Film Snail

6.1

I Died a Thousand Times

NR·1955·109m

Crime

Thriller

Crime

Thriller

Summary

After aging criminal Roy Earle is released from prison he decides to pull one last heist before retiring — by robbing a resort hotel.

Cast

Jack Palance

Roy Earle / Roy Collins

Shelley Winters

Marie Garson

Lori Nelson

Velma

Lee Marvin

Babe Kossuck

Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez

Chico

Lon Chaney Jr.

Big Mac

Earl Holliman

Red

Perry Lopez

Louis Mendoza

Richard Davalos

Lon Preisser

Howard St. John

Doc Banton

Olive Carey

Ma Goodhue

Ralph Moody

Pa Goodhue

James Millican

Jack Kranmer

Bill Kennedy

Sheriff

Nick Adams

Bellboy (uncredited)

Chris Alcaide

Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)

Fay Baker

Woman in Tropico Lobby (uncredited)

Larry J. Blake

Healy (uncredited)

Nesdon Booth

Tom (uncredited)

Paul Brinegar

Bus Driver (uncredited)

Joe Brooks

Observer at Accident Scene (uncredited)

Mushy Callahan

Observer at Accident Scene (uncredited)

Mae Clarke

Mabel Baughman (uncredited)

Tom Coleman

Cabbie (uncredited)

John Daheim

Holden (uncredited)

Steve Darrell

Plainclothesman (uncredited)

Don Dillaway

Observer at Accident Scene (uncredited)

Darren Dublin

Bellboy (uncredited)

Myrna Fahey

Margie (uncredited)

Ed Fury

Man with Tennis Racket at Accident Scene (uncredited)

Howard Hoffman

Fisherman (uncredited)

Dennis Hopper

Joe (uncredited)

Shep Houghton

Hotel Guest (uncredited)

Larry Hudson

Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)

Carol Kelly

Girl at Cigar Counter (uncredited)

Carey Leverette

Velma's Friend (uncredited)

Peggy Maley

Kranmer's Girl (uncredited)

Philo McCullough

Observer at Accident Scene (uncredited)

John McKee

State Trooper (uncredited)

David McMahon

Auto Court Owner (uncredited)

Dennis Moore

Officer (uncredited)

Howard Negley

Tropico Watchman (uncredited)

Wendell Niles

Radio Announcer (uncredited)

Monty O'Grady

Hotel Guest (uncredited)

Gil Perkins

Slim (uncredited)

John Pickard

Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)

Paul Power

Observer at Accident Scene (uncredited)

Richard Reeves

Deputy (uncredited)

Hugh Sanders

Mr. Baughman (uncredited)

Jeffrey Sayre

Tropico Guest (uncredited)

James Seay

Man in Tropico Lobby (uncredited)

Mickey Simpson

Officer (uncredited)

John Stephenson

Pfeiffer (uncredited)

Dub Taylor

Ed (uncredited)

Herb Vigran

Art (uncredited)

Max Wagner

Deputy Charlie (uncredited)

Charles Watts

Crowd Member (uncredited)

Robert B. Williams

Ned (uncredited)

Crew

Director

Stuart Heisler

Novel, Screenplay

W.R. Burnett

Reviews

John Chard

March 16, 2019

Famed Bandit, Former No 1 On FBI List, Pardoned After Eight Years.

I Died a Thousand Times is directed by Stuart Heisler and adapted to screenplay by W.R. Burnett from his own novel High Sierrra. It stars Jack Palance, Shelley Winters, Lori Nelson, Lee Marvin, Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, Lon Chaney Junior and Earl Holliman. A CinemaScope/Warnercolor production, cinematography is by Ted McCord and music by David Buttolph.

It will always be debatable if remaking the excellent High Sierra (Raoul Walsh 1941) was needed or wanted by a 1950s audience? Especially since Walsh had himself already remade it as a great Western with 1949 film Colorado Territory, but taken on its own terms, with great production value and Burnett's personal adaptation taken into consideration, it's a very enjoyable film.

Set up is simple, it's one last heist for Roy "Mad Dog" Earle (Palance) before going straight, but as his attempts to break free from his emotional loner status fall apart, so does the heist and his future is written in blood right up there in the mountains. Heisler and Burnett put Earle up front for character inspection, easing in sympathetic tones whilst ensuring he remains a big physical threat. The air of fatalism is pungent enough and the finale is excitingly staged by Heisler. Cast performances are more than adequate if not comparing to the likes of Bogart and Lupino, while the Warnercolor is gorgeous and the photography around the Alabama Hills in Lone Pine is superb.

While not in the same league as High Sierra or Colorado Territory, that doesn't mean this is a wash out, more so if you haven't seen either of the Walsh movies. If you have, like me (High Sierra is one of my favourite Bogart performances), then comparisons and a feeling of deja vu will obviously infiltrate your viewing experience. That said, there is more than enough here to make it worth your time regardless of comparison and familiarities. 7/10