Review of The Killer Is Loose

Bank robber, cornered in his room by the police, refuses to give up and shoots at an officer; they return fire and accidentally kill his innocent wife. Two-and-a-half years after sentencing, the deceptively mild-mannered thief escapes from a prison work farm, kills a guard and a farmer, and sets out to kill the police detective's wife to avenge his own spouse's death. Interesting low-budget crime-melodrama, though one that's possibly too tidy and simple to make much of an impact. The dated police business seems very naïve, and most of the female characters are weak-kneed ninnies (a tiresome cliché); however, the usually-bland Wendell Corey gets a rare chance here to play the villain and he's very effective. Script by Harold Medford, from an original story by John and Ward Hawkins, has some amusing similarities to the later "Cape Fear". **1/2 from ****