Second Chance *** (1953, Robert Mitchum, Jack Palance, Linda Darnell) – Classic Movie Review 8717

‘For the First Time –3D With Important Stars!’

Director Rudolph Maté’s 1953 3D Technicolor crime thriller Second Chance stars Robert Mitchum as troubled, hard-drinking prizefighter Russ Lambert, who falls for gangster’s moll Clare Sinclair (Linda Darnell), who is on the run in South America.

Jack Palance also stars as a hitman called Cappy Gordon, who turns up to ensure that Clare (Darnell), who is a mobster’s girlfriend, won’t return to America to finger the mob and testify at a senate investigation as a witness against the mob boss. After a lot of rushing about in well-staged chase sequences, it all climaxes excitingly on a crippled cable car high over Mexico (which was actually filmed in the Rockies). It is also shot at Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, and Taxco, Guerrero, Mexico, so there is certainly plenty of atmosphere.

Unfortunately here are too many stock characters and cliched situations in the screenplay for this standard, unsurprising Fifties film noir, based on a story by D M Marshman Jr. But, with its suspenseful direction and typecast yet eye-catching performances (especially by Mitchum), it is quite nicely done. Apart from a dip in the middle, getting bogged down in routine romance, is moves swiftly along in its short running time of 82 minutes.

The mix of Mitchum, Technicolor and cable car turns out to be a winning hand.

It was ambitiously made in Technicolor, stereo sound and 3D, though only released in Britain flat as standard 2D. It was RKO’s first 3D movie and did well at the box-office, and made a profit despite the high cost of the filming.

Also in the cast are Reginald Sheffield, Roy Roberts, Dan Seymour, Fortunio Bonanova, Milburn Stone, Sandro Giglio, Margaret Brewster, Rodolfo Hoyos Jr, Richard Vera, Maurice Jara, Judy Walsh, Salvador Baguez, Milburn Stone, Abel Fernandez, Martin Garralaga, Virginia Linden and Max Wagner.

Second Chance is directed by Rudolph Maté, runs 82 minutes, is made and released by RKO Radio Pictures, is written by Oscar Millard, Sydney Boehm, Robert Presnell Sr (uncredited), based on a story by D M Marshman Jr, shot in Technicolor by William E Snyder, produced by Edmund Grainger (executive producer), Howard Hughes (uncredited) and Sam Wiesenthal, scored by Roy Webb, and designed by Albert S D’Agostino and Carroll Clark.

The story was inspired by the real-life event of a cable car in Rio de Janeiro breaking down and left suspended for 10 hours with 14 passengers trapped in the car.

Mitchum and Palance were former professional boxers, and Mexican boxer Abel Fernandez makes his screen debut in the film.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8717

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