bkoganbing
Ann Sheridan stars in this independent feature released by Universal Pictures about a wife searching for a missing husband. Ross Elliott is the husband who is
an artist and had the misfortune of seeing a contract killing go down and the
killer took a shot or two at Elliott and the dog he was walking.Sheridan's a cynical sort who thinks hubby is just running out on her. But homicide cops Robert Keith and Frank Jenks know otherwise. But Sheridan
does decide to help breezy Dennis O'Keefe who identifies himself as a reporter
when O'Keefe offers her money if she helps locate him.The title is of course a misnomer, Sheridan isn't running she's chasing her fleeing hubby who is fleeing in the wrong direction as it turns out.The film has some nice snappy dialog, it's a throwback to some of the films
Sheridan did back in her Oomph Girl days at Warner Brothers in the 30s.What really makes this film work especially in the climax scene at an amusement park in the San Francisco area is the offbeat casting of one of the
principal players. Some nice scenic location shooting in the San Francisco area
helps as well.It's B picture shot on a shoestring budget, but it holds up pretty good.
Benedito Dias Rodrigues
Fabulous forgotten Noir produced by Ann Sheridan who quit from Warner after released that didn't has no future there,this independent movie is marvelous and is about marriage relationship,in the curse of the movie is clearly placed the damages between the couple,the plot is clever to explore this matter...the movie like another noir is pretty interesting but the subliminal messages is quite fantastic....Ann Sheridan in this time was no longer a young pretty lady...but still a good actress as show in the picture with acid words when she was questioned by Inspector Ferris,another pleasant acting is Dennis o' Keefe as Dan Legget a newspaper reporter who is actually the Killer!!!More... the movie gave to us a nice view of many San Francisco's spots in those time...A real Gem to be discover for those love cinema!!!Resume:First watch: 2017 / Hoe many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 8.5
LeonLouisRicci
Film-Noir Foundation Founder Eddie Muller Introduced this on TCM as "One of the best Noirs You've never seen." It was Lost for Years and Muller and others were Hot on the Trail of a Good and Surviving Print for a Long While. When one was Discovered it too was Destroyed in a Fire in 2009. One more Great 35mm Print Showed up and now We have this Beautiful Edition to Enjoy. Restored by the UCLA Film and Television Archives.Dennis O'Keefe, Ann Sheridan and San Francisco Locations, Shot by Hal Mohr, Highlight this Taut Tale of a Witness to a Murder by the Mob and is on the Lam Seeking Refuge from His Noirish Plight of an Innocent Man Caught in the Muck of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement.The Police are as Unsympathetic as the Criminals as They must Bring in the Witness to Break Up the Syndicate. Many a Cynical Lines make this an Above Average Low-Budget Movie with Ann Sheridan Attempting a Comeback and O'Keefe at His Chain Smoking Best. The Police Captain Played by Robert Keith is Not Likable but Relentless and sometimes Insensitive to the Wife Trying to Find Her Husband before the Crooks Do the Evil Deed.A Sub-Plot Involving a Failed Marriage Cements the Story and an Amusement Park Roller Coaster Ride Ending make for some Riveting Suspense. A Good Looking Film and the Opening Scene is almost as Good as the Final one and has the Look and Up Close and Personal Violence of Pure Film-Noir, as does the Spiraling Out of Control Situations that Follow.
Robert J. Maxwell
I no longer know what makes a film "noir". I mean, it can't be simply a black-and-white detective movie or murder mystery with lots of shadows and a duplicitous woman, because then we're talking Charlie Chan. Literally, "noir" means black or, sometimes, "dark." The French broadened the meaning of "noir" to include American movies with an oppressive atmosphere, odd camera angles, and weird lighting set ups. I guess, if we stretch the semantics a little more, "Woman On The Run" may be called a "noir," though not a "noir d'ebene." I'd add the accents but can't find them.Okay, boys and girls, this is the story of an innocent but rather dumb man, Ross Elliott, who witnesses a murder in San Francisco. The murderer, whom we've heard called "Danny Boy", has witnessed the witness and takes a few shots at him. Elliott calls the cops who want to put him in protective custody. The idea doesn't appeal to Elliott. He takes a powder and we don't see him again until the end of the movie.The cops want Elliott badly. As it turns out, they want him rather more than his wife, Ann Sheridan. They're married but distant from one another. Sheridan doesn't even know he has a serious heart condition. When she finds out, she sets about trying to track Elliott down in the city in order to bring him the medicine he needs. She's accompanied by Dennis O'Keefe, a reporter for a tabloid newspaper who wants the story. And she's pursued by the police, who expect her to lead them to Elliott.It's her investigation of her husband's activities, of which she seems largely ignorant, that lifts this story above the routine. Sheridan visits Elliott's place of work, his bar, and so forth, and bit by bit realizes that her husband loves her, that he's too reserved to throw himself at her, and that she herself has been a demanding wife and a cold fish. Without that element of discovery, it's a more ordinary murder mystery shot on a modest budget.Nobody thinks of director Norman Foster as an "auteur" -- here come the French again -- but he does a good, craftsmanlike job here. The performances are okay. No one stands out. Everyone is reliable. There is a young Japanese girl who plays a Chinese dancer and she's quite memorable although she has only a few lines before she's thrown off a balcony. The guy who tosses her -- a guy we know but we don't know we know, y'know? -- ought to be brutally spanked. Instead he just winds up floating in the bay with a bullet in him.The climax is very well done for its type. The killer stalks Elliott among the cross-crossing shadows under a roller coaster while Sheridan, who has just learned the murderer's identity, tries to shout a warning from the rocketing amusement park ride.The filming locations put that amusement park in Carmel, but it can't be the Carmel that now exists. Nobody in Carmel would allow a roller coaster to perturb the tranquil artistry of the place. I suspect the real location was in Santa Cruz. The midway we see looks a lot like the place where back-lighted Dirty Harry fondled his .357 automag and muttered "Make my day".It's interesting to see the city's locations in 1950. Some have evolved, some not. I expect most of the indoor scenes were shot at Universal Studios. The outdoor scenes lack dialog except that which was dubbed in later. Yet, the city itself is pleasing to look at, on screen or in life. It's the most Mediterranean-looking city in the US because of the pastel houses and the multiple elevations. Everywhere you look, the earth is tossed and tumbled into mountains and hills. The rooftops are magnificent places to stage foot chases on, not to mention the views.
