Woman on the Run

Frank Johnson witnesses a killing while walking his dog at night. The police come and want a statement. Frank runs, because he knows he will be killed if he testifies. Unable to find him, the police go to his wife. Eleanor has not loved her husband for four years and says she does not know where he is. The inspector does not trust her and follows her. Eleanor is looking for him too. A journalist joins her; the man wants the story and helps. Going about the city, Eleanor begins to learn who her husband is. Norman Foster directs. Ann Sheridan plays Eleanor and Dennis O'Keefe the journalist; Robert Keith is in the cast. It was shot in real locations in San Francisco; the streets and the waterfront are used directly inside the narrative. What the narrative builds is a woman learning about her husband afterwards; Eleanor finds another man by listening to those who knew him. The narrative uses the crime shape but puts a marriage at its centre. Its last section takes place at an amusement park and the tension is built on a rollercoaster. Prints of it could not be found for a long time; the negatives were damaged in a fire and it was restored only by gathering copies held in other countries. Ann Sheridan's performance carries the picture and the character is written hard. Its limit is scale; the budget is small, it runs short and the plot is simple. Who it is for: viewers who like film noir and productions shot in a city. Who it is not for: it is short, the plot thin, and the ending familiar.