Plunder Road (1957) - Hubert Cornfield

Hubert Cornfield's Plunder Road is a stripped down, no-nonsense thriller starring Gene Raymond as Eddie, a professional thief whose latest plan is to rob a government shipment of gold from a Mint train.  Plunder Road begins with a memorable opening sequence, in where we witness an elaborate heist of the train carrying tons of gold.  Late at night, the entire heist is conducted in a massive rain storm, which adds a great amount of suspense to the robbery, while also helping to set the tone of this gritty noir-thriller.  The whole opening sequence is rather lengthy, featuring no dialogue between characters, instead having multiple voice overs from the different members of the gang.  These men appear to all come from different places - some question whether the plan will work, others are simply waiting for something to go wrong, with a few of the more battle-tested men simply anxious to get started.  Plunder Road is a film that is entirely from the point of view of these robbers as they attempt to make their way across the border unscathed.  The viewer is never shown any of the police work which is being conducted to catch these men, instead only seeing exactly what these robbers see, as they make their way across the country in contraband filled trucks, incredibly nervous and tense about the the police's pursuit.  Each of the characters is well defined and multi-dimensional in the film.  They aren't best buddies, just men who are working towards a common goal of getting to the border unscathed, money in tow, of course.  Gene Raymond is great as the no-nonsense career thief who is clearly the brains of the operation.  He brings a calm cool presence to the character, providing a nice contrast to the fast-paced, tense experience of Plunder Road. 

8/10

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