According to Roger Corman's brother Gene, "The Intruder" was the only film that exploitation King Corman ever made a loss on. It is a film with a highly developed and overt social consciousness, but unfortunately it was a commercial and critical failure. In recognition of that failure Corman never made an explicitly political film again; his approach from that time on being to deliver the exploitation goods and to leave any political or social commentary to the subtext. In many ways that is a real shame as " The Intruder" is a brave and powerful film that confronts the evils of racism and segregation face on. The screenplay by regular Corman collaborator Charles Beaumont (from his own novel) sees the charismatic Adam Cramer (William Shatner) arriving in a small town in the southern United States on the eve of school integration. Cramer begins insinuating himself with the townsfolk and begins delivering dangerous speeches about the dangers of integration and the need for racial segregation. His inflammatory rhetoric soon sees the situation running out of control with an angry mob taking to the streets. After Ella (Beverly Lunsford), a white schoolgirl, makes a false accusation of rape against a black student, Cramer finds the situation fast spiralling out of his control and a lynch mob taking to the streets.
The Intruder" is robust in the extreme in regard to its overall themes and pulls no punches in regard to its message. Beaumont's screenplay and Corman's economic and studied direction powerfully highlight the dangers of rhetorical political demagoguery and how that can lead to unintended and violent outcomes on the streets. It's a message with just as much political resonance today as it did when first filmed. Corman doesn't shy away from some brutal racist language, which makes the film a challenging and abrasive watch for modern, more politically correct audiences, but his approach is absolutely correct and ensures that the evils of racism are properly and appropriately illustrated. The film is shot in clean, clear black-and-white by cinematographer Taylor Byars who, along with Corman, makes excellent use of authentic locations. William Shatner delivers a first class performance as Adam Cramer which belles his reputation as a b-grade actors. Shatner is powerful, commanding and impressive, with the right mix of overblown oratory, ingratiating subtlety and poisonous charisma to give the character of Cramer the required persona.
All this makes "The Intruder" a powerful and brave statement that Roger Corman handles with great skill. His direction keeps the story taut and focused, delivering a powerful piece of polemic that gets to the heart of the appeal of politicians peddling dangerously simple answers, while at the same time it skewers the evils of racism and intolerance. This film is far from being my favourite Roger Corman film, but it is probably his best conventional film and without a doubt his most important. "The Intruder" deserves much greater and much wider recognition. ( )