The Las Vegas Story

Plot synopsis:
Happy (Hoagy Carmichael), as the piano player at the Last Chance casino in Las Vegas, wonders what split up Linda Rollins (Jane Russell) and Dave Andrews (Victor Mature). Dave went off to fight in the South Pacific, but when he returned, Linda was gone. Happy soon finds out.
Linda reluctantly returns to Las Vegas by train when her husband Lloyd (Vincent Price) insists on vacationing there. Fellow passenger Tom Hubler (Brad Dexter) hurriedly gets off as well when the Rollins do. Linda discovers that her husband is in some kind of financial trouble, possibly criminal as well, and suspects he is trying to raise money by gambling. The first night, Lloyd insists she wear her necklace, appraised at $150,000, when they go out. She encounters Dave, now a lieutenant with the Sheriff's Department, who is initially none too pleased to see her again.
The next day, Hubler tries to become friendly with Linda at the hotel pool, but she brushes him off. He later informs Lloyd that he has been assigned by his insurance company to watch him and the necklace.
Lloyd obtains $10,000 credit with Clayton, owner of the appropriately named Last Chance casino, by putting up Linda's necklace, but inevitably loses it all gambling. He tries to get Clayton to advance him more credit, but is turned down. Early the next morning, Clayton is found stabbed to death, and the necklace is missing.
Dave arrests Lloyd. Lloyd tries to get his wife to provide him an alibi, but as she was with Dave at his home at the time, she cannot lie for him.
Dave, however, figures out the real killer's identity when Hubler slips up and reveals the location of the stabbing. After the murderer left, Clayton managed to try to reach the telephone before dying. Dave phones Linda to warn her, but Hubler finds out and kidnaps Linda. With roadblocks set up on all major highways and a description of his rented car, he steals another car, killing the owner when he objects. Dave takes a helicopter and spots the speeding vehicle. He and the pilot manage to force Hubler to leave the car at an abandoned base. Hubler wounds the pilot and forces Dave to throw out his gun by threatening to kill Linda, but after a chase and a fight, Dave is able to retrieve a gun and shoot Hubler dead.
Back in Las Vegas, Linda decides to break up with her husband and remain in Las Vegas. Lloyd is arrested for embezzlement and other charges.

Tags: murder

Review:
Las Vegas 1952 would have been the place to be so a film starring the beautiful Jane Russell being the affection of not one, not two, but three men made it a place that all men would want to visit.
Jane Russell who plays a former Las Vegas lounge singer named Linda Rollins and is currently married to an addictive gambler named Lloyd Rollins (played by Vincent Price) who prefers the crap tables to bedding his gorgeous wife Linda.Linda would prefer to avoid Las Vegas all together since her past memories have her in the arms of a recent army veteran named Dave Andrews (Victor Mature) who she abruptly left Las Vegas apparently never to see him again.
Now Dave Matthews is a Lieutenant with the Las Vegas police department and when Linda's expensive but insured diamond necklace goes missing and the slimy Fabulous Las Vegas casino owner is found murdered, it is up to Lieutenant Dave Matthews to find the killer and he has a couple of suspects in mind which include his former lover Linda Rollins and her husband Lloyd.I chuckled when I saw Victor Mature with his overly exaggerated broad shoulders (nothing that hidden shoulder pads under his suit jacket couldn't assist with) meeting his former lover the now unhappily married Linda Rollins.
There is an insurance investigator named Tom Hubler (Brad Dexter) also trailing the Rollins couple to ensure her very expensive diamond necklace stays safe but needless to say it vanishes under mysterious circumstances and the Fabulous casino owner is murdered on the floor of his own casino.The film was novel for its time having the early Las Vegas strip as the backdrop, the gorgeous lounge singer Jane Russell with her piano playing Hoagy Carmichael having one or two numbers to shine, an insurance investigator, a lieutenant of the Las Vegas police department and what film would not be complete without a despicable addicted gambler like Vincent Price?It is a decent crime/drama/romance film which holds up pretty well for being 66 years old..
Sadly, we learn today of the passing of Victor Mature.And while not receiving critical acclaim, The Las Vegas Story stands in my memory as an all-time favorite.Victor Mature, when coupled with Jane Russell make the screen absolutely 'sizzle'.
My Resistance Is Low. Substitute Victor Mature for the part that Robert Mitchum normally played in these RKO films of the Fifties and you've got The Las Vegas Story.
Jane's diamond necklace also is missing which is seen quite reasonably as a motive as Price said it was in the hotel safe.Things pretty much go as they normally do in these noir films, some good action sequences a nice car chase through an atomic bomb testing site in the end.What sets The Las Vegas Story apart is the presence of that old music master Hoagy Carmichael.
He and Russell end the film singing his Academy Award nominated song My Resistance Is Low.So will your's be once exposed to the talents of Hoagy Carmichael..
Jane Russell's performance in "The Las Vegas Story" couldn't really be classified as acting since most of what she does here is react in a series of carefully posed close-ups.
Russell's a former Vegas chanteuse who returns to her old digs after a stint in Palm Springs and a marriage to gambling-addict Vincent Price; she crosses paths again with ex-flame Victor Mature, now a police lieutenant, yet doesn't bat an eyelash when her hubby is eventually jailed on suspicion of murder.
Shady business man and compulsive gambler Vincent Price and luscious wife Jane Russell get off the trans-continental train they're on on their way to LA to do some gambling in Las Vegas.
As well there is another back story about Russell and Las Vegas detective Victor Mature, who seem to have met a while ago when she was a singer at a casino where Hoagy Carmichael is the long time pianist and band leader.
For my money, Price, Carmichael, and the vintage Vegas scenes are the only really compelling reasons to watch, except for a decent chase between a helicopter and a Mercury woody across the desert which leads to an interesting fight in an abandoned military base..
Jane Russell, (Linda Rollins),"Outlaw", was very pretty in 1952 and gave an outstanding performance as well as a singing act performed with Hoagy Carmichael (Happy) at the piano.
Linda is married to a gambling con-artist named Lloyd Rollins, (Vincent Price) who is hitting rock bottom with large gambling debts and tries for a big break at the Casion's in Las Vegas.
However, Victor Mature,(Lt. Dave Andrews) knows Las Vegas and the people behind the scenes who informed him that Lloyd Rollins was in town to start some trouble in the Casion's.
Russell, Mature and Carmichael make this a very entertaining film with murder and plenty of old time tunes.
(Minor Spoilers) On their way to L.A from Boston Mr Llyod Rollins, Vincent Price,insists to his wife Linda, Jane Russell,on stopping at Las Vages to relax and play at the dice table in the Fabulous Casino/Hotel.
Meanwhile Linda runs into an old flame Dave Andrews, Victor Mature, who she left when he was sent to the Pacifice during WWII.Dave, to Linda's surprise and regret, is not only living in Vages where she met him when she was a singer at "The Last Chance" casino but he's an officer in the Las Vegas police Dept and in charge of the Vegas Strip where the casinos are located.
Who's job it is to make sure that Linda's necklace is safe and sound being that it's insured for $150,000.00 by the company that he works for.All these stories come together when Clyton is later found murdered at the his place with the casino's daily cash profits missing.
Needless to say, Russell and Mature ultimately get to rekindle their affair, but the path runs far from smoothly: apart from their own mutual resentment, Price does not look favourably upon his wife's former conquests, while complicating things further is the expensive necklace Price uses as a guarantee in order to try his luck at one of the leading casinos (which is being closely watched by insurance investigator Dexter).
As for Price, he is ready to pay the price {sic} of his own criminal activity back home i.e. embezzlement.The film is reasonably enjoyable, with most of the expected noir elements intact – including its fair share of hard-boiled dialogue, not to mention having Russell and Carmichael warble a number of songs – but the contrived scripting (by Earl Felton and Harry Essex, who ought to have known better!), cornball attempts at comedy (mainly having to do with Sheriff Flippen betting what Mature's next move will be with respect to both solving the case and sorting out his private life!) and an incongruous sentimental streak (clearly evoking CASABLANCA {1942} in the subplot involving a couple of underage elopers!) prevent the promising mixture from rising to greater heights..
So what's going to happen when the former lovers meet as they must, especially when a valuable necklace disappears and a casino murder complicate things.The movie promotes Vegas's strip at a time when the town was emerging as a gambling-vacation center.
Like another viewer, I was reminded by this sequence of the work of Alfred Hitchcock, and wondered if it could have served as an inspiration for the famous "crop-duster" scene in "North by North-West".The leading man, Victor Mature as Dave, gives a rather static, wooden performance; he tended to be better in historical dramas in which his impressive physique and screen presence made him stand out.
Dull crime film is greatly elevated by glamorous the Jane Russell as a former torch singer returning to Las Vegas with her rich husband, a charming Vincent Price, only to encounter her old flame, police detective Victor Mature, who both run afoul Vegas thug Brad Dexter.
"The Las Vegas Story" was produced by Howard Hughes at RKO (who famously produced Russell's scandalous western "The Outlaw") and was directed by journeyman director Robert Stevenson, who later directed a number of pictures at Disney including classics like "Mary Poppins" and "Bedknobs and Broomsticks" to lesser Disney fare like "The Gnome-Mobile" and "In Search of the Castaways," so it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that this film lacked any real creative spark.
Overall, "The Last Vegas Story" does offer an exciting climax involving a helicopter chasing a car and a shootout at an airport hanger, but other than that, it's all quite bland (outside of the never bland Ms. Russell)..
A love triangle story of an investment broker (turned gamble-looser), his wife who is a singer, and her ex-man (a local cop), all of whom tied together in a murder of the casino owner in Las Vegas.
Beautiful lounge singer Jane Russell (as Linda) returns to Las Vegas with gambling husband Vincent Price (as Lloyd Rollins), then gets involved with former boyfriend and local lieutenant Victor Mature (as Dave Andrews).
Later on, Carmichael wrote two tunes for Russell to sing in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1953).**** The Las Vegas Story (1/1/52) Robert Stevenson ~ Jane Russell, Victor Mature, Vincent Price, Hoagy Carmichael.
THE LAS VEGAS STORY is a typical film noir featuring the usual '50s staples of cops, robbers, fences, gamblers, and the inevitable femme fatale, this time around played by the flame-haired Jane Russell (who I never liked much, but there you go).
For much of the running time this is a three-hander between dedicated cop Victor Mature, gambler Vincent Price, and the latter's wife, played by Russell.The Las Vegas backdrop is a lively one but there's a lot of sub-romance stuff going on which drags the pace down somewhat, and the sub-plot about a pair of teenage lovers is hardly gripping material either.
Mature seems to be sleepwalking through his role, although Russell works hard and Price is immediately likable (although I'm spoilt by his horror roles and wished he could have been a bit more, well, macabre).Things eventually pick up when murder enters the frame, which leads to a breathtaking extended chase climax involving helicopters, high rise stunts, and more besides.
A fine cast including Vincent Price, Jane Russell,Victor Mature and Brad Dexter make this an entertaining watch.
The Las Vegas story isn't a classic by any means but it is always good to watch legends of the screen and so for me this was an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours..
A poor man's Casablanca but this movie is a messy hybrid of a murder mystery and musical romance.Howard Hughes continues with his obsession of Jane Russell who plays former Vegas crooner Linda.
She has returned reluctantly to Vegas with her wealthy husband Lloyd Rollins (Vincent Price) wearing an expensive necklace and Lloyd with a need to gamble after receiving a startling telegram.Hot on the heels is an insurance man (Brad Dexter) following them and Linda meets up with her ex boyfriend (Victor Mature) who left to fight the war and is now working in Vegas as a detective which includes hanging around casinos and stopping under aged runaways from getting married.However Lloyd has accumulated gambling debts, the necklace has gone missing and the nasty casino owner ends up dead with Lloyd as the prime suspect.All this plus songs and tunes from Hoagy Carmichael playing the resident entertainer Happy.
Even Linda finds time to join in for a song.A surprisingly decent acting display by Mature, Price is a scene stealer without camping it up and Russell effortlessly provides the beauty.
Jane Russell is OK to look at and Vincent Price gives a Good, if Typical, Villainous Performance.
Although it's ostensibly a murder mystery, "The Las Vegas Story", with its romantic sub-plot, musical interludes and action-packed finale looks more like a movie that was conceived as a "piece of entertainment" with something for everyone.
If it was indeed designed to appeal to a mass audience, it clearly failed because it didn't turn out to be a commercial success but the finished product is undeniably entertaining, primarily because of its all-star cast and Hoagy Carmichael's songs.Ex-nightclub singer Linda Rollins (Jane Russell) reluctantly returns to Las Vegas at the insistence of her wealthy husband Lloyd (Vincent Price).
To this end, Lloyd gets Linda to flaunt her $150,000 necklace at "The Fabulous" casino but the manager is still only prepared to offer him $10,000 credit.Linda's discomfort at returning to her hometown is obvious and after Lloyd encourages her to go ahead and get her past out of her system, she visits "The Last Chance" where she used to work and reminisces briefly about singing with the establishment's pianist, Happy (Hoagy Carmichael) and regularly being watched by a soldier who always sat at the same table.
She's pleased when she meets Happy again and as they play one of their old numbers together, Dave, who's now a local police detective walks in and is less than happy to see the woman who he still carries a torch for but who had also ended their relationship so cruelly.After Lloyd uses up all his credit at "The Fabulous" and is asked to leave, he uses Linda's necklace as security to get further credit at "The Last Chance" with the agreement of its owner Mr Clayton (Robert J Wilke).
A scene in which a helicopter flies through a hangar and another in which Victor Mature is seen jumping to the ground from a great height are particularly impressive and well-shot.Stevenson also contributes to the movie's overall characteristic of exploiting Jane Russell's presence to the full by drawing attention to her looks and physique at every possible opportunity.
Victor Mature and Jane Russell also do well and Hoagy Carmichael's contributions, both as an affable character and for the quality of a couple of his songs ("I Get Along Without You Very Well" and "My Resistance Is Low"), adds a great deal of enjoyment and charm to the whole proceedings..
"The Las Vegas Story" unhappily teams Jane Russell with a 'beautiful hunk of man' (Victor Mature) in a poor romantic-triangle crime story, unfortified by the Nevada gambling capital backdrop...The plot is about a former café singer Jane who has been wed to a New York investment broker (Vincent Price).
Jane - with a shady past - is unwilling to stop at Las Vegas, because years before, when she had been a singer at the downtown Last Chance Club, she fell in love with Mature of the U.S. Air Force who went overseas without asking her to wed him...
The sleazy picture ends with Price turning out to be wanted back in New York on embezzlement and grand theft charges, which leaves Jane free to remain in Vegas, to take back her old singing job, divorce Price, and revive her old relationship with Mature...In the course of the picture Jane sung 'I Get Along without You Very Well' and 'My Resistance Is Low.' Much more effective as musical-interlude relief from the tedious plot is Hoagy Carmichael's number, 'The Monkey Song.'.
Reading posts on IMDb's Film Noir board,I found an excellent review for a Noir whose title sounded familiar.Checking my TV recordings,I found that it had recently aired in a double bill of rare Jane Russell movies, (the other being the easy-going Adventure flick Underwater!) which led to decided it was time to splash out in Vegas.The plot:Since walking out on Las Vegas, Linda Rollins has kept her back turned on ever looking back at the past.
Treating his wife to a glistering necklace,Lloyd bets everything with the necklace,and loses it all (with casino owner Clayton not wiling give him a second chance.) Getting a call the next day,Andrews (who is now a cop) discovers that Clyton has been killed,and an expensive necklace has gone missing.View on the film:Gliding back to Vegas, Jane Russell (who looks very glamorous in the lavish dresses) gives her Femme Fatale Linda an elegant,playful edge,which becomes fully revealed in songs smoothly performed by Russell,who clouds Linda with an unease about being reunited with her past.
A perfect match for Linda/Russell, Vincent Price gives a deliciously wicked performance as Lloyd,whose sharp exchanges with Linda, Price twist and turns into a mix of comedic and Film Noir menace.Caught between the couple, Victor Mature gives a firm, stoic performance as Andrews,but struggles to find breathing room between Russell and Price.Sliding like Flubber from live-action Disney flicks to Film Noir,director Robert Stevenson & cinematographer peel open the haunted Vegas past of Linda in stylish overlapping images that roll a ghostly atmosphere into the casino.
Victor Mature gives a real teak-and-leather performance as the male lead; he looks a little like Jerry Orbach, but he has all the charisma of a side of sweaty beef, and hangs like a dead weight in all the scenes he's in, particularly those with Jane Russell.
Despite the script, Vincent Price is pretty good, segueing from cheerful husband to cold, desperate gambler effortlessly, but he seems to get lost halfway through the film.Shining out amongst all this mediocrity is Jane Russell, probably the most wasted film actress of her time.
Like many films of the period, it includes a couple of musical numbers, totally unnecessary but here rather well done (the first, as a piano tune triggers a memory in Russell of her time as a singer, actually has more emotional impact than any of the dialogue scenes).
Routine crime drama with Jane Russell as a singer, disillusioned with life due to her marriage to gambler Vincent Price, who has a lot of other things on their mind.
The two stop off in Las Vegas, where Russell used to sing at gambling place and play lover to Victor Mature, a cop on the local force.When Price experiences a losing streak at the tables, he borrows on Russell's expensive piece of jewelry.
As it turned out the film itself wasn't too hard to take with, apart from the three leads - Victure Mature, Jane Russell, Vincent Price had nice turns from the likes of Will George and Brad Dexter.