Ransom! (1956)

This is an excellent film and an excellent reminder of why Glenn Ford was such a big star. He did it the old fashioned way. He earned it. Even though the premise and much of the plot and dialog are reworked into the Mel Gibson remake, this is a very different movie. As has been pointed out by others, this version focuses almost exclusively on an internal torment of one man. Most of the activity is tension within the protagonist and, to a far lesser degree, between the parents. The dramatic release is the son's return. In the remake, the protagonist has plenty of internal conflict but it is played out in the context of conflict with others, particularly the chief kidnapper (who has his own subset of conflicts with the members of his gang, particularly his female partner). One doesn't have to rank the two versions. They are different and, in my view, equally excellent films.

When I saw trailers for the Mel Gibson film "Ransom" in 1996, I had no idea that it was a remake of a 1956 movie of the same name. Thank God for TCM or else I never would have caught this elusive gem. I have no desire to see the remake, because the original is just tops with me. Yes, it was produced in the 1950s, so there are some very dated elements, but that does not deter from the suspense or involving premise.Glenn Ford, as Dave Stannard, gives one of his finest performances, compellingly realistic, while Donna Reed matches him with her warmth as his wife, Edith. They are a wealthy couple whose only child, Andy (Bobby Clark) is abducted from school one day and they later receive a ransom demand. The desperate parents want to do anything for the safe return of their son, but there is little they can do until the kidnappers make contact. While he can very well give into the demand, Stannard instead appears on television (the new and big medium of the 50s) to show that he does have money, but it will not be given to the abductors, rather it is the price on their heads if any harm befalls Andy.Donna Reed always likable, is outstanding, even if she does fall into the typical sexist "hysterical mother" so predominate of this era, crumbling to the floor, but she still gets you. So does Ford, for behind his steely determination is a distraught father who fears the worst for his son, wondering if there was any other way - the "what ifs" always plague parents when the suffering is not knowing. The ending, which is not something we would expect in this jaded world of today (nor in the case it was based on, Bobby Greenlease). This film is also a curiosity piece as an early appearance of Leslie Neilson, and there is the Hispanic butler, again playing in the confines of "understanding servant".But "Ransom!" is every bit a nail-biting thriller, one that will have the viewer on the edge of their seat, and no doubt resonate with any parent because of the issue that it addresses.And now I will ask the burning question - where is the DVD?

Hard hitting, raw and no monkey business. One of Fords best! The way Ford acts and the way the director grabs you, and makes you take this film seriously are awesome.Remakes of the old Hollywood, don't even come close as they are put out these days.Hollywood has the answer to going back to basics on real story telling, like this picture.And a surprising Nielson, shows that he is a good actor outside of his usual comical roles.And the little boy, you can't help but wonder what horror he is living, as these days we know all to well, its more common place.

Not to be confused with Jay McInerny's Japan-set follow-up to his seminal 80's novel, "Bright Lights, Big City," or Mel Gibson and Ron Howard's stab at the same material, Glen Ford and company tackle the "title" and the kidnapping tale-of-woe with a heavy splash of sweat and hysteria. Sans modern pyrotechnics, the straight-forward narrative and sharp, clean black and white photography are welcome additions to any film library. Ford is a mass of twisted piano wire. Intense. Brooding. Furious. He rages against everyone in sight. Donna Reed spins from cool, detached resolve to loopy mush. The family doctor sends her to her bedroom loaded with tranquilizers. The kidnapper is never on screen--except for a burning cigarette. And maybe a shadow or two. The black actors are given more to do than usual. The butler has the run of the house and is a deacon. He wears his religion in full view of all the others. Fatherly, he hugs Ford in his hour of need. Could this be the first interracial embrace in movie history? Ford is a very affluent man and has a television anchored in his bookcase. I could see why Gibson was drawn to this material. Ford, jumping all over the place during a "live" broadcast, slaps his hand down over the Bible with such fervor, he almost flattens the tome into a leather pancake. Ouch. Finally, if the ransom gets payed, what are the odds the boy will be returned alive? Two to one. I know this because the police chief and the good book tells Ford so. Perfect.