Perfect cast and a good story

Best movie ever!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

5 Minutes to LiveThe film opens with Vic Tayback getting the third degree in a police detective's office. He tells the cops, "It all started back in New Jersey were Johnny killed those two cops..." The film cuts away to a warehouse were two men are breaking in. A pair of cops pull up which starts a gun-battle that ends with one of the men, and both cops dead. The survivor is Johnny Cabot, who is played by Johnny Cash. He knows he is now hot, so he grabs his girl, and flees town for the west coast. He cools his heels in a rundown $2.50 a day motel outside of L.A. He starts to grow bored with his dolly and the lack of money.He jumps at the offer of a big payoff for a one day job when contacted by local heavy, Tayback. Tayback has the "perfect" plan. They are going to hit the largest of the local banks for no less than 70 grand. Cash asks as to how only the two of them could pull this off. Tayback lays it all out for him. They will grab the manager's wife as a hostage, and then threaten to kill her if the money is not handed over.Tayback tells Cash he has spent months planning the job and that nothing can go wrong. Cash is to grab the wife while Tayback goes to the bank to pay the manager, Donald Woods, a visit. Next morning they begin the caper. Cash poses as a door to door salesman to gain entry to the banker's house and get a grip on the wife. Tayback calmly enters the bank and asks to see the manager on an urgent matter. He is shown into Woods' office where he quickly fills in Woods on what he must do. Of course it turns out there is a fly in the ointment. It seems Woods has been getting some on the side and had planned to leave for Vegas that night with his new love. Woods sees no reason to pay! Tayback plays it cool and calls the house where Cash is holding the woman. "If you don't hear from me in 5 minutes, kill the woman!" Now the game of chicken starts, will Woods stand his ground or cave? Back at the house, Cash is having a grand old time smacking the wife around and destroying the furniture. Woods meanwhile has agreed to the terms and gets Tayback the money. Tayback tells Woods he will call from outside the bank and have Woods' wife released. Smooth as could be, Tayback heads for the exit. Another fly enters the picture as the guard recognizes Tayback from a poster and jumps him. To Woods horror several bystanders also pile on Tayback. Woods runs for the nearest phone and calls the police. At the house, Cash is enjoying himself so much he loses track of the time. The couples' son, Ronnie Howard, shows up just as the police do. Cash grabs the kid as a shield and runs out the back door. A quick exchange of gunfire and Cash is dispatched.The wife is played by Kay Forester who also wrote the screenplay. The director was Bill Karn. His claim to fame is that fun grade d film, MA BARKER'S KILLER BROOD. Despitethe low origins there are several things that make this film work. First, the cast is all quite good with Cash looking great as a gunman with a screw or two loose.Second is the overall look of the film which was lensed by Carl Guthrie. Guthrie worked on such film noir as, THE WOMAN IN WHITE, FLAXY MARTIN, BACKFIRE, THIS SIDE OF THE LAW, HIGHWAY 301 and CAGED. A neat little low, low, low budget gem. I loved it!

This film is obviously low, low budget from beginning to end. Yet, it has a very interesting story line and some decent acting.You can see why Johnny Cash was more successful as a singer than an actor, but he's not bad here. Although he carries a guitar with him throughout almost the entire film, he really doesn't do much singing. So those looking for a vehicle to showcase Cash's singing talents, might be a little disappointed.Vic Tayback does a good job as the hardened criminal mastermind. Cash does OK with his portrayal of a somewhat deranged killer for hire. Toss in a very young Ron Howard for some lighter moments. The rest of the acting is strictly B movie.The basic elements for a good thriller are here, but the production values are poor. Some parts of the dialogue are outright laughable. The overall effect is uneven, yet the story line does hold your interest. This would be a great movie for a modern remake with a real budget and good actors.

I think Johnny Cash could have made quite a career for himself in the movies. I know he did some acting. But, of course, we would have lost out on his music. This shows Johnny really young, with the slick black hair, a quick trigger, and a nut-case mentality. He has been hired by a professional bank robber to hold hostage the wife of a bank official. He taunts her, threatens her. He is truly psychotic. Early on, he shoots down his girlfriend in cold blood because she wants a piece of the action. The weakness in the movie isn't the acting; that's pretty good. It's the lame plot. The plot for the bank robbery is laughable. Vick Tayback sits in the bank and literally robs it without using a weapon and just walking into a safe with the husband. There is a subplot of phone calls among various people. I was interested to see what was going to happen, but it all seemed so implausible. There's also another subplot: the bank official husband is having an affair with a possessive woman. When you watch this, just think of the possible pitfalls. To enumerate them would give away too much. See for yourself.

This is a tough little movie. It would work quite well without names. But let's face it: The leading man is the draw. Johnny Cash, in 1961, looking a little like Elvis, as a ruthless killer. A killer, to be sure, who sings the title song and whom we see playing guitar.Donald Woods is a dead ringer for the Darren character in "Bewitched." He is a complacent suburban dad. Cay Forrester is just right as his upwardly mobile blonde wife. Ron Howard is very cute as their son. (And Pamela Mason turns in a good acting job but is a little implausible as Woods's mistress.) Before he got the job cooking for Alice, Tayback was apparently a crook. A pretty mean one, at that. And here, he has hired Cash to hold banker Woods's wife hostage. (Before he takes the job, Cash has to dump his girlfriend, the greedy Doris, AKA Dory.) For an obviously low budget movie, this does its job neatly. And it holds up very well 45 years after it was released.