If you're an admirer of Meeker's performance as Mike Hammer in "Kiss Me Deadly," you'll enjoy seeing him in this B-film made two years earlier. His performace as a brash young rookie cop reads like a rehearsal for the Hammer role. Meeker comes off as in a league with Brando, Newman, et al - it's a shame his film career never really took off and he was later relegated to character roles on TV.
Yeah I always liked Ralph Meeker. He always reminded me of a more mellow Vic Morrow, looks, voice, etc. I suggest you view his low key performance as doomed kidnapper Jerry Barker in "Big House USA, 1955. I love everything about that film and even went so far as to post (on IMDB) a way he could have pulled off the caper. He was a low key guy that could always handle himself.
I suggest you view his low key performance as doomed kidnapper Jerry Barker in "Big House USA, 1955.
I also strongly recommend "Jeopardy" (1953), in which Meeker plays a murderer on the run who sort of kidnaps Barbara Stanwyck, who sort of hates him and sort of ... feels something else for her handsome, virile, dangerous kidnapper. Even though she's years 13 years older than he is, they light up the screen with chemistry. Very good movie, with an interesting, ambiguous ending.
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My error, it was on the discuss/comments page. I don't remember my header but it had to do with how Jerry could have pulled it off. I got a lot of flak for it but I didn't care.