was 5’7” and slim, give him a perfect look for
the insecure, would be assassin. He has the “little guy” vibe
going in every scene. Sinatra was a fine actor, and he takes an
undistinguished script and turns into something interesting.
Surrounded by serviceable supporting actors, there’s only one who
rivets your attention, and that’s Frank Sinatra.

With
a few exceptions, the action takes place inside a home on a hill
overlooking where the President will transfer from a train to a car.
My assumption is that this results from a tight budget, but it works
well. There’s a tight, claustrophobic feeling. No one can escape,
everyone focused on the single window where the killer’s rifle is
set. And then they wait. The family and others trying to stop the
assassination, while Sinatra and his gang begin the slow process of
falling apart under the pressure.

Like
most low budget movies, there are some clanging errors. The distance
to the house looking from the train tracks up the hills appears to be
much greater than the distance seen from the window looking down the
hill. One scene involves an electrocution that is improbable at best.
But the slow disintegration of Sinatra’s character makes the rest
worthwhile.

Rating
– *** Worth A Look