The Last Crooked Mile

The Last Crooked Mile

It starts off brilliantly with a successful bank robbery, where one of the gangsters is left dead outside, while the other three are chased to death by the police, the car getting wrecked and sold to an amusement park for attracting tourists, but there are other attractions as well at that fairground, one of them being a rollercoaster, in which a dead body is discovered, dumped there by someone who strangled it. And that is only the beginning. The action is fast, it's difficult to hang along, but the dialog is brilliant with many enjoyable repartees. Ann Savage is the lady here courted by the detective Donald Berry, nicer but not better than James Cagney, while there are any number of crooks around. Hang on to the end, for someone will surprise you.

After a bank robbery, $300k goes missing when the robbers are caught. A wise cracking PI inserts himself in the hunt for the money and, along the way, he finds dames, carnies, and conspiracies. This was oddly a more light hearted noir since the PI and all other men in this movie are constantly spitting flirty one liners at every woman within reach. It hit all the tropes, but wasn't much more than a light entertainment of a B noir. My favorite scene was the projection screen roller coaster that looked pretty good for a very low budget special effect 🎢. Watched on YouTube.

Ann Savage will forever be known as the vulturous woman in Ulmer's masterpiece DETOUR. Alas, many other films in her career have not had comparable longevity. This little programmer is one of the many forgotten little baubles that used to dot TV land back in the days before all those rotten Infomercials took over late night viewing. Despite the superb cast of B movie stalwarts, this generic little programmer is nonetheless noteworthy for trying to cram a lot of plot in the confines of an hour, so much so that it appears incoherent. It tries to do everything and ends up not doing much of anything. It's diverting enough because of the haywire plot; you never know where this is going. But see it for Ann Savage.

A gang steals $300,000 from a bank, but all die in the robbery and pursuit. The money has disappeared. The insurance company offers a 10% reward for the total, and in waltzes cocky PI Don Barry in a grey outfit and hand-painted tie, leaving girl friend Adele Mara dancing by herself while he pursues night club singer Ann Savage and the money. Republic was interested in expanding Barry beyond his fans from the Red Ryder movies, and he slips easily into this movie, which has some nice film noir touches -- notice the shadows thrown off by a set of Venetian blinds early on. Despite these visuals, and a sequence set in a fun fair at night, it's not in the least noirish. Barry is too cavalier, and there's a hint of 1930s screwball in Miss Mara's role. All in all, an entertaining little film, with a couple of nice twists, and Sheldon Leonard as a hood called 'Wires' McGuire.

This Bit of Fluff from "Republic Studios" has a Sharp Noirish Appeal at Times but the Darkness is Overshadowed by a Lighter-Than-Air Tone. Peppered with Comedy-Relief in the Form of a Running-Joke the Annoying Don Barry "Standing-Up: the Pretty Adele Mara. The Grim and Scary Ann Savage who Left an Indelible Mark on Film-Noir in "Detour" (1945), Plays a "Songbird" and Another Love Interest for the Cocky, Belligerent Barry. Although She Doesn't Quite Pull it Off as a Nightclub Singer because of Her Hard Look and Demeanor, Savage Does Make an Impression. The Overall Tone is too Wishy-Washy for a True Noir. But its a Good Time-Passer and Republic Studios was Humming Along as One of the Best "B-Studios" in Hollywood. Those Looking for Film-Noir Need Go Elsewhere, but Still it's... Worth a Watch.