Plunder Road comes from director Hubert Cornfield, with a script by Steven Ritch and Jack Charney. The cast includes Gene Raymond, Jeanne Cooper, Wayne Morris, Elisha Cook Jr., and Stafford Repp; Irving Gertz handled the music and Ernest Haller was in charge of cinematography. The story involves a group of thieves who, after successfully robbing a train, scatter to Los Angeles with plans to divide their stolen gold bullion. This poverty row heist noir, appearing later in the classic era, gets straight to business without unnecessary elaboration or style. The film clocks in at just 72 minutes; the opening section is dedicated to the detailed robbery itself, which takes place one night during a heavy rain (a full 15 minutes are spent on this sequence), and with very little dialogue. It’s clear that considerable thought went into the planning, suggesting a highly skilled and professional group of thieves. The remainder of the movie follows the gang as they travel in three separate vehicles toward what feels like a quintessential noir setting, where their flaws and anxieties surface, along with the unpredictable nature of fate. Cornfield and Haller (known for Mildred Pierce and The Verdict) create an atmospheric visual style, using the widescreen Scope format to highlight the potential downfall of the characters’ plans as they navigate different places and circumstances. The acting is generally strong, with veteran noir performer Cook Jr. delivering his usual reliable performance, and Cornfield manages to generate a good amount of suspense from what is essentially a straightforward narrative. The conclusion feels rushed, some plot elements require a degree of acceptance, and Gertz’s score is overly prominent during the initial 15-minute heist sequence. Still, it's a worthwhile film noir experience, though it doesn’t quite reach the level of other heist movies within the genre. It earns a rating of 7 out of 10.

Source on TMDB