Woman on the Run (1950)

Director:

Norman Foster

Writers:

Sylvia Tate (story)
Alan Campbell (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

29 November 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Film-Noir | Crime | Drama

Plot:

Frank Johnson flees police after becoming an eyewitness to murder. He is pursued around scenic San Francisco by his wife, a reporter, the police, and... the real murderer.

Plot Keywords:

Public Domain | Storekeeper | Cabinet | Coroner | Cigarette Smoking

Cast

Ann Sheridan	...	Eleanor Johnson
Dennis O'Keefe	...	Danny Leggett
Robert Keith	...	Inspector Martin Ferris
Ross Elliott	...	Frank Johnson
Frank Jenks	...	Detective Homer Shaw
John Qualen	...	Mailbus
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Sea Captain
Joan Shawlee	...	Blonde (as Joan Fulton)
Steven Geray	...	Dr. Arthur Hohler
Reiko Sato	...	Susie
Jane Liddell	...	Police Woman Following Eleanor
Victor Sen Yung	...	Sammy Chung

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #14689) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | West Germany:16 (nf) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Chinatown, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Fidelity Pictures Corporation

Quotes:

Eleanor Johnson: [In the dark shadows of roller coaster on the deserted beach at night] I don't like this place.
Danny Leggett: It's a good spot. I used to come here with my girl when I was a kid. It's more frightening than romantic. It's the way love is when you're young... life is when you're older.

Feminine Film Noir with Snappy Dialog

There's LOTS of snappy dialog in this film, all of it involving Ann Sheriden, & much of it involving Dennis O'Keefe as Danny Leggett or Robert Keith as Inspector Ferris. There are very few Film Noirs with a female lead, & this is one of them. Sheriden does a terrific job as the wife of a man on the run from the police & the mob. Is Ann faithful or faithless? Where's her husband? Does she care? These are some of the questions raised in the film. Lots of shadows, much of it filmed at night, but there are some sunny scenes. Look for #2 Son as one of the Chinese dancers. The dialog was so tart that it reminded me of `The Big Sleep,' & that's saying a lot. One big difference between that film & this, is that this film is a lot more easy to comprehend. I actually knew who they were talking about when they referred to `Susie' or `Ferris,' maybe because the number of characters in this movie were few, & their roles were very well defined. Exciting, suspenseful, good sense of humor, very well acted & directed. Too bad it's hard to find on video & it's never shown on TV. I rate it 9/10.