This is the seventh Whistler film and the last one to star Richard Dix. (There would be one more Whistler film the next year with another lead actor: THE RETURN OF THE WHISTLER, see my review). This film as directed by William Clemens, who had directed several of the Falcon films, a Philo Vance film, and several of the original Nancy Drew films with Bonita Granville. This time Dix plays a trucker who has worked hard to start up his own trucking business but made enemies amongst the established truckers, some of whom are dangerous. Dix is involved with a woman named Eileen who owns a truck stop café, played by Karen Morley. She has an engaging teenage son played by Mark Dennis who has a considerable role in the film. (He was 14 at this time and had appeared in one film the year before; he is very good.) A lot of this film was shot at night on dark roads and it thus has considerable atmosphere. The story is not particularly odd or unusual, and it does not take place in a city like most Whistler films. Basically, this is a drama about setups, murders, betrayals, greed, and innocent victims. Dix is an innocent victim. There is no explanation within the film of the title, as there is no "thirteenth hour" in the story. So someone just thought up a catchy title. The story gets very tense and involved, as Dix is accused of murder after murder, none of which he has committed. And there is an interesting twist of a clue which seems to indicate that the murderer was missing a finger on his left hand. But to say more would be to say too much. This is a good noir. And it is sad to take one's leave of the amazing Richard Dix, who in seven Whistler films played characters so far apart it is astonishing that he could so easily do so. He was a most engaging and fascinating actor. He suffered a heart attack during the filming and died in 1949 of his heart condition. This was his last film appearance. He was only 56 years old, and his early death was a great loss to the screen.