The FRiday Night Movie - Detour (1945)

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[DemforBush]

Our second feature tonight is a unlikely little gem of a film noir. Made for as little as $30,000 and shot in just six days, Detour had no budget, no stars, and no time to fix mistakes. Yet somehow, the final product turned out to be a haunting, memorable noir that is now considered to be a classic of the genre. Starring Tom Neal and Ann Savage.

[DemforBush]

Detour is definitely a case of the whole being greater of the sum of its parts. For all its shortcomings, the film works, and quite well at that. The back-and-forth between Al (Neal) and Vera (Ann Savage) simply crackles with energy. 7/10.

BTW, Tom Neal was an interesting guy, to say the least. His off-screen life was at least as improbable and scandalous as any film noir. A Harvard Law graduate and a gifted amateur boxer, but also one-time boyfriend to a gun moll, and eventually, a convicted murderer.

[DemforBush]

Previous week's offerings:

The Stranger7/10

Decision Before Dawn7.5/10

The Woman in the Window8/10

Plunder Road6.75/10

The Hitch-Hiker7/10

The Big Heat8.5/10 (Now blocked by youtube)

Stalag 178/10

The Enemy Below7.5/10.

Kiss of Death7.25/10

The Killers8.0/10

DOA7.5/10

[DemforBush]

Ping.

[freedumb2003]

Bump for later

[Silentgypsy]

Thank you!

[Dr. Sivana]

The lead lady in that one is the scariest woman I have ever seen in cinema. The actress played that PERFECTLY. This movie greatly exceeded my expectations. Buy it for a dollar somewhere or watch it online. VERY Good noir movie.

[lewislynn]

Did anyone else notice in the first leg of his hitch hiking, before he got a ride with “Haskel”, he, the cars and the drivers were all on the wrong side?

[DemforBush]

Agreed! Ann Savage was one scary chick in Detour. I especially liked the moments when she’d soften for the briefest moment, making you think she was human after all, and then immediately come back more ruthless and unhinged than ever.