Woman on the Run, Ann Sheridan in Peril

Ann Sheridan may be the greatest actress we never seem to talk about.  In our film today, she is given the titular role, though in reality, the film should be titled "Man on the Run." The gritty Film Noir film we will discuss today is set, mostly at night, in San Francisco.  Not the San Francisco of today, but a time when brute sailors dictated the toughness and grit of a soon to fall American metropolis. For every good man, there is a trail of sultry dames he ran away from.  In our film today, a good man smartens up and flees the sultry woman who always tells him what a dweeb he is.  Let us take a look at 1950's "Woman on the Run," directed by Norman Foster.

Poor Frank (Ross Elliott).  The artist and dreamer is detested by his wife, Eleanor (Sheridan). He is kind hearted, altruistic, and creative...she is materialistic and quick to sneer and criticize.  It gets worse for Frank. Walking the dog one night he is eyewitness to a gangland execution.  A government witness was just offed by the mob boss he was supposed to testify against. Now Frank is the government witness, and he flees. Knowing the mobster needs him dead, Frank disappears. Inspector Ferris (Robert Keith) needs to find him so he can put Smiley Freeman behind bars for good. Ferris finds Frank's wife who is kind of glad her husband is gone...and maybe the target of killers.  She is mad that she is living in a two-room apartment and her husband has no earning power.  Insp. Ferris, knows dames, and posits that Frank may not be running from mobsters, but from Eleanor. Eleanor is mildly insulted by this.

As the night turns to day, Eleanor finds out some surprises about Frank.  One, he is dying.  Two, everyone who meets him loves him.  Now Eleanor has a bout with her conscience and accepts the assistance of a nosy reporter, Legget (Dennis O'Keefe) to find her Frank.  Legget wants the story and now, suddenly, Eleanor needs Frank back so she can earn some redemption. Eleanor meets person after person whose eyes light up when Frank's name is mentioned.  They are all excited to meet her because Frank always talked so glowingly about his lovely wife. Now Eleanor feels like a real heel, and with Legget by her side gets closer and closer to finding Frank.  Uh oh...trust no one...especially if you are a sultry dame in a Film Noir film.

Just who is this reporter that is so anxious to help an unhappy dame find her husband?  Should Frank keep running rather than be found by the demoness who has humiliated him so much during the brief marriage?  Will redemption be found by Eleanor before the evils that stalk her husband catch up to her?  This is a guy film, and Ann Sheridan provides nice eye candy for those guys.  This film also is a powerful message for the sanctity of marriage, and that message comes across with gunfire, fights, and desperation. Also, in this film, enjoy the most unsettling rollercoaster ride ever put on film.  See "Woman on the Run," and understand what a great Film Noir film is made of.