Renowned brain surgeon, vacationing in an unnamed Latin American country with his wife, is stopped from leaving by the president's wife and minions after the savage dictator falls ill. The doctor reluctantly agrees to operate, not knowing that his spouse has been kidnapped by the Revolution, who want the leader's head on a plate. Although he stays in a somber low-key throughout (with the exception of a comic teeth-brushing bit), Cary Grant is just as interesting in a dramatic film as he is in more lighthearted fare--though the lack of offhand humor makes itself felt. Debuting director Richard Brooks, who also adapted the script from George Tabori's story, provides a steady pace which is neither gripping nor dawdling, and he handles his actors efficiently enough. A curious vehicle for MGM and its star which fails to unnerve us with its staged violence (which seems derivative of Fritz Lang) and angry, shouting mobs. What it does do well is present two important men on opposing sides reaching a temporary truce through medicine and illness. In this regard, "Crisis" is unusual and occasionally effective. ** from ****