wile_E2005 For those who don't know, Operation Lifesaver is that company that is really into preventing train-car accidents. You might see their logo on some train locomotives. But Operation Lifesaver's from the early 70s, and this film was the 50s! This has a strong message about railroad crossing safety. They didn't have the striped gates back then; all they had were lights, bells, and occasional wig-wag signals.The acting is kind of bad, and so is the overuse of stock footage.However, you get to see a lot of neat classic Union Pacific trains (they're all diesel locomotives, since steam engines were obsolete back then and the electric locomotives didn't get popular until recently). I must admit, the train sound effects sound REALLY old. They use those old deep foghorn-like train horns. Those type of whistles got out of date in the mid-50s, and were replaced with the train horns you hear today (even if you live slightly far from the tracks, you can still sometimes hear train horns during the winter when all the leaves are down). They could've just recorded newer train sounds and used them there, so the trains don't sound so dated.The classic cars and trucks used in this movie look really classy, too. You don't see many of THOSE driving around nowadays, do you? I also like the old stock music used here, too. It gives the movie a "sitcom" feel.But we don't get to see the actual sequence of the train striking the car! We just see the train approaching, fade to black, and then silence. Then we see the wrecked car. They could've just added a big, grinding crashing sound during the silence, with metal crunching, glass breaking, the usual stuff heard when a train destroys a car. At least THAT would be more realistic.But, I still love this cheesy, classic movie.

Mike Sh. Some people look like cops. I don't think I could say what it is that makes someone look like a cop, but it is undeniable that some people have that cop look. One such person is William Boyett, who played cops on "Highway Patrol" and "Adam-12". He also plays a cop in this instructional short about highway safety. Specifically, Mr. Boyett plays an earnest Idaho state trooper who is absolutely dedicated to keeping people from killing themselves on the highway by playing chicken with trains.Trooper Hal, as he is known in this short, drops by the home of a farm family to give some friendly advice to the younger son, who has just got his driver's license. After some preliminaries about road signs, obeying speed limits, and general highway safety, Hal gets to the real point of his talk: don't play chicken with trains.Will the boy (and his dull-witted older brother) heed Hal's friendly advice? Or will one of them wind up as the subject of the kind of instructional short designed to scare the wits out of driver ed students? Oh, wait - .... Anyhow, Hal deals with the tragedy of drivers who insist on playing chicken with trains (and come a cropper as a result) by redoubling his efforts. In a steely authoritative voice-over, he publicly declares his dedication to keeping the roads safe. This declaration is followed by footage of state troopers from various Western states saluting smartly.

Jordan_Haelend This Driver's Ed instructional safety film was made in 1955, and although the acting is wooden and the dialogue is stilted, I can say that its message of caution and courtesy while driving definitely is one worth repeating. Plus I love all of those Classic Cars."Officer Hal" is the Voice of Authority in this film, and his narration both opens and closes it. In between, he gives a lecture about highway safety to a young kid who has just gotten his driver's license. Naturally, since U-Pac financed the making of this film, the emphasis is on accidents at Railroad Crossings.Just as naturally, the film has its own teen-tragedy plot, when Frank Jr. gets killed. Considering when this was made, one can almost hear the song "Teen Angel" after the accident (only in this film, of course, the girl is injured but it's the boy who licks the lollipop, so to speak.) Again, the message is good, even if -you should pardon the term- the vehicle that delivers it is flawed.

quamp Last clear Chance is a mercifully short film (although it feels like it lasts forever) about watching out for trains at rail crossings. About the only good thing I can say about this short is that it's in color. Everything else is just plain terrible. Bad acting, overly predictable script, and some stock footage shoot it down.