Cry Panic

David Ryder (John Forsythe) is riding cross-country when a guy steps in front of his car. He's distracted and hits the man--killing him instantly. David is a very decent person and wants to do the right thing. After checking unsuccessfully to save the guy, he goes to a nearby house to call the police. Things seem pretty normal so far...so far! But soon things start getting weird. The police claim they can't find the boy and the sheriff (Earl Holliman) seems determine to just chalk it all up to a mistake by Ryder...and refuses to investigate further! Then, folks in town start lying and twisting things. Something obviously is going on and things only escalate...to the point where David is in fear for his life! What is going on here?!?!

This is a relatively common plot for TV mystery shows. "Mannix", "Quincy", "Cannon" and other mystery programs of the era have used the stranger walking into town with a conspiracy idea. But they didn't handle it this well...and this is really one of the best "ABC Movie of the Week" installments I have seen...and I've seen quite a few. Tense and well worth your time.

What happens when someone hands a great idea for an existential film noir -- a lone traveler on a deserted highway runs over and kills a stranger, tries to tell the police, and isn't believed because the body disappears -- to a purveyor of processed cinematic cheese food like Aaron Spelling? The result is the inexplicably titled "Cry Panic," a cheapo ABC movie of the week from 1974 starring John Forsythe as the wanderer lured into a trap, Anne Francis as the de riguer bored sexy housewife, and Earl Holliman as the morally ambiguous sheriff of the small town where Forstythe collides with destiny.

The film should be tightly written, but it is not -- Forsythe's character can pursue his aim of proving that he's a killer thanks to a series of unlocked windows, open doors, and lucky discoveries, plus, we never know whether Holliman is acting alone to gaslight Forsythe, or is being manipulated by the other has-been actors who run the town. Such slack storytelling would be forgivable if the movie were atmospheric, but it is not -- it looks like a cop show and makes very little use of the emptiness and darkness that creeps into view now and then, and the director tosses in twangy, generic country music where silence might be more effective. Such bland filmmaking would be forgivable if the movie were perfectly cast, but it is not. There are actors who can portray the kind of dogged existential hero who will save his sanity by proving he's a killer, but John Forsythe ain't one of them. The scriptwriters make it easy for him to play a rootless nobody by giving him no past and no future aside from a potential job interview in San Francisco, but Forsythe, ever suave and even-tempered, still looks like a disgruntled suburban Dad whose Corvette ran out of gas on the way to his country club, more the kind of man who'll make trouble go away with a firm handshake that conceals a Benjamin than a relentless pursuer of truth at any cost. There's also the fact that his character seems way too stupid to figure out a junior-level crossword puzzle, let alone a convoluted mystery. He keeps trusting the wrong people, and when he discovers a dead body while eavesdropping on his pursuers he screams and runs out of his hiding place like a hysterical preteen girl. Anne Francis wanders on and offscreen looking like she doesn't quite know what she's doing there, which kind of works for her character. That so flawed a movie should still make such an impression is a testament to the great idea on which it's based, you just wish it could have been a little better.

While on a long trip, David Ryder (John Forsythe) hits and kills a man with his car. After calling the local Sheriff, David heads back to the accident site. However, when he returns to the scene, the Sheriff (Earl Holliman) is there, but the victim is gone. This is only the beginning of a very strange, unsettling experience for David.

CRY PANIC is a disorienting made-for-TV mystery-thriller. Forsythe is quite convincing as the everyman caught in what appears to be a web of deception and conspiracy. As the story unfolds, we are just as confused as David, and just as suspicious.

Holliman is the perfect lawman, who just might not be on the up-and-up. Ralph Meeker is the town mechanic who seems to be hiding something. Anne Francis plays a woman who might know what's really going on.

This movie makes you hold on, right up to the closing credits!...

I managed to get a copy of this movie many years ago on VHS. For some reason, this TV Movie of the Week was stuck in my head for years. It was very suspenseful and kept me on the edge of my seat. The scene where Forsythe discovers the body of Mr. Gaines in the meat locker was pretty scary. I'll never forget that. Claudia McNeill ("A Raisin in the Sun")is superb as Mr. Gaine's housekeeper. She does a good job lying for the cop, played by Earl Holliman. This movie is rare to be seen today as most of the TV movies of the '70's are pretty much forgotten but there are a few gems, this being one of them. Try to get it on ebay if you can!

Considering this made-for-TV flick was first televised in 1974, it holds up very well and for the most part delivers the goods, filled with suspense and thrills aplenty. What a great cast! John Forsythe, heretofore known mainly for his rather bland role as "Bachelor Father" and later of "Charlie's Angels" fame, surprises the viewer with one of the best performances ever in a TV film. His David Ryder portrayal should have given him an Emmy, but I'm sure it went unnoticed at the time. Supporting Forsythe are such reliable actors as Earl Holliman, Ralph Meeker, and Anne Francis.

The DVD transfer that I watched contained bleached-out color. This was distracting because the cinematography seemed otherwise excellent. Hopefully, a better transfer will be available. There are several above-average made-for-TV movies from the 1970's that are still unavailable on DVD. What a shame!

The talented writer Jack B. Sowards, who helped write the screenplay for the best of the Star Trek movies, "The Wrath of Khan," comes up with a doozy of a story for "Cry Panic." David Ryder accidentally hits a pedestrian while on a business trip from Los Angeles to San Francisco. He examines the body to find the man dead. He then walks to the nearest house to call the police. He confronts a nervous woman who permits him to use her phone. Once the cops arrive, no body is found. As the mystery deepens, Ryder learns that the town is attempting to cover up a conspiracy of some kind. Ryder becomes the target of those who see him as a danger to their covert scheme.

In some aspects the plot is a reworking of "Bad Day At Black Rock," minus the political overtones of the McCarthy Era, yet original enough to warrant it being judged on its own merits. The resolution is rather abrupt, leaving much to the viewer's imagination; otherwise, a worthwhile and entertaining picture.