The Last Crooked Mile

Actress Ann Savage will forever be defined by her searing role as the insane Vera in Edgar Ulmer’s unlikely masterpiece Detour (1945), but she made a couple dozen low budget films for Republic and other Poverty Row studios, including The Last Crooked Mile, directed by Philip Ford, nephew of legendary director John Ford. Paired up with Don “Red” Barry, who sports a lighter Cagney style as insurance investigator Tom Dwyer, Savage plays Sheila Kennedy, a cabaret singer and girlfriend of a bank robber who died with his accomplices while fleeing the police. With the loot still missing, Dwyer begins investigating the burglary alongside the police while surviving gang members set out to thwart his efforts since they’re on the hunt too. The lovely Adele Mara plays Bonnie, whose crush on Dwyer is somewhat adorable, and the amusement park scenes are perfectly amusing, especially the rear-projection roller coaster sequence which is well-done for the period. Ford and cinematographer Alfred Keller create more than a handful of atmospheric noir scenes with low-key lighting and deep shadows haunting alleys at night.