'' is a
1952 Film Noir directed by
Phil Karlson and starring
John Payne . Karlson and Payne teamed up a year later for another dark
Black-and-white Noir , ''
99 River Street '' and again in 1955, this time in color, for the noir ''
Hell's Island ''. Perennial movie bad guys
Lee Van Cleef ,
Neville Brand and
Jack Elam play the film's heavies. Although the title would suggest that the story takes place in
Kansas City , most of the film takes place in
Mexico . This was director Karlson's second film noir. He also directed ''
Scandal Sheet '', a modest success, also released in 1952. The tag line for the film was, "Exploding like a gun in your face!"
Four robbers hold up an armored truck getting away with over a million dollars in cash. Joe Rolfe (John Payne), a down-on-his-luck flower delivery truck driver is accused of being involved and is beaten up by the local police. Released due to lack of evidence, Joe, following the clues to a Mexican resort, decides to look for the men who set him up and get revenge. What he doesn’t know is that the heist also involves corrupt cops.
