So much average

It is a performances centric movie

hyped garbage

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

By all accounts, Lawrence Tierney was one mean customer. He got his break in Hollywood playing the titular gangster in 'Dillinger (1945),' and its success saw him typecast as the ultimate bad-guy. In Felix Feist's 'The Devil Thumbs a Ride (1947),' Tierney gives a powerhouse performance as Steve Morgan, a scheming fugitive who hitches a ride with law-abiding salesman Jimmy Ferguson (Ted North). As a short, sharp low-budget thriller, the film has plenty to recommend, any weaknesses early on compensated for by a mounting air of tension that you could cut with a knife. Steve Morgan is a riveting character from the moment he appears on screen. For one, he's not afraid to speak his mind, even insulting the appearance of the gas station attendant's (Glen Vernon) baby daughter. When Morgan propositions a virginal runaway (Nan Leslie), his flattering advances sound more like threats than complements. Only fellow hitchhiker Agnes Smith (Betty Lawford) can rival his hardness, a callous tramp looking out for herself. Given the B-movie budget, the other performances as about as good as one could expect. Ted North is almost too amiable as the main character, constantly appearing smitten by the mere thought of his pretty wife. Betty Lawford is good, playing her role precisely as Claire Trevor might have – incidentally, Tierney would co-star with Trevor that same year in 'Born to Kill (1947).' Harry Shannon's San Diego police chief inhabits the quaint universe of B-movie law enforcement, playing poker between phonecalls and recruiting an enthusiastic boy-scout gas station attendant to come along for the ride. These idiosyncracies come with the territory, I suppose – very few low-budget noirs are without the occasional weak performance or dubious plot turn. More damning is that Steve Morgan is denied an ending that befits his mighty presence, the film cutting to the next scene without allowing his fate to sink in. At least the meagre finances allow greater freedom for risk-taking: certainly, no big-budget studio picture would have delegated the young, innocent beauty to lie face-down in a lagoon.

The Devil Thumbs a Ride is basically just your classic 40's B-movie; it's cheap and there are a lot of things wrong with it, but it's also fast moving and very entertaining, which makes it very easy to forgive all the flaws and just sit back and enjoy the film. It soon becomes clear that the film was made with little budget as it looks very cheap and most of the acting is terrible; but we launch straight into the plot with minimum hanging around and the fact that the film is only an hour long means that there's no filler and the film sticks to the important stuff. The film focuses on a straight up but very naive guy who calls himself Fergie. Fergie is on his way home from a party, and makes a regrettable decision when he decides to pick up a hitchhiker in the form of Steve Morgan. Steve Morgan is a thief turned murderer and on the run from the cops. The pair stops at a gas station where they pick up a couple of broads, but not before Steve manages to insult the plucky young gas station attendant. The quartet continue their trip, and Steve soon realises he has to take steps to conceal his identity.The hitchhiker theme would go on to become one of the staples of the horror/thriller genre with films like The Hitcher being the best of them. I don't know the entire history of the genre; but this film is surely one of the earliest examples. The film does have its fair share of problems, however. The script is at times ridiculous and the plot would have completely fallen apart if three of the central characters had more than a single brain cell between them. The comedy elements are also extremely misplaced in such a dark film (although I guess they are there to relieve the audience somewhat as there weren't a great deal of films darker than this one around in 1947!). I know the thing I'll remember about this film longer than anything else is the central performance from Lawrence Tierney, who is excellent in the lead role. He cuts a truly imposing figure and really does put his supporting cast to shame; in particular Ted North who doesn't manage to convince at all, particularly during his shouting scenes. Still, problems aside; this is a thrilling and very entertaining little thriller that kept my interest for the duration (even if it was only an hour) and even manages a couple of well worked twists at the end. Check this one out if you can!

In 2002, Reservoir Dogs came out with their 10th Anniversary Edition DVD. Included in the set was a tribute to the actor who played Joe Cabot: Lawrence Tierney. The cast had mixed feelings towards Tierney but all agreed on one thing: he was amazing in The Devil Thumbs A Ride. I had never heard of this film, but immediately went on a hunt for it. I checked every tape trader online and couldn't find the sucker. For a year and a half it became my Unicorn (something you want but always seem to just miss). So when through dumb luck I found that TCM was showing it one Friday night I canceled my plans and set my VCR.The film is about bank robber Steve Morgan. After pulling a late night robbery, he takes a ride with slightly tipsy salesman Jimmy Ferguson driving back home to California. On the way they pick up two ladies who are also on their way to Cali. Through several seemingly logical mishaps, Morgan convinces Fergie to evade police, back up over an officer and hide out at a friend's house until morning. The way Morgan manipulates the passengers is really quite something, and there are moments of true suspense in the friend's house. Some of the acting from the lesser characters can be a little corny, but Tierney is more than enough reason to watch. And the climax is especially good.This is a film that I highly recommend. That is, if you can find it. Good luck and happy hunting.

I saw this many years ago on AMC. I barely remember the story, but I do remember that it was a very effective piece of noir. I've wanted to see it again, but it is extremely hard to come by. It isn't on video or DVD, and it rarely appears at revival theatres. If you ever have the chance to catch this on AMC or TCM, do whatever you can to see it. I definitely put it up there with "Detour" and "They Walked By Night". Great stuff.