Seven Miles from Alcatraz (DVD)

They may have busted out of prison, but the World War II battle for freedom has just begun for Alcatraz convicts Champ Larkin (James Craig) and his pal Jimbo (Frank Jenks). Eluding the Rock's patrol boats, the fugitives capture a lighthouse, taking the denizens prisoner while plotting their mainland escape. But among the captives -- a veteran skipper (George Cleveland), his flinty daughter (Bonita Granville), a chatty assistant (Cliff Edwards) and a wily radio operator (Erford Gage) -- is a Nazi spy who's key to a German plot to attack San Francisco. A nimble blend of propaganda and espionage, Seven Miles from Alcatraz is an efficient thriller about two out-for-themselves fugitives who become fighters for democracy. For his first RKO film, director Edward Dmytryk (Murder, My Sweet; Crossfire) keeps the suspense crisp and the action crisper, particularly during one furious fight to the death while ascending the lighthouse's three levels. Dmytryk's next movie -- Hitler's Children, reteaming him with Granville, Gage and the Nazi whip -- would make a more powerful impact.

• drama