STEVE COCHRAN & LIZABETH SCOTT IN VAL GUEST'S 'THE WEAPON'

Title: THE WEAPON Pictured: Steve Cochran and George Cole Year: 1957 Rating: ****

Post War British a decade past, hence the genuine bombed-out ruins where a pistol (THE WEAPON) is buried from an unsolved wartime murder, and local little boy Jon Whiteley finds it, accidentally shoots a bully, and runs like hell...

Morphing Val Guest's thriller from war to noir as Whiteley's Erik hits the dark shadowy streets while worried American widow/mom Lizabeth Scott, in her penultimate still-young big screen role, hitting the right emotional marks, is charmed by shady Brit George Cole while putting up with ultra-serious military investigator Steve Cochran... 

Lizabeth Scott in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

And Cole, as the sole heavy, has the most fun here, getting to both sneakily and violently interact with side-characters (while charming Scott), including scene-stealing French starlet Nicole Maurey as a tough yet wispy showgirl just past her prime, who eventually shares an emotional turned sizzling/sexy scene with Cochran...

Meanwhile, in the thankless leading role, the handsome WHITE HEAT actor (who slowly warms up to Noir veteran Scott) plays THE WEAPON like a throwback gumshoe more than an MP, and for the sparse run-time, director Val Guest throws everything into the picture including sudden deaths, chases, rooftop fights and race-against-time suspense. 

Jon Whiteley in Val Guest's THE WEAPON

Lizabeth Scott in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran and George Cole

George Cole in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

Jon Whiteley in Val Guest's THE WEAPON

 Sally Anne Field in Val Guest's THE WEAPON

Nicole Maurey in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

George Cole in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

Herbert Marshall in THE WEAPON with Steve Cochran

Nicole Maurey and George Cole in THE WEAPON

Nicole Maurey and George Cole in THE WEAPON

Nicole Maurey in THE WEAPON

Steve Cochran in THE WEAPON

George Cole and Lizabeth Scott in THE WEAPON with Jon Whiteley

Denis Shaw in THE WEAPON with Jon Whiteley