Henry Beckman Movies

Belated honeymooners Polly (Jean Peters) and Ray Cutler (Casey Adams) arrive at their Niagara Falls cottage only to find that Rose (Marilyn Monroe) and George Loomis (Joseph Cotten) have not yet checked out. Though the Cutlers temporarily take another cabin, the lives of the two couples are bound together for the next two days. Polly discovers that Rose is having an affair and that George, though emotionally unstable, has good reason for his jealous rage. George accurately suspects that Rose openly flaunts her sexuality to make him act crazy in front of witnesses. This is part of Rose's plan: her lover Patrick (Richard Allan) will kill George and make it look like suicide or a disappearance. Instead, George kills Patrick, and he returns to kill Rose, but finds Polly instead. As she had been sympathetic to him, he asks her not to tell anyone that he is alive so he can simply disappear. But, realizing that he wants to kill Rose, Polly informs the police. What follows is escalating terror, with George stalking Rose, Rose desperately trying to leave town, the police searching for both of them, and finally George and Polly adrift in a boat heading for the precipice. In Henry Hathaway's Technicolor film noir, Niagara Falls serves as an apt metaphor for the destructive power of out-of-control carnal and murderous obsessions. ~ Steve Press, Rovi

Director Alfred Hitchcock lets us know from the outset that The Wrong Man is a painfully true story and not one of his customary fabricated suspense yarns, through the simple expedient of walking before the camera and telling us as much (this introductory appearance replaced his planned cameo role as a nightclub patron). The real-life protagonist, musican Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero, is played by Henry Fonda. Happily married and gainfully employed at the Stork Club, Balestrero's life takes a disastrous turn when he goes to an insurance office, hoping to borrow on his wife's (Vera Miles) life insurance policy in order to pay her dental bills. One of the girls in the office spots Balestrero, identifying him as the man who robbed the office a day or so earlier. This, and a few scattered bits of circumstantial evidence, lead to Balestrero's arrest. Though he's absolutely innocent, he can offer no proof of his whereabouts the day of the crime. Lawyer Frank O'Connor (Anthony Quayle) does his best to help his client, but he's up against an indifferent judicial system that isn't set up to benefit the "little man". Meanwhile, Balestrero's wife becomes emotionally unhinged, leading to a complete nervous breakdown. As Balestrero prays in his cell, his image is juxtaposed onto the face of the actual criminal-who looks nothing like the accused man! Utilizing one of his favorite themes-the helplessness of the innocent individual when confronted by the faceless bureaucracy of the Law-Hitchcock weaves a nightmarish tale, all the more frightening because it really happened (the film's best moment: Fonda looking around the nearly empty courtroom during his arraignment, realizing that the rest of the world cares precisely nothing about his inner torment). Hitch enhances the film's versimilitude by shooting in the actual locations where the real story occured. His only concession to Hollywood formula was the half-hearted coda, assuring us that Mrs. Balestrero eventually recovered from her mental collapse (she sure doesn't look any too healthy the last time we see her!) Watch for uncredited appearances by Harry Dean Stanton, Bonnie Franklin, Tuesday Weld and Charles Aidman. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Magazine critic Bartlett Finchley (Richard Haydn) despises all things mechanical, from electric typewriters to refrigerators. Such is his invective against machinery that, inevitably, all the machines in his household band together and turn against him. This was one of those "you can see the end coming a mile away" episodes that tended to weaken Twilight Zone's second season. First telecast October 28, 1960, "A Thing About Machines" was written by Rod Serling. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Leaning heavily on violence to ostensibly deliver a pacifist message, this standard drama by Philip Leacock looks at the problem of teen gangs from a slightly different angle -- these teens are all wealthy. Everything starts off when aerospace engineer Walt Sherill (Alan Ladd) is accosted and severely beaten by a group of young punks. The victimized man decides to hunt down the thugs on his own, at first just for curiosity and then increasingly for vengeance. His actions spark retaliatory measures, and before the credits roll, the body count is elevated by a few more victims in what amounts to nothing more than a blood feud. In the end, justice of the legal and politically correct sort makes a token appearance. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Schoolteacher and maritime historian Philip Andrews (Jeremy Slate) incurs the wratch of shipping-company owner Ben Farraday (Herbert Rudley) when he insists that Evelyn Farraday (Joan Patrick), Philip's fiancee and Ben's niece, deserved a portion of the company's profits. It inevitably follows that Ben is murdered and Philip is charged with the crime. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must wade through a morass of corporate intrigue and sibling rivalry to save his client and expose the real killer. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Seeking a brief respite from the Earth's variable oxygen, Martin (Ray Walston) climbs to the top of a water tower--and is immediately mistaken for a would-be suicide. Apprehended by the authorities and forced to see psychiatrist Dr. Bonnett (Frank Behrens), Martin attempts to wriggle out of the situation by reading the therapist's mind so that he will be certain to give the "right" answers. Unfortunately, Dr. Bonner's mind isn't on his work...and before long, the traditional doctor-patient roles are reversed! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Arrested for a traffic violation in a small town, Kimble (David Janssen), alias "Bill Carter," finds himself sharing a cell with Davy "Fatso" Lambert, who'd been hauled in on a charge of public drunkenness. Friendless and completely lacking in self-esteem, Davy pathetically latches onto Kimble when the latter breaks out of jail. Upon reaching Davy's hometown, Kimble is surprised to discover that his companion is from a wealthy family, whose members--except for his loyal mother (Glenda Farrell)--treat Davy with hostility and disdain. At the risk of his own freedom, Kimble endeavors to patch up the cracks in the Lambert family unit. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A sudden flareup of sunspots wreaks havoc on Martin's metabolism, to say nothing of his special powers. As a result, Martin (Ray Walston) begins levitating, then shrinking, and finally disappears completely from view. Five days later, and Martin has still not reappeared--and worse, circumstantial evidence has begun to pile up suggesting that Tim (Bill Bixby) has bumped off his "Uncle" for his insurance money! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Condemned as being a "disappointing" and "unworthy" Alfred Hitchcock effort at the time of its release, Marnie has since grown in stature; it is still considered a lesser Hitchcock, but a fascinating one. Tippi Hedren plays Marnie, a compulsive thief who cannot stand to be touched by any man. She also goes bonkers over the sight of the color red. Her new boss, Mark Rutland (Sean Connery) is intrigued by Marnie -- to such an extent that he blackmails her into marriage when he stumbles onto her breaking into his safe. Rutland is in his own way as "sick" as his wife because of his fetishist desire to cohabit with a thief. After innumerable plot twists and turns, Marnie is "cured" by a facile but mesmerizing flashback sequence involving her ex-hooker mother (Louise Latham). Among the critical carps aimed at Marnie was the complaint that the studio-bound sets -- particularly the waterfront locale where the film ends -- were tacky and artificial; curiously, this seeming "carelessness" adds to the queasy, off-setting mood that Hitchcock endeavored to sustain. Even when the direction seems to falter, the film is buoyed by the driving musical score of Bernard Herrmann (his last for Hitchcock). Among the supporting actors in Marnie are Mariette Hartley as a secretary and Bruce Dern as a sailor; twelve years later, Dern would star in Hitchcock's final film, Family Plot. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Eddie (Butch Patrick) would like to make the school track team, but unfortunately everyone is faster than he is. In order to help Eddie qualify, Herman (Fred Gwynne) volunteers his services as athletic coach--and as usual he bungles the assignment. Meanwhile, Grandpa (Al Lewis) tries to solve the dilemma by conjuring up a "speed pill" (no, not THAT kind of "speed"). Featured in the cast is Emmaline Henry, who would soon be seen as Mrs. Bellows on another fantasy-based sitcom, I Dream of Jeannie. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this comedy, another entry in the slapstick series based on a popular TV show, meek little Ensign Parker finds himself getting promoted for no apparent reason. He gets himself rip-roarin' drunk one night and finds himself wearing an Air Force uniform and mistaken for a big-wig. He continues to mess up, but to no avail, no matter what he does, he continues to get promoted. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Contacted by a man claiming to be a US intelligence agent, lawyer Ward Toyama (James Shigeta) uses his influence with his father's export firm to help the self-proclaimed spy deliver a top-secret cargo to the Middle East. As a result, Toyama becomes innocently involved in an illegal gun-running operation--and worse, he is charged with the murder of Frank Jones, alias Frank Jensen (Douglas Henderson). Coming to Toyama's rescue is his old friend and colleague Perry Mason (Raymond Burr). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi