ALL SCI-FI

[Krel]

"Day of the Wolves" is a heist film. It is low budget, but has a good story, and soundtrack. It was made as a TV movie, but did get limited theatrical release. As far as I know, it is not currently available on DVD.

Wikipedia synopsis:

The Day of the Wolves is a 1971 heist movie starring Richard Egan and directed, written and produced by Ferde Grofe Jr. the son of the renowned composer who had previously worked in the Philippine film industry. It was the first movie to be made on location in the new town of Lake Havasu City, Arizona. This was the last feature film made by actress Martha Hyer.

Pete Anderson (Richard Egan) is chief of police of a small western town, Wellerton. Anderson has a run-in with the son of a council official (played by Len Travis and John Dennis respectively), who gets him fired. His warnings that the town is vulnerable to a criminal takeover were considered scaremongering.

Meanwhile, a group of thieves is being anonymously summoned to a ghost town in the desert by a criminal mastermind. Each is promised a minimum of $50,000 for participating in a heist, must wear a beard to disguise his appearance, and is blindfolded during the journey, so as not to be aware of the location of the site. The thieves are assigned a number from one to seven (number #1 being the mastermind). They are asked to wear gloves for the duration of the exploit and must not reveal any personal information about themselves, so as not to provide evidence that could lead back to them.

They are shown a map of Wellerton and told that they will fleece the entire town. The criminals are issued black jumpsuits and submachine guns and use the ghost town to train for the heist. Members of the team will destroy a bridge connecting the town to the main highway, destroy the telephone communications of the town and capture all the police officers.

Anderson hands over the running of Wellerton's police department to his deputy (John Lupton), and seeks the comfort of his wife Maggie (Martha Hyer) and young son Will (Steve Manone). He is considering for the family to leave town, and create a new life for themselves elsewhere. Maggie has reservations about this course of action.

The "wolves" fly to the outskirts of Wellerton, where they overcome a farmer and his wife (played by Percy Helton and local amateur actor Elizabeth Thomas, respectively). They proceed to blow up the bridge that provides access to Wellerton, then cut phone and power to the town. They surprise the new interim police chief and his deputies, locking them in the town jail.

Maggie Anderson tips off Pete that the town is being invaded by criminals. To Maggie's dismay, he drives into town and starts a running gun fight with the wolves, killing wolf #2 (Frankie Randall) and wolf number #3 (Andre Marquis), also injuring wolf #4 (Rick Jason). Anderson is superficially wounded in the fight.

Wolves numbers #1 (Jan Murray), #5 (Philippines actor Zaldy Zshornack), #6 (Henry Capps) and #7 (Smokey Roberds) escape prematurely back to their plane, with only around half of the loot that they had intended to steal. They take off and parachute to separate locations, shave off their beards and change their clothes, burying the old clothes and parachute. Wolf #6 is shown buying a Greyhound ticket, and heading off into the night.

Back in Wellerton, the region's sheriff (Sean McClory) arrives to collect wolf #4 for interrogation. Meanwhile, the mayor offers Pete Anderson his old job back, whilst admitting that his dismissal was a big mistake on the part of the council. Anderson refuses the offer, to the dismay of the mayor and fellow councillors present.

In hospital, injured wolf #4 is promised the prosecution will "go easy" on him by the sheriff and a detective (Biff Elliot) in exchange for telling all the information he knows about the mastermind and accomplices; but all he is able to tell them is that they had numbers and beards. On the TV, a children's show plays in the background, with a clown amusing the kids. Wolf #4 recognizes the voice of the clown as that of wolf #1. The clown tells the children the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves that's an allegory of the heist they just pulled off. Wolf #4 starts laughing uncontrollably as the bemused sheriff and detective look on. How the story unfolds from there, is left to the imagination of the viewer.

Controversy
Day of the Wolves was unusual for a television film of the time since at least some of the perpetrators are seen to escape capture at the end of the film, including the caper's mastermind. The Television Code of Practices was at that time essentially still in force and it's unlikely the ending of Day of the Wolves would have been sanctioned for a TV production by one of the major networks. Although, most fans of the movie will probably comfort themselves with the thought that Wolf Number 4 most likely cut a deal with the authorities, leading to the mastermind's arrest behind the scenes.

One thing that got me when I saw the movie, is at the end the town asks Pete Anderson to stay on as Police Chief, and he basically tells them to go pound sand. A "High Noon" type of ending.

You used to be able to watch it online, but I don't know if that is still true. With all the movies that are being remade, this one deserves a big budget remake.

David.

[Bud Brewster]

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Unfortunately the print of this version from YouTube is 16mm and in poor condition. However, interested parties might find it enjoyable.

______________ 1971 - The Day Of The Wolves


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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IMDB has several interesting trivia items for this production.
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~ The production was a non-union shoot and used a mixture of professional and local amateur actors and crew. Most of the crew credited in the movie were local Havasu people.

Note from me: Wow, there's nothin' like working your crew to death to create a great cinematic experience.

~ The first scenes in the movie of Smokey Roberds, Hank Cappa and Andre Marquis pulling robberies were needed in order to bring the movie up the required running time, and were shot last.

Note from me: Wow, there's nothing like padding out the plot with a few a scenes thrown in at the last minute to ensure that a cheap movie doesn't come up short on its running time!

~ The only one of Ferde Grofé Jr.'s feature films to be shot on US territory; the others were shot at various locations in the Philippines, South America and other parts of the world

Note from me: "There's no place like home . . . there's no place like home . . "

~ The use of incendiary devices for the explosion scenes at Swansea mining town caused the buildings to catch fire.

Note from me: A true cinematic artist must be willing to make sacrifices for his art. Burning down a few shabby buildings is a small price to pay . . .

~ Martha Hyer's last feature film.

Note from me: The lovely Miss Hyer was smokin' hot in her day.


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Krel]

[scotpens]

[Gord Green]

One good EMP (Electro Magnetic Pulse) should do it!
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There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child.

[Krel]

[Bud Brewster]

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My first thought was to simply set the movie at few decades back, before cells phones and the internet existed. Don't make the "remake" an "updated" version, just kept the original premise and period.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Krel]

Make it a period piece! I like that, and you can get away with more that way.

Good idea, Bud.

David.

[Bud Brewster]

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Thanks, David.

And since this is supposed to be a "big budget remake", it can afford to be set in the 1950s or 1960s, thus reducing a large portion of the technology that would make such a yarn less plausible in later decades.

I read the plot synopsis of this movie on Wikipedia and I was surprised to learn that the movie has a very unsatisfying ending. Some of the bad guys get away, and the good guys get treated unfairly.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I suspect I wouldn't enjoy this movie very much.

However, just to offer a few suggestions for the remake, here's what I came up with this afternoon.

I'd have the small town be little more than a "whistle stop" for the railroad. The gang would come in and take over the town, kill the small police force, and the rob the local bank.

However, they then stage a fake getaway by car on the only road into town, using clueless hired stooges who look somewhat like them and who are paid to flee in the cars they all arrived in, just to distract the State Police.

Meanwhile, the actual gang board the train which arrived just before the robbery. Twenty minutes after the train leaves the town, the gang takes over a train car which contains a gold shipment being transported to the West Coast!

They kill all the guards and then set to work preparing the gold shipment to off-load at a station further down the line, disguising the gold in wooden crates marked as "farm equipment"!

However, an experienced and sauvy federal agent happens to be on the train, and he becomes suspicious of the passengers he saw boarding the train in the small town whose bank was robbed — unbeknownst to him at that time.

The federal agent begins to snoop around the train while it's en route, and he learns from a conductor that the bank was robbed in the town they just left!

The agent figures out that the bank robbers actually used the bank robbery to distract attention from their plans to steal the gold shipment on the train!

The exciting climax occurs when the federal agent alerts the authorities in the town where the thieves are planning to unloading the gold. A colossal gun battle takes place in the train station, with the terrified passengers cowering on the floor of the train cars while federal agents and the desperate criminals battle it out all around them!

Forgive me, guys, but once I got started with this idea, I just can't stop! Like I said . . . I'm just offering a few suggestions for the remake.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Here's another short trailer for this movie. I still can't decide it I'm interested in seeing it yet.

But this trailer reminds me of the premise in both versions of The Thomas Crown Affair. What to you guys think?

_________________ Day of the Wolves Trailer


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)