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STANLEY BAKER TRUCKS WITH PEGGY CUMMINS IN 'HELL DRIVERS'

Title: HELL DRIVERS Year: 1957 Rating: ****

Cheating with the sped-up effect ala Keystone Cops, the hauling-trucks for HELL DRIVERS picks up granite and races it back to the factory as quickly as possible... at breakneck speed taking neck-breaking curves... and newly hired honest ex-con Stanley Baker catches on that he's not very wanted... that is, the boss wants him driving fast, but not too fast...

And if you like breathing, you can NEVER beat the high score of antagonist Patrick McGoohan, looking like a severe, battered, modern-day pirate with a cocky grin behind the dangerous, risk-taking wheel... 

Stanley Baker and Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS

His wild bunch underlings includes a young Sean Connery while Baker's square-jawed strong-silent-type has only Italian romantic Herbert Lom as a friend, smitten with secretary Peggy Cummins, who's into the new guy instead...

The first half works best, before the action has reason to slow down during the personal feud between polar opposites: But once Baker keeps getting bullied like in a high school movie (unrealistic as he'd be able to clobber the skinny McGoohan), there's not much left but the usual fist fight and intentionally predictable truck chase...

Stanley Baker and David McCallum in HELL DRIVERS

If only they'd stuck more on Baker vs McGoohan without all the after-hour parties, or the sullen background into Baker's family that features crippled bro David McCallum, who married Jill Ireland... a mousy waitress here... in real life...

The thing is, there's only a sparse amount of Noir-like intrigue during daylight hours at work, so the action (sped-up trucks) and drama (Baker vs corruption) should have remained much longer to flesh out what really matters... although what's here in HELL DRIVERS is genuinely idealistically tough enough to pay its own dues.

Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS

Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS with Sean Connery
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Jerry Stovin and Jill Ireland
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Peggy Cummins in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Peggy Cummins
David McCullum in HELL DRIVERS
Peggy Cummins in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
William Hartnell in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker and Herbert Lom in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker and Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS
Sean Connery and Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS
Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker and Jill Ireland in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker and David McCallum in HELL DRIVERS
Peggy Cummins in HELL DRIVERS
Hell Drivers trucking in fast motion
Stanley Baker with Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS 
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS 
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS with Herbert Lom
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS with Jill Ireland
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Hell Drivers featuring Sean Connery and Jill Ireland...
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker and Herbert Lom in HELL DRIVERS
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS
Patrick McGoohan in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Herbert Lom
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Peggy Cummins
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Patrick McGoohan
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS
Ken Richmond bangs the Rank gong for HELL DRIVERS
Opening Credits for HELL DRIVERS
Opening Credits for HELL DRIVERS
VistaVision Opening Credits for HELL DRIVERS
Opening Credits for HELL DRIVERS
DVD menu for HELL DRIVERS
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS wih Sean Connery
Stanley Baker in HELL DRIVERS with Herbert Lom
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS
Peggy Cummins in HELL DRIVERS with Herbert Lom
Peggy Cummins in HELL DRIVERS with William Hartnell and Stanley Baker
Sean Connery in HELL DRIVERS



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