Michael O'Keefe This crime drama directed by Phil Karlson has elements of comedy. Street-smart Sherry Conley(Ginger Rogers)is a gangster's moll that makes the best of being put in a tight spot. U.S. District Attorney Hallett(Edward G. Robinson)has Miss Conley temporarily released from prison to get some testimony for the upcoming trial of her boyfriend Ben Costain(Lorne Greene). Sherry finds herself put up in a swanky hotel with room service and Hallett tries to pressure her for just a bit of information, but she has smart quips and a healthy appetite. The D.A. has a cynical Detective Striker(Brian Keith)pull guard duty as Miss Conley has a few attempts on her life. Striker is so attentive, Sherry is smitten.Rounding out the cast of this Columbia Pictures Film-Noir: Peter Leeds, Katherine Anderson, Doye O'Dell and Lucy Marlow.

MartinHafer This is one of the best roles in the latter portion of Ginger Rogers' career. She is an incredibly earthy and entertaining bad girl--complete with a nice accent and a lot of sass. While a somewhat similar role was given to her a decade earlier with "Roxy Hart", this film was pretty awful and lacked any sense of believability. In "Tight Spot", however, she gives a first-rate performance in a film where I expected very little.The film begins with Rogers being taken from her comfy prison cell and she's whisked away to a hotel room. This is because the prosecutor (Edward G. Robinson) is intent on convincing her to testify against a gangster (Lorne Greene). However, she has no intention on making a deal with anyone, as she knows if she testifies she's a dead woman.Assisting Robinson in this is a matron (who you see very little of) and a detective (Brian Keith). Keith seems to have contempt for her and doesn't hide it. However, Robinson treats her like a lady and hopes this will loosen her resolve. A bit later in the film, however, there's an interesting twist, as Keith and Rogers seem to be developing some chemistry. Just at that interesting moment, an assassin is spotted at the window--many floors from the street below. The assassin begins shooting wildly--hitting the matron and Rogers. Rogers miraculously escapes but is even more determined not to testify. What happens next was really exciting and quite a twist. However, I'll say more, as I don't want to ruin the film for you.Overall, this is a very well written noir-like film. Tough dialog and some nice surprises make this one worth seeing--with nice performances all around. A nice little surprise of a film.

terry_knapp Ginger Rogers' performance (straight out of "Roxie Hart") makes this film. Others have found Ms. Rogers to be too old for the film. I think that the fact that she is a bit "past her prime" adds to her character, which has (let's face it) been "around the block" a few times. She and Brian Keith (doing his patented tough-as-nails copper) make a potent team. It is a pity that they did no more work together. The film itself is a strange mixture of Rogers' comic sass and Karlson's brand of hard-hitting melodrama. Ultimately, the film is sunk by an unbelievable plot contrivance that leaves the audience feeling betrayed. However, the performances (including, of course, Robinson's) make this a worthwhile experience.

Bucs1960 Phil Karlson, that auteur of the tight little b/w crime film, misses the boat with this one. I am probably going against many of the reviewers on these boards but I just didn't see much to like here.Ginger Rogers who could act (and obviously dance)was usually an asset to any film in which she appeared. She is so damn annoying in this role as the tough-talking jailbird and former girlfriend of a famous crime boss, that I hoped they would succeed in killing her off before she got to testify at the trial. She talks and talks and talks, ad infinitum and is just a little too "tough" to be believed. The claustrophobic setting in a single hotel room didn't help. You just couldn't escape that voice. However, I'll admit she looked great and she was coming up on 50 years of age Edward G Robinson, who never gave a bad performance, again wove his magic as the DA determined to get Ginger to the stand. Brian Keith, gets a passing grade for his appropriately named cop.....Vince Striker. Lorne Greene, as the mob boss, is surprisingly menacing and is a long way from Pa Cartwright.This isn't a bad film but it's not a good film. If it weren't for the stars, it would fall into the "B" category. That's not always bad since there are some fantastic movies in that category. This would not have been one of them.