Die Falle von Tula (1959)

Die Falle von Tula: Directed by Norman Panama. With Richard Widmark, Lee J. Cobb, Tina Louise, Earl Holliman. In a remote Californian desert town, a lawyer arranges for a wanted mobster to skip the country via a small airstrip but the local sheriff and his deputy could pose a problem.

“Prodigal son (Widmark) must get top gangster (Cobb) across desert to justice despite opposition from gang and family rivalries. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePretty good suspenser if you can get past that over-long, over-done early scene where Widmark and Louise make moon-calf eyes at each other. After that the narrative settles into a decent contest of wits. One thing for sure—they didnu0026#39;t have to build many sets. Thereu0026#39;s a huge swath of desolate California desert the cars get to roll across, while Iu0026#39;m thirsty just watching this.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThereu0026#39;re maybe more family convolutions than the story needs. I expect much of that is to build up Tina Louiseu0026#39;s part. And what a dish she is, several years before Gilliganu0026#39;s Island. I will say they wisely de-glamorized her for the rustic part here. Itu0026#39;s a good cast, though the 46-year old Widmark is a little long-in-the-tooth for his role; plus, the great Lee J. Cobb has less to do than I would expect.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNonetheless, the premise plays out nicely in the abandoned diner and in that final twist that I didnu0026#39;t see coming. Thereu0026#39;s nothing special here, just an entertaining 90-minutes with a good cast and a big part of California that sure ainu0026#39;t Hollywood.”