THE
INTRUDER (1961)Director: Roger Corman
New Concorde
THE
INTRUDER (1961)If you thought that Roger Corman only directed exploitation films, guess again. This tense social drama is really excellent, and definitely one of his finest efforts. Corman wanted so bad to do a film adaptation of Charles Beamont's novel, but no studio would touch the volatile subject matter, not even his old stomping grounds of AIP. So he and his brother Gene pulled their resources together to produce the project on a very low budget (something they're of course very used to). It turned out to be Corman's most acclaimed effort (winning awards in other countries), but at the same time, his only commercial failure.
William Shatner (who was only 30 at the time) stars as Adam Cramer, a representative of the "Patrick Henry Society" sent from Washington D.C. to a small southern town. With his neat white suit and cool shades, the well-groomed Cramer goes around claiming that he's a social worker, shaking peoples' hands and asking for their friendship. Desegregation in schools has now been instated by law, and ten black students are to attend a white school for the first time. Cramer's purpose of arrival is to put a stop to this and he easily convinces everyone in the town that segregation is right.
Cramer's message of hate quickly culminates when he gives a heated speech outside a civic building for most of the town's white population. Now they're all behind him, as Cramer drives through the black side of town with the local KKK, burning huge crosses on their property. An explosion is set off in a all-black chapel, killing a clergyman. Cramer is held responsible and thrown into jail, much to the protest of his loyal "fans" who hail him as a hero and demand that he be released. After he's bailed out, the town newspaper editor is beat half to death for escorting the black kids to school, and his daughter is then involved in the blackmailing of one them, falsely accusing him of rape.
Besides the stylish, moody direction by Corman, and the intelligent screenplay by "Twilight Zone" and AIP regular Beamont (based on his novel), THE INTRUDER has some really incredible performances. This is Shatner's finest hour, and though he's known in Hollywood to overact, he's really intense here as the sly young man who exhibits charm but embodies hate and cowardliness. Also excellent is Frank Maxwell (THE HAUNTED PALACE, THE WILD ANGELS) as the sensible newspaper man who tries to be virtuous, but get punished in the process.
Leo Gordon plays a great character, a brawny salesman whose nymphomaniac wife (Jeanne Cooper, Corbin Bernsen's mom and star of "The Young and the Restless") is seduced by the adulterating Cramer. Gordon appears to be obnoxious at first, but he turns out to be sober man who sees Shatner's character for the bigoted coward that he really is (the scene where they exchange gunpoint is priceless), and is instrumental in the film's powerful ending. You'll also recognize character actor Robert Emhardt as the town's rich fatcat who immediately takes to Cramer. When Cramer asks for his view on segregation, he replies, "That's a stupid question, young man. I'm a southerner." Most of the rest of the acting is by real locals, and Corman obviously picked the most "interesting-looking" ones to be Cramer's main cronies. Whether or not they realize that Cramer is really the film's villain is questionable!
THE INTRUDER has thankfully been released on DVD through Corman's own New Concorde label. Forty years after it was made, it hasn't dated one bit, given the time-frame that it takes place in, and it's more nerve-racking than any of the director's horror films. The transfer is letterboxed, and the film looks better than it ever did before. The print source has some considerable damage, but it's not too distracting, and the black & white image remains very sharp and distinct. Several brief scenes seem to have replacement footage from a vastly inferior print. The mono sound is OK, but there are some pops throughout the presentation.
The best extra on this Special Edition is an on-camera conversation with Corman and Shatner, who converse about the film for a good half-hour, without outside interference. After watching the film, you'll be captivated by this talk, and it's nice to see how proud they are of their fine work 40 years after the fact. Other extras include a Civil Rights Time-Line, bios for some of the actors and Corman, and trailers for other New Concorde releases. (George R. Reis)