Clark Gable & Susan Hayward headline this adventure/thriller from 1955. Hayward has arrived in Hong Kong to find her missing husband, played by Gene Barry, who is being held in a prison by the mainland government. Hoping to track him down on her own she first engages the British police force, run by Michael Rennie (from The Day the Earth Stood Still), who tells her in no certain terms he faces an uphill battle since there are too many obstacles in his way but he does mention a powerful gangster, Gable, who controls the majority of junk (the boats the water people use) movement in the province. Making her way through some fits & starts, she eventually gets entry to his estate (even getting a limo ride) meeting Gable who comes off as worldly & immensely charming (& who has a trio of Asian kids to boot) but seeing Hayward, it's clear what his motives are; he'll help her but she's the prize. Claiming she's still in love w/her hubby, she denies him & tries to continue the search only to be drugged & imprisoned by a known gambler in Macao which spurs Gable to go into action, even kidnapping Rennie to help. A tight narrative & Gable's righteous swagger puts this one in the winner circle w/director Edward Dymtryk (Murder, My Sweet/Crossfire) capturing the danger & allure of the exotic locale. Also starring Richard Loo (who I remember as the villainous Hai Fat in The Man w/the Golden Gun) as a Hong Kong professional travel guide.
Review of Soldier of Fortune
