Avalanche ** (1946, Bruce Cabot, Roscoe Karns, Helen Mowery, Veda Ann Borg) – Classic Movie Review 13,127

The 1946 action crime thriller film Avalanche stars Bruce Cabot and Roscoe Karns as US Treasury agents on the trail of a tax evader, getting involved in a series of murders at a ski resort in the mountains. 

’13 frightened people.. the trails ablaze with mystery!’

Director Irving Allen’s amusing and diverting enough 1946 action crime thriller film Avalanche stars Bruce Cabot, Roscoe Karns, Helen Mowery, and Veda Ann Borg.

Bruce Cabot and Roscoe Karns star as US Treasury agents Steve Batchellor and Red Kelly, on the trail of a big-time income-tax evader, tracking him to a ski resort in the snowy mountains, and getting involved in a series of murders.

Sudden death at an uncontactable, far-off skiing resort can come from either a killer or an avalanche – or both – in this improbable thriller, with a crisper, neater script than the setup deserves, thanks to the original screenplay by the classy writer Edward Anhalt (billed as Andrew Holt). There is some good dialogue, but also some bad comedy, mostly in the hands of Roscoe Karns.

Though there is considerable excellent location shooting at the Alta Ski Area, it’s still all very studio bound, unfortunately, but director Irving Allen, his photographer Jack Greenhalgh and designer Edward C Jewell hand in a professional piece of low-budget work that often defies its humble circumstances. Don’t expect much from Ray Mercer’s special effects, though.

This is a thriller but there is also a disaster movie called Avalanche (1978), directed by Corey Allen and starring Rock Hudson.

Filming started in February 1946 and it was released on June 30, 1946 (US) and March 17, 1947 (London).

Location shooting at the Alta Ski Area in the western United States began on 19 February 1946, with Utah’s Alf Engen and Corey Engen doing most of the on-screen skiing. The cast and crew of 40 stayed at the Hotel Utah, commuting for filming each day to Alta, a ski area in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, in Salt Lake County.

The film’s production manager is Albert R Broccoli, a classmate of Irwin Allen at New York’s Bryant High School. They teamed up for this film and went on to collaborate, and became partners in Warwick Films, founded in London in 1951. ‘We’re not making British pictures but American pictures in Britain’, said Broccoli. But the two men fell out over filming the James Bond series that Allen thought was beneath him. He met Ian Fleming’s representatives and insulted the Bond books. Allen and Broccoli parted, and Broccoli formed Eon Productions with Harry Saltzman to film the Bond series.

Allen eventually started his own spy series after acquiring the rights to Donald Hamilton’s Matt Helm book series. Allen was responsible for producing the Matt Helm films, The Silencers (1966), Murderers’ Row (1966), The Ambushers (1967), and The Wrecking Crew (1969). Allen had to agree to make Dean Martin a partner, and the star ended up making more money on The Silencers (1966) than Sean Connery made on Thunderball (1965), which ended up making Connery fed up.

The cast are Bruce Cabot as Steve Batchellor, Roscoe Karns as Red Kelly, Helen Mowery as Ann Watson, Veda Ann Borg as Claire Jeremy, Regina Wallace as Mrs Eva Carlton Morris, John Good as Sven Worden, Philip Van Zandt as Malone, Eddie Parks as Mr Carlton Morris, Wilton Graff as Austin Jeremy, Harry Hays Morgan (billed as Henry Hayes Morgan) as Duncan, Eddie Hyans as Jean, Eddy Waller as Sam, and Syd Saylor as Bartender.

Avalanche is directed by Irving Allen, runs 70 minutes, is made by Imperial Imperial Productions, is released by Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC) (US) and Pathé Pictures (UK), is written by Edward Anhalt (billed as Andrew Holt) (original screenplay), is shot in black and white by Jack Greenhalgh, is produced by Pat DiCicco (billed as Pat De Cicco), is scored by Lucien Moraweck, René Garriguenc and Lud Gluskin (musical director), and is designed by Edward C Jewell.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,127

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