The Crooked Way | 
| Actors: Hal Baylor, Harry Bronson, Lester Dorr, John Doucette, Ellen Drew
Studio: Geneon [Pioneer]
Category: DVD
List Price: $5.99
Buy New: $4.88
You Save: $1.11 (19%)
New (6) Used (5) from $2.15
Rating:  11 reviews
Sales Rank: 49138
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd, Full Screen, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 86 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: PLDD12678D
UPC: 013023267893
EAN: 0013023267893
ASIN: B000BGH2HC
Theatrical Release Date: April 22, 1949
Release Date: November 22, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Studio: Ingram Entertainment Release Date: 11/22/2005
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| Customer Reviews: Read 6 more reviews...
 Simplistic, but Exhibits Iconic Noir Themes and Cinematography by John Alton. June 8, 2009
mirasreviews (McLean, VA USA)
"The Crooked Way" is a minor film noir from 1949 with a familiar premise. Eddie Rice (John Payne) is a World War II veteran who has been in a rehabilitation hospital in San Francisco due to amnesia. A piece of shrapnel imbedded in his brain has caused him to loose all memory of his life and identity. Army records say only that he is Eddie Rice from Los Angeles. So he goes to Los Angeles in hopes that someone will recognize him, and someone does. Two police officers stop him at the train station and take him in for questioning. They say he is Eddie Ricardi, a gangster who ratted out his colleague Vince Alexander (Sonny Tufts) to save himself before skipping town 5 years ago. His ex-wife Nina Martin (Ellen Drew) also recognizes Eddie and rings Vince to say he's back in town.
"The Crooked Way" was based on a radio play called "No Blade Too Sharp" and directed by Robert Florey. The cinematographer is John Alton. The print I watched is very high contrast, to the point that shadows are often completely black. I don't know if the contrast on that print or transfer might be too high, but, as Alton is famous for not caring about detail in shadows, I'm inclined to think this is just a very high contrast film, like the great T-Men. In any case, this is a classic scenario of a man with no memory trying to discover himself, only to discover that he was not a good guy. He cannot recapture his memory or escape his past. It's reminiscent of the 1946 film noir Somewhere in the Night, a more iconic film that takes itself less seriously.
John Payne is tall, handsome, and tough as Eddie Rice, but he isn't given a lot to do. Eddie is a simpler character than "Somewhere in the Night"'s George Taylor. He seems oddly unfazed to learn that he was a sadistic thug in a previous life. Police Lieutenant Williams (Rhys Williams) has a quality unlike any policeman I've seen on film: a disarming combination of affability and nerve. Nothing scares him, and he is equally at ease with cops and gangsters. His manner is non-threatening; his pursuit of justice in not. "The Crooked Way" is not complex. It's dialogue is not especially sharp. But it is an entertaining film characteristic of the noir style.
The DVD (Geneon 2005): This is a grainy print, but there are only a few scratches or visible flaws apart from the grain, so it's not bad. Sound is ok. It isn't distracting, but it's not quite clean either. As I mentioned, the film is unusually high contrast, even for 1940s crime film, but I chalk that up to Alton. There are no subtitles, bonus features, or scene menu.
Great little Noir movie !! February 10, 2008
Brad Lloyd (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
This great Film Noir movie is a hidden gem and I am glad I got it !
John Payne is the classic noir guy and wish he had made more !!
 Tje John Payne "Way"! December 12, 2007
Bill Ford Interiors, Inc. (Paducah, KY)
Nice noir effort with former musical comedy star, John Payne. He always comes thru nicely in his various noir classics. Tight and nicely mounted with much atmosphere and typical noir lighting and shadows. Sunny Tuffs is a nice surprise as a meanie.
 Noir boor October 20, 2007
Alfred J. Quiroz (Tucson, AZ United States)
2 out of 8 found this review helpful
Personally, as a child, the room I was staying with my mother was used in the film. My babysitter recalls that John Payne was a real snob. I am glad it is available though since it stirred childhood memories of crawling over cables and the remembering the brightness of the lights.
An okay noir with great John Alton style and that odd, unnerving character actor, the fine Percy Helton June 30, 2007
C. O. DeRiemer (San Antonio, Texas, USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
If you believe that noir is a style more than a genre and that you'll recognize the style as soon as you see it, you'll have The Crooked Way pegged ten minutes in. That's when Eddie Rice (John Payne), a war vet who won the Silver Star and has a hunk of shrapnel in his brain, hits the streets of Los Angeles to find out who he is. Eddie has spent five years in an Army hospital in San Francisco while doctors worked to help him recover his memory. He has complete amnesia. But as his doctors point out, there's amnesia and there's amnesia. Eddie has the kind that's organic. His brain has been damaged and nothing will bring back his past. He can start anew. All Eddie knows is that his papers say he enlisted in Los Angeles. That's where he goes to see if he can find someone who knows who he was. And that's when John Alton's great noirsh cinematography kicks in. We know we're going to find ourselves walking right next to Eddie Rice in a grandly-lit crime caper of violence and betrayal, of wet streets and dark warehouses, of shadows cast by no sun or moon we've ever seen before, and of harsh, blinding whites and deep, deep blacks. The movie looks great. Please note that elements of the plot are discussed.
As soon as Eddie walks down the steps of the L.A. train station, however, he meets police lieutenant Joe Williams, just by accident. Williams tells Eddie he'd be wise to turn around and leave L.A. for good. It turns out Eddie Rice is really Eddie Riccardi, a crook and an informer who helped put away his friend and partner, crime boss Vince Alexander (Sonny Tufts). If Eddie doesn't get out of down, Williams almost chortles, just think of what Vince will do to you. Eddie, again just by accident, then happens to come across Nina Martin (Ellen Drew), who also tells him to get lost. It seems Eddie did her wrong and she now works for Vince...even though she's still Eddie Riccardi's wife. Then Vince learns Eddie's back. Vince is a tough guy who gets mad easily and believes in permanently disposing of people who cross him. He's in the rackets and runs a big gambling operation. By the time Vince and his goons get through with Eddie, Eddie looks worn around the edges. By the time Eddie gets through with Vince, Vince is air-conditioned. But Eddie stays Eddie Rice. All those memories are gone. It seems that he and Nina will, as Eddie says, have a chance at a decent life.
Coincidence plays such a big role in this movie it's apparent the writers didn't seem to have the time to do a better job. Too bad, because elements of the movie are good. The old amnesia device still works. The plot, powered by the uneasy, threatening style Alton creates, moves briskly. And for those who really enjoy the worn-down look of Los Angeles in the late Forties, the movie is a treat. Much of the movie was filmed in some grubby parts of down-town Los Angeles. When Eddie stops to get a glass of orange juice, he's at what looks like an Orange Julius stand. Later, at night, we see streets filled with open-window shops selling ten-cent red hots, tamales and "Western Farms Fresh Churned Buttermilk." A set of narrow stairs leads to a grubby hot-sheet second floor hotel next to a flashy dance hall. A worn-out movie house is showing Pitfall with Dick Powell.
As for the acting, it's a mixed bag. John Payne has always seemed to me to be stiff and empty as an actor. He has two expressions here, puzzled and sad or as if someone is stepping on his big toe. Sonny Tufts was a big, blond guy with a light voice and a meaty face. He started to hit the big time in the mid-Forties, usually as a big, lovable lug. Then booze hit him hard. It didn't help when two women filed separate charges against him for biting their thighs. Neither he not his career ever recovered. He became a punch-line for comedians. Tufts tries to make Vince menacing by often speaking in a kind of whisper. With his light voice, he sounds like a cross between Clint Eastwood and Alice Faye. But then we have Rhys Williams as Lt. Joe Williams. He does a fine job as an energetic, confident cop who likes to bait the bad guys. Most of all, we have that wonderful, odd character actor, Percy Helton. He was a small, round-headed, balding man with an unforgettable high, squeaky voice. If you've seen him, you won't forget him. He almost always played unreliable or slimy or cowardly characters. In The Crooked Way, he's a two-bit crook who cares greatly for his sick cat, Samson.
The DVD transfer is surprisingly good, in the order of a solid VHS tape. There are chapter stops but no menu; the movie just starts when you put it in the player. If the price is right and you enjoy B noirs, this might be one worth getting.
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