- One tagline for Robert Wise's crime noir Born to Kill reads "The Coldest Killer a Woman Ever Loved!" That line could just as well have served as the slogan for Lawrence Tierney's career and possibly also his real life. Both on and offscreen, Tierney had a formidable reputation as a tough guy who rarely passed up an opportunity to cause trouble. My favorite story recounts how the gruff-looking actor pocketed a butcher's knife on the set of Seinfeld, intending to deploy it at an inopportune moment as a joke. Considering that Tierney was over 70 years old at the time, I can only imagine what he was like in his youth. At any rate, with roles like this and his career-defining turn as the eponymous star of Dillinger, Tierney was without question one of the most convincing heavies of his generation.
- In Born to Kill, Tierney portrays a small-time hooligan with the entirely appropriate name of Sam Wild. To say that Wild doesn't tolerate disrespect is an understatement. His life overbrims with perceived insults and overreactions, some of which prove to be fatal to those who insulted him. One night at a casino, he gets shown up by a good-time girl named Laury Palmer (Isabel Jewell). In the wonderfully stark scene that follows, Wild makes sure that Laury and her date never "cut in" on him again. The most interesting aspect of the story, however, may be what happens when recent divorcee Helen Brent (Claire Trevor) discovers the two bodies. Most people would call the cops. Instead, Helen sneaks out and hops a train to San Francisco.
- Although it isn't initially obvious why Helen runs, the true logic behind her sudden departure gets at the very heart of the film. Nominally, Helen claims that she didn't want her name to be associated with a murder, considering that she and sister Georgia (Audrey Long) are prominent San Francisco socialites and that Helen herself is engaged to marry a wealthy chap named Fred (Philip Terry). If that was all that was going on, though, why do so many sparks fly when she accidentally encounters Sam Wild on the train? Surely Helen is observant enough to suspect that Sam killed Laury, but his overpowering sexual attraction is apparently enough to convince her to overlook that little fact. As film noir expert Eddie Muller notes on the DVD commentary, this is one of the few instances of a decent woman corrupted by an irresistible homme fatale rather than the other way around.
- The rest of the film is an average enough crime noir offering, peppered with enough odd characters to keep things interesting. For example, there's the penurious detective Arnett (Walter Slezak), who's always spouting bible quotes and poetry in Slezak's Austrian accent. There's also the coarse but good-hearted old alcoholic Mrs Kraft (Esther Howard), who propels the search for Laury's killer. Most memorable, however, is Wild's much put-upon pal, Marty (Elisa Cook, Jr.). Although Cook Jr. was always an invaluable character actor, Born to Kill features him in one of his most spineless roles as a weak man who lets Wild talk him into being an accessory to multiple murders. It's difficult not to laugh when Marty argues that it's "just not feasible" for Wild to kill people whenever the notion strikes him. A sensible argument from a diminutive "turnip," and one that could never convince a volatile powerhouse like Sam Wild or, for that matter, Lawrence Tierney.
