cult film freak: WILLIAM LUCAS, ZENA WALKER & DAVID GREGORY 'THE MARKED ONE'

Title: THE MARKED ONE Year: 1963 Rating: ***

Obscure British actor William Lucas gained niche fame as the father from the 1970's BLACK BEAUTY, no longer the Bogart-looking tough guy from a string of early-1960's b-crimes as leading bad guys (THE BREAK), sketchy middlemen (PAYROLL) or criminals in-between (CALCULATED RISK, BREAKOUT)...

And THE MARKED ONE also leans to that midpoint... an ex convict who, with a divorced wife, young daughter, dotting landlady (Laurie Leigh) and a factory job, is threatened by enigmatic goons to retrieve forgery plates that he might or might not have, providing more mystery to the character than his dire circumstance...

From THE MARKED ONE

His daughter's threatened for an anticipated kidnapping; and when it finally happens Lucas's Don Mason's rushed through the usual neo noir cadence of asking questions: from woodwork goons including David Gregory as a goading punk and photographer Brian Nissan, whose model girlfriend is THE GIRLS HUNTERS ingenue Kim Tracy...

But it's our subtle hero's wife played by always-dependable, sophisticated-lovely Zena Walker who not only steals the show but has the most to gain or lose including her daughter, her job, and the man she's born to retrieve: if only their relationship were tested more intensely, overall making THE MARKED ONES more an idea than movie.