Ambush

Sometimes it is refreshing to watch a film with a very simple plot that knows what it is and makes the most of it. 1939’s Ambush is just such a film. The story isn’t deep, it breaks no new ground, and it wasn’t going to win any awards for anything. Yet it is perfectly watchable, has plenty of exciting set pieces, and has a great cast of character actors that liven up every scene. It also has a few surprising moments that are far more effective than it has any right to be, most notably a scene late in the game that takes place on a small plane. 

The film opens with a bank robbery where the criminals get away with $98,000. The vehicle seen at the scene of the crime belongs to Charlie Hartman (William “Bill” Henry), a ner-do-well who frequently gets himself into trouble. When his sister, Jane (Gladys Swarthout), realizes this, she tries to convince him to turn himself in along with his partners. But the gang overhears and takes her hostage, forcing her to secure a new truck for their escape out of town. If she doesn’t do it, they will kill Charlie. She tricks a truck driver named Tony (Lloyd Nolan) to come with her, and he ends up a hostage, too, forced to drive the gang past the roadblocks and out of town. In the course of this getaway, Tony schemes ways to take out members of the gang one by one, all the while he is finding himself softening towards, and eventually falling for Jane.

There is no doubt this is a low-budget production. There is nothing here that is particularly impressive as far as what is conveyed on screen. But director Kurt Neumann makes the most of his budget and actually finds a way to build tension and excitement anyway. This is a film that leans into its B-movie roots and has a lot of fun with it. Each of the gang members is distinct, especially a young Broderick Crawford who plays a blackballed airplane pilot. But best of all is watching the relationship between Tony and Jane go from suspicion to empathy and finally to love. It’s cheesy at times, but it is the heart of this film, and it blends in well with all the rest of this movie. Incidentally, this was the final film by opera singer Gladys Swarthout, who elected to return to the stage and leave her film career behind. 1939 - 82 minutes