CrimeDramaThriller

The Long Haul

- SILK, FLESH AND DYNAMITE!

An American ex-GI takes a job as a truck driver to support his British war bride Connie. It isn't long, however, before Harry is blackmailed into joining a smuggling operation run by a conniving criminal.

Release Date : 1957-08-27

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Marksman Productions Ltd.Warwick Film Productions

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Harry Miller

Original Name : Victor Mature

Gender : Male

Character Name : Lynn

Original Name : Diana Dors

Gender : Female

Character Name : Joe Easy

Original Name : Patrick Allen

Gender : Male

Character Name : Connie Miller

Original Name : Gene Anderson

Gender : Male

Character Name : Frank

Original Name : Peter Reynolds

Gender : Male

Character Name : Casey

Original Name : Liam Redmond

Gender : Male

Character Name : Doctor

Original Name : John Welsh

Gender : Male

Character Name : Nat Fine

Original Name : Meier Tzelniker

Gender : Male

Character Name : Johnny "Butch" Miller

Original Name : Michael Wade

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mutt

Original Name : Dervis Ward

Gender : Male

Character Name : Jeff

Original Name : Murray Kash

Gender : Male

Character Name : Supt. Macrea

Original Name : John Harvey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Army Sergeant

Original Name : Roland Brand

Gender : Male

Character Name : George H. Mills

Original Name : Wensley Pithey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Fat Woman at The Wayside

Original Name : Madge Brindley

Gender : Female

Character Name : Foreman

Original Name : Stanley Rose

Gender : Male

Character Name : Depot Manager

Original Name : Raymond Barry

Gender : Male

Character Name : Mabel

Original Name : Susan Campbell

Gender : Male

Character Name : Trucker Black

Original Name : Freddie Watts

Gender : Male

Character Name : Black Trucker with Dog

Original Name : Harcourt Curacao

Gender : Male

Character Name : Trucker Bill

Original Name : Van Boolen

Gender : Male

Character Name : Kenny, Liverpool Trucker

Original Name : Norman Rossington

Gender : Male

Character Name : Trucker White

Original Name : Martin Shaban

Gender : Male

Character Name : Sam MacNaughton

Original Name : Jameson Clark

Gender : Male

Character Name : Joe's Heavy

Original Name : Arthur Mullard

Gender : Male

Character Name : Drunk in Club

Original Name : Alfred Burke

Gender : Male

Character Name : Taxi Driver

Original Name : Sam Kydd

Gender : Male

Character Name : Trucker

Original Name : Edward Judd

Gender : Male

Reviews

John Chard

@John Chard

2024-05-16

Watch out I don't drop you right back among the pigs. The Long Haul is directed by Ken Hughes and Hughes adapts the screenplay from the Mervyn Mills novel. It stars Victor Mature, Diana Dors, Patrick Allen, Gene Anderson and Peter Reynolds. Music is by Trevor Duncan and cinematography by Basil Emmott. Harry Miller (Mature) is an American serviceman who after the war has relocated to Northern England to live with his British wife and their son. He hankers to get back to America but his wife is not keen, so he takes up a truck driving job and quickly learns that corruption and under the table deals are the order of the day. Refusing to bend to that way on account of his moral fibre, this puts him on a collision course with violent racketeer boss Joe Easy (Allen), more so when he steps in to help Easy's girlfriend, Lyn (Dors), during an altercation and Lyn becomes quite smitten with Harry. Gritty and grimy Brit noir that pulses with violence, simmering sexuality and big roaring lorries! By the time of film's release, the plot device of a returning soldier finding things less than worth fighting for had been done to death, but in the case of Hughes' movie it has a relocation slant that gives it a bit of zest. This gives the pic a rock solid foundation from which to tell its tale, and in the main it delivers all the requisite requirements for the film noir buff. Narratively it revels in film noir tropes, not content with the confused ex-soldier angle, it throws in a classic femme fatale (Dors sexually charged) and a trick up its sleeve that puts some extra oomph into the culmination of story. The look is a suitably shadowy world of wet winding roads and smoky road side diners, while the dockside scenes are so excellently filmed you can practically smell the damp and salt wafting across the working class backdrop. Some supporting performances are, shall we say too keen, and some of the dialogue leaves a lot to be desired, but this is well worth a spin for anyone interested in British noir. Mature and Dors, both under rated actors in their day, are great value as characters desperately trying to find some solid meaning in life, while Allen has a great time playing the cigar chomping - square jawed - bastardo Joe Easy. Check it out, a better than average Brit noirer, pushing boulders and trying to move emotional mountains, indeed! 7/10