The Houston Story

William Castle is not exactly a household name among movie directors and this film helps explain why. Cinematography is fair, but script tries to find reasons for the behavior of the characters, and it just does not work. Barbara Hale imitating Ritay Hayworth singing PUT THE BLAME ON MAME starts the movie rolling downhill and it never recovers. Hale is just not good enough for the part and the same goes for Gene Barry - his Fred Duncan is just too naif ever to be convincing as the criminal brain he purports to be. Frankly, I found the movie predictable and a waste of time.

The Houston Story is a slightly formulaic yet very entertaining film from William Castle of The House on Haunted Hill and The Tingler fame. The movie is about a young, ambitious oil-driller who involves himself with organized crime and double crosses his way to the top of his respective racket. Gene Barry turns out a solid performance as well as Perry Mason veteran Barbara Hale, who plays the femme fatale to a tee, always following the money and the man in charge. Hale is introduced in a very enjoyable song act that did the job of conveying her character as well as,if not better than, the writing did. Despite a few predictable scenes and some forced writing, The Houston Story is a thoroughly enjoyable film worth viewing. Also, watch for a few entertaining performances from Edward Arnold and Paul Richards.(remember Beneath the Planet of the Apes??)

Castle Directs with a Confident and Brightly Lit Tone with Suave Gene Barry, Playing Against Type as a Moving and Shaking Cad in the Oil Business. Another One of those "City" Exposes that Highlight said City's Underbelly. In this Film, since it's Mobbed-Up Oil Tycoons, Everyone Dresses-Up and the Dirty-Deeds are Done with Gangsters and Hit-Men far Removed from the Drug-Dens, Pool-Rooms, and Cat-Houses. Barry Gives a Sizzling Hyped-Up Performance, being the "New-Guy" in the "Organization" and has to Fight for Every Break. Barbara Hale is also Sizzling, but in another way, with a Platinum Blonde Doo and a Sexy Voice. She is a Vulnerable but Volatile Femme-Fatale. The Movie is Above Average for its Type that Contains a Good Script, Good Performances and Plenty of Brutal Violence. It's Formulaic to a Fault but Nevertheless Worth a Watch.

Oil driller Frank Duncan has an idea to steal oil worth millions. He goes through nightclub singer Zoe Crane to recruit Houston mobster Paul Atlas for the scheme. Atlas intends to double-cross him but Duncan intends to win in the end. This is a functional crime noir. I don't recognize any of the faces. The acting is fair. It's good that the lead character is a bad guy but still one worth rooting interest. The slap fight is kinda funny but I get the reason. The production looks good and the style is mostly fine.

Oil slick Gene Barry (as Frank Duncan) endeavors to siphon millions of dollars in Texas crude, but needs financing from organized crime. After platinum blonde "Put the Blame on Mame" singer Barbara Hale (as Zoe Crane) leads Mr. Barry to powerful mob boss Edward Arnold (as Paul Atlas), success is assured. So, will these characters learn that crime does not pay? This predictable, production-line crime story has more spark than the story suggests. As ably directed by William Castle, Barry injects his characterization with all the life he can manage; watching his amoral "Frank Duncan" steadfastly steer his own descent into depravity is somewhat fun. With nice girl Jeanne Cooper (as Madge) and others in the mix, "The Houston Story" adds up. ***** The Houston Story (2/56) William Castle ~ Gene Barry, Barbara Hale, Edward Arnold

"The Houston Story" is a film noir movie from director William Castle about an overly ambitious guy who wants to move too quickly up the ranks of organized crime. Gene Barry plays Frank Duncan, an oil worker who has dreams of being a big man. So he comes up with a scheme to do some slant drilling (in essence, drilling sideways instead of down) and tapping into other folks' oil claims. But he lacks the money to do this and makes a pitch to some guys in organized crime. After a short time, it becomes very apparent that Frank is pretty nutty as he wants to scheme to replace the hoods running this local deal. And, for a while it looks like he'll succeed....at first! This is a good, tough film. I enjoyed the dialog, the femme fatale and the story idea. But it also felt very rushed....as Frank goes from a nobody to a huge man too quickly and it just felt a bit ridiculous...though STILL a very good film...especially for noir fans.

Every time I see this movie, I can't prevent myself to think of another thriller from the 50's: "711 Ocean Drive", a little masterpiece directed by Joseph M Newman. The topic is nearly the same. A "honest" worker becomes greedy, ambitious, ruthless and implicates himself with gangsters, planning to take over crime syndicate. In this case, it concerns stealing oil.I find it unusual. A man who is not a thug at the beginning, that's the most interesting. Of course, what happens next is predictable. Gene Barry gives us a pretty brilliant performance. I recommend it. Catch it if you can.