Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

That was an excellent one.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

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

Nice DVD box artwork, yes? And I think Aldrich has an intriguing personal story. I have a good amount of respect for Aldrich's Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte, and I think Kiss Me Deadly is more intriguing then good. The Big Knife however is dreadful. So Aldrich has a spotty record.So how's The Grissom Gang? Feeble, amateurish, plodding, clichéd. The un-cast-able talents of Kim Darby are seen here. She's kidnapped before the credits (with a cheesy overdesigned typeface) are even over, and then the movie enters a holding pattern, before coming to a complete standstill. Some people hit the '70s and thrived. Others hit the '70s and it was all over.I picked this up this for $1.98 based on my esteem for Aldrich. There's still no way around it- it's terrible.

The Grissom Gang is the story of a criminal hillbilly family during the 1920's that kidnap the daughter of a millionaire and hold her for ransom. Unfortunately, what follows is one of the dullest gangster movies I have ever seen. It seems that Robert Aldrich tried to add some humor to the story which is also unfunny. None of the actors stand out as particularly good with the exception of Aldrich favorite Wesley Addy who I thought was quite good. The story is uninteresting and there is next to no action until the end at which point I was mostly just waiting to see the credits and be done. Aldrich is a fine director, but this is just not one worth watching. * out of ****

Robert Aldrich's lurid film has a lot going for it and a lot not going for it. On the plus side there is a dynamite performance by Kim Darby as a kidnap victim who may or may not be starting to enjoy her grim predicament. On the minus side, the gang of kidnappers, a Ma Barker-type and her motley brood, simply is not threatening ENOUGH to make you believe Darby is in a lot of danger. I couldn't help wondering why she didn't just up and leave. Another deficit is the TV-movie feel of the whole thing -- this is definitely NOT Aldrich's most stylish film. Irene Dailey is fine as the mother, but it would have been more fun had the role been played by Cloris Leachman or Shelley Winters. Featuring Scott Wilson, Tony Musante, Robert Lansing and, in a brief but foul-mouthed cameo, Connie Stevens!

This little gem of a film was treated as exploitation trash, but a fascinating kidnapping tale with unrequited love and dysfunctional family relations. Scott Wilson (so brilliant in In Cold Blood) is incredible as Slim, the lonely offbeat member of the gang who is somewhat understood (but very edgy). Throw in Kim Darby, Tony Musante, Irene Dailey (more demented than she was in Five Easy Pieces), and Joey Faye as Woppy, how wrong can you go?There's a good sense of time period. This film is nothing compared to Bonnie and Clyde, but closer to Thieves Like Us. Connie Stevens is an added attraction. Give these folks a chance. Rated 7 out of 10.