They Made Me a Killer

Plot synopsis:
Tom Durling quits his job and drives across country after his brother is killed in an accident. He gives an attractive girl a ride and he's forced at gun point to be the driver in a bank robbery. During the crime, Steve Reynolds, another innocent man is involved and killed in the escape. After a high-speed chase, the car crashes and Durling is knocked unconscious while the bandits get away. The police arrest Durling but refuse to believe that he wasn't one of the robbers.
Durling escapes the police then later teams with Reynolds' sister in an attempt to prove his innocence. The trail leads to a small roadside diner where the two end up finding the gang hiding out in the building's basement. They go undercover, she as a waitress and Durling joining the gang. In the end, they trick the criminals into confessing their crimes. Durling's reputation is saved, and the criminals, led by a Ma Barker-type mom, get shot up.

Tags: murder

Review:
Forgotten Noir Is Memorable.
Satisfying noir B-feature that does everything it needs to do in little more than an hour.
The screenwriter billed here as Geoffrey Homes (Daniel Mainwaring) was the screenwriter and original novelist of Build My Gallows High/Out of the Past, and also wrote The Big Steal and Baby Face Nelson among others.
The dialogue is clipped and menacing ("We'll bump him on the way," one of the heavies says casually) and the often claustrophobic spaces are used to good effect.
Robert Lowery, who played Batman in the 1948 movie serial, has the right air of the doomed noir hero initially caught between the hard-bitten gangster's moll and femme fatale, Betty, (portrayed perfectly by Lola Lane,) and the innocent and beautiful schoolteacher, June (Barbara Britton), who eventually decides to help him prove his innocence after he is unwittingly embroiled in a bank robbery which leaves two dead.
The cast is uniformly good, and the tension never lets up.
The DVD I saw was in very poor condition; I hope someone will set about restoring this film to its full glory.
As Lem Dobbs said on the commentary to Double Indemnity: "There's no such thing as a bad film noir." This low-budget gem proves him right..
Post War Crime Programmer.
Traveling from Chicago to California, Tom Durling (Robert Lowery) finds himself framed for robbery and murder when he is duped into driving the getaway car for a bank heist.
After an auto crash leaves Durling holding the bag with the legal authorities, he quickly escapes after being arrested and sets out to prove his innocence with the help of the slain bank teller's sister (Barbara Britton).They Made Me a Killer was another of the low budget film fare from Pine-Thomas Productions which at the time was the B movie arm of Paramount Pictures.
Pine-Thomas was known for making movies fast, cheap and profitable.
At a compact 64 minute run-time, there isn't much in the way of character development.
It's more a quick-fire series of events.
Given it's slapdash nature you have to suspend some degree of belief and just enjoy the ride.
Even though succinct, the script is really pretty clever and lively.
'Killer' doesn't quite have the same level of mood and ambiance as a movie like 'Detour', a movie of similar style and budget.
This is largely due to the rapid pace.
There really aren't any wasted or meandering scenes as Durling with single purpose tracks down those who set him up.The cast plays it all pretty well and Lowery does a nice job as the framed-up scapegoat.
While not likely to find it's way to many must see lists, 'They Made Me a Killer' is one of the better of the old cheapie crime flicks.6 out of 10*.
Her lingo gives her away.
Robert Lowery who did a few of those Pine-Thomas B films for Paramount stars in this one and he's played for a fool by Lola Lane and tricked into being the getaway driver in a bank robbery.
A cop is killed and a bank employee who Lane was romancing to get some inside information on the bank is also killed.When the cops catch up with Lowery he's in one big jackpot but manages to escape police custody rather cleverly I thought and he teams up with Barbara Britton who is the sister of the dead bank employee.
They have to find the gang in order to prove their innocence.Lowery is always a good hero in these films, he never quite made it to the A ranks as a star.
One to watch out for is Elizabeth Risdon who plays a Ma Barker type who is the real mastermind.As for the gang, fortunately Lola Lane uses jargon from her job which Lowery recognizes and is able to trace them.
Good thing he recognized her slang or he and Britton would still be looking.They Made Me A Killer is a nicely done action/noir type film..
Reaching for Noir.
The plot's pretty conventional, but with an unusual wrinkle .
An innocent guy is trapped into helping bank robbers execute a robbery, and now the cops are chasing him.
As the pursuit goes on, he joins the robbers in their hiding spot.
Now the question is which way will he go.
Will he join the crooks or work with a girl friend to clear himself.Hard to believe veteran leading man Lowery could work up such energy for a programmer considering he'd done about a hundred of them.
In fact it's his energy and the glowing freshness of Barbara Britton that carry the film.
Then too, Lowery's character, Durling, is none too moral, meaning he's really tempted to join the bad guys once he's on the lam.
And that amounts to a good, human touch from outstanding scripter Dan Mainwaring.
It also helps that director Thomas keeps things moving, though the corner shoot-out and the hospital escape appear awkwardly done.
Add to the mix a fine supporting cast, especially spider woman Lane and housemother Risdon.
But please tell me, where did wardrobe get that fur-collared overcoat that's about to swallow Lane's head and then maybe the world!Looks like this is one of those 40's B's that was reaching for noir while remaining within the crime story genre.
Anyway, the minor touches manage to lift results to the slightly-better- than-average category.(In passing—I'd long thought the name Byron Barr in cast lists referred to an early Gig Young, the former being his real name, the latter his stage name.
However, in researching this film, I discover there was in fact a second actor named Byron Barr who kept his original name, and he's the one in this movie.
Of course, Gig Young remains the much better known of the two.).
Tom Durling (Robert Lowery) is tricked into becoming the getaway driver for a bank robbery.
His car crashes and he is left unconscious while the gang flees.
He is arrested but escapes and teams up with June (Barbara Britton) in order to prove his innocence and track down the gang responsible....This film has 'B' movie written all over it.
It takes you on a journey.
It does it quickly and effectively with no dwelling on circumstance.
It's one scene after another.
The result is that you watch and then the film finishes.
There is no feeling of any sort whatsoever once the film has finished.
It's fast paced with a hilarious moment at the beginning of the film when Tom makes his escape from the hospital.
Just watch how he treats poor Steve (Byron Barr) who is at death's door in a hospital bed.
He has just tried to prove to the police that he has a good relationship with this man.
It's priceless!
The film isn't great quality and it's hard to see on occasion because of the lighting.
It passes the time but nothing more..
neat little thriller.
Surprising neat little indy action thriller from the Pine-Thomas unit that holds up pretty well.
Man on the move (Lowery) gets tricked into participating in a crime.
He's arrested and then escapes, determined to clear his name and that of another innocent party.
Britton is the girl who believes him and tries to help.
The writing (Daniel Mainwaring of Out of the Past) is perfectly fine if not exactly Chandleresque; the sets are cheesy but completely appropriate to the story.
The acting is fine.
The director moves it right along.
I was surprised how well it holds up.
Watch for later Academy Award winner Gig Young using his name Byron Barr appearing briefly as an innocent bystander who gets shot.
Low budget but no apologies needed..
Low Rent Noir Programmer.
THEY MADE ME A KILLER 1946A low rent programmer put out by Pine-Thomas and released through Paramount Pictures.
This low rent noir drama was made by the "Dollar Bills", William Thomas and William Pine.
The two Bills were known to be tight with a buck as they churned out low-budget fare for the bottom of the double feature.
They were so good at this that they ended up in charge of the b-film unit at Paramount studios.Robert Lowery, Barbara Britton and Lola Lane headline this quickie.
Lowery is a mechanic from Chicago who decides to move to L.A. He loads up his car and heads for the big sunshine.
His money however runs out and he needs to sell his car for some ready cash.
He stops at a town to see what he can get for his heap.
Lowery is soon approached by Lola Lane with an offer to buy his car.
But they need to wait till the next day because her boyfriend has the money.
Lowery agrees and they all meet the next morning outside the local bank.
The deal though is not the one Lowery was hoping for.
Lane's boyfriend, and his brother, Ed MacDonald and James Bush are really bank hold-up men.
Lowery has been tricked into being the getaway driver for a bank robbery.
Two men, a cop and a bank employee are shot with the Policeman being killed.
The bank employee is taken to hospital in serious shape.
Needless to say Lowery ends up in Police custody while Lane and the other two make good their getaway.
Nobody believes a word of his story about being forced into the crime.
Lowery is sure the bank employee can clear him.
But of course the man dies before he can do this.
Lowery manages to get in a couple of quick punches and hotfoot it into the night.
The rest of the tale involves Lowery getting hooked up with the dead bank worker's sister, Barbara Britton.
He convinces her to help clear his name as well as find her brother's killers.
The clues lead them to a roadside diner ran by Elizabeth Risdon.
Risdon just happens to be the mother of the two men Lowery and Britton are looking for.
There are a few exchanges of flying fists and lead needed before everything is put right.Not great, but, by no means is it a waste of time.
It moves right along with only a 64 minute runtime.
The director was William Thomas.
By directing their own productions, Pine and Thomas increased their bottom line.
The d of p was long time b-film and television man, Fred Jackman.
Jackman worked in the industry from 1935 till 1981.What is really of note here, is the writers, Geoffrey Homes (Daniel Mainwaring) and Winston Miller.
Mainwaring is well known to film noir fans for doing the story or screenplays to, THIS WOMAN IS DANGEROUS, THE BIG STEAL, THE LAWLESS, THE TALL TARGET, ROADBLOCK, PHENIX CITY STORY, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, THE GUNRUNNERS and of course, OUT OF THE PAST.
Winston Miller worked on the westerns, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE, STATION WEST, RELENTLESS, Carson CITY, RUN FOR COVER and BOUNTY HUNTER..
An enjoyable B, but nothing all that special.
This is a pretty decent film even though it is clearly a B-movie--and with a B-movie cast.
Now the term 'B-movie' is not necessarily bad one, but it refers to a lower budget second film from a double-feature.
These films were made mostly in the 1930s and 40s and were often made by small-time production companies such as PRC or Monogram, but were also often made by more prestigious studios like Columbia and even MGM.
While they have a relatively poor reputation with some, they did fill a niche--and many of them (such as the Val Lewton films or Charlie Chan films) were seen as pretty respectable fair.
In general, they had lesser-known actors, had scripts that were often a bit rough and a running time of about an hour.
I personally love a good B...and admire how many of them managed to provide some dandy entertainment for a very reasonable cost.
As for "They Made Me a Killer", it certainly is one of the better Bs--mostly because the plot is rather original.The film begins with a guy leaving his home town of Chicago.
On the way out west, he tries to sell his car but ends up getting into a ton of trouble.
Instead of buying his car, a gang of thieves pretends to be interested...and pull off a bank heist with him in the car being forced to drive at gunpoint.
He ends up being the one that is captured and the police don't believe that he was innocent.
So how will the guy avoid a life behind bars?!
As I said, the idea is pretty original.
In addition, the acting is very good--not flashy, but quite competent and believable.
Overall, I was quite entertained but not bowled over.
I think occasionally the dialog could have been better--perhaps more film noir or at least a bit grittier.
Still, at only a shade more than one hour, the movie gets right to the action and doesn't let up until its nifty, though a bit predictable, conclusion.
Well worth seeing if you are a B-fan..
Cheap, fast-paced B-crime thriller.
THEY MADE ME A KILLER is a cheap and fast-paced B-picture from Paramount.
Robert Lowery stars in the classic wronged man role as a guy who gets accused of robbery and murder by the cops and who must fight to clear his name with the aid of a young woman.With a running time clocking in at just over an hour this is a brisk little thing and if the staging isn't very convincing then at least it holds the attention throughout.
You know the score with these pictures: the bad guys are bad and wooden, the cops rude and stupid, the hero and heroine flawless and put-upon.
There's some low rent action and a few plot twists, but it's generally much as you'd expect..
The only thing I want from this town is to get out of it.
***SPOILERS*** Story of a man Chicago native Tom Durling, Robert Lowery,looking to forget the past in his brother getting killed in a car accident only to find his future far worse in getting involved in a bank robbery in Santa Marta California.
It's there that he's forced to be the getaway driver where two persons were killed in the process.
Unknown to Durling the hot chick he picked up hitch hiking Betty Ford, Lola Lane, was involved with the bank robbers whom he was to be involved with.
With the only witness bank teller Steve Reynolds, Byron Barr, to prove his innocence killed in the bank shoot out Durling now faces robbery and murder charges that can land him in the infamous San Quentin gas chamber.It's the late Steve Reynolds sister kindergarten school teacher June, Barbara Britton, who after being canned from her job, just because her brother was murdered in a bank shootout?, who sands by Durling's side in believing in his innocence and help him make his escape from the law in trying to track down those who framed him and murdered her brother Steve.
Being the cold blooded killers that they are brothers Jack & Frank Conley, Edmund McDoland & James Bush, keep Durling alive after he crashed their hideout just because of his driving and mechanic expertise that they need for their getaway from the police.
As it turns out Durling is more then willing to be in with the two bank robbers and killers not all that interested to bring them to justice and clearing his name from the crime that they committed.
But more then willing to get his hands on the 100 G's they ripped off and keep it for himself.
Meanwhile June has gotten at job as a waitress at the place where the three, the Conley brothers and Durling, are hiding out in Ma Conley's Diner.
It's in fact Ma, Elisabeth Risdon, who the brains behind her sons crimes is only using the place as a front from the police.***SPOILERS*** With both Durling and June's cover blown the final minutes of the movie has a wild shootout between the crooks Durling and police who come, in now knowing that he's an innocent man, to his aid.
With Durling now a free and innocent man he can now go on with his life getting a job as a soda jerk at the now under new management, him, Ma's Diner and be free to marry June.
That as soon as her earns enough money pumping soda and flipping hamburgers to buy her a wedding ring for their upcoming marriage next June or whenever he pops the question.