The Man Who Walked Alone

Dave O'Brien is Marion: Just home from the war, he carries his uniform in a suitcase instead of wearing it. Kay Aldridge is Willie, a rich girl on the road alone and keeping a low profile. He's hitchhiking; she reluctantly picks him up. Marion tells Willie she's got idle rich written all over her—and she assumes he's out of uniform because he's a deserter. It's the old hate at first sight setup.

Things develop, of course, and O'Brien and Aldridge make a great pair, even though not much surprises about the way their relationship turns and progresses. Together and separately, both stars look fine and appear very much at home in this easy going romance that includes plenty of laughs, some fun supporting characters, and a happy portion of patriotic sentiment.

Walter Catlett is very funny as Wiggins the butler—we first meet him in his lodge outfit, complete with cocked hat and epaulettes, arriving home from a "meeting" somewhat tipsy. Fourteen-year-old Nancy June Robinson is also hilarious as the precocious little sister out to get herself an education.

Overall, it's no classic but really sweet. O'Brien is just about right as a sort of Everyman, circa 1945—returning home from the war to a home he doesn't really know. A slight tale, yes…but warm and hopeful.

One startling and hilarious scene: Having run out of gas and walked to a station, O'Brien arrives back at the car with a gallon of gas in a jar…a clear glass jar like you would buy cider in. He pours the gas into the tank….then casually tosses the empty jar aside into the ditch.

I don't go looking at PRC movies expecting much in the way of excellence, even if they are directed by the underrated Christy Cabanne. So when I decided to take a look at this movie, I didn't expect much. Imagine my surprise when I found it a spiffy comedy in the vein of Preston Sturges' HAIL THE CONQUERING HERO.

When we first meet Dave O'Brien -- better remembered for his roles in countless Pete Smith shorts and low-grade B westerns -- he is trying to hitch a lift into his home town. All we know about him is that he is a war vet who grew up in an orphanage; his (new) home town was bequeathed to him by his fox hole buddy who hasn't made it back. He annoys Kay Aldredge, a local heiress engaged to a politician whom she doesn't love, and gets a ride from her. They are promptly thrown into jail. Twice.

I said this movie is in the vein of Preston Sturges' great comedy, but it is far more cynical. The auctorial voice in the other movie is cynical, even as the characters are stoic and steadfast; even the politicians in HAIL are well-meaning, if terribly confused. In this movie, every character is cynical: not just the kid sister and the worldly-wise aunt, but even the dithery mother. They all know they are putting on a false front, and are more concerned with appearances than the realities.

In many ways, the script of this movie offers a film noir world view hiding under the mask of a standard romantic comedy. It's filled with fine comedy veterans who underplay their roles. In the end, it offers the message that there is hope, so long as people are honest; also a few laughs along the way.

"Willie" (Kay Aldridge) is in the process of jilting her stuffy fiancé "Alvin" (Smith Ballew) - using his own car, when she encounters a hitchhiker to whom she offers a lift. They barely get half a mile down the road when they are apprehended by the cops for pinching the car and are promptly shoved in jail. It's an easy mix-up for her to clear up, but her passenger "Marion" (Dave "Dex" O'Brien) seems to be having more difficulty on that front and so she assumes he has something to hide. To find out more, she takes him to her home where she pretends to be the secretary to it's owner - really her mother, and sets about getting to the bottom of things where, of course, romance is only ever going to be just round the corner. With the fiancé on one side, the suspicious "Willie" and her disapproving mum all getting involved in her investigation, this amiably silly drama sets off down a path we've seen loads of time before. It's a bit as if auteur Christy Cabanne took the first part of one old script he found in the attic and put it together with another he found at the bottom of the gerbil's cage and so at times the plot overlaps and jars here. After the initial shenanigans settle down, it becomes a rather messy affair and the fairly lacklustre writing creates a story the cast can't really make too much headway with. That said, though, there is a decent rapport between O'Brien and Aldridge and the scene stealing Nancy June Robinson raises the whole spirit of the thing as the younger sibling "Patricia" who certainly has the best of the quips. It's a perfectly watchable afternoon comedy, but you'll never recall it.

I can see this is a series B movie, with the feel of a Hollywooed blockbuster. Acting is really good, and the story, although light, is really fun to watch. Found it by surprise, but could not get past it. It would be great to have the two lead actores rediscovered, specially the lady.

This movie is something of a find. With so many movies made at the time, many were bound to slip under the radar. This one did, sadly. The story is engaging from the start and never droops. It's a total joy. Considering it was made by one of the smaller studios, the sets looked good and the story was excellent. But really it's the acting by the two little known leads that makes this so watchable. Dave O'Brien, playing the kind of role that would normally have to gone to Cary Grant or Joel McCrea, proves he was as good as anyone at playing screw ball comedy. Kay Aldridge is stunningly beautiful as the female lead that would normally have gone to Claudette Colbert or Jean Arthur and is a revelation. Miss Aldridge bares more than a passing resemblance to Vivien Leigh, and at times sounds like her. Which is no bad thing considering how good Vivien Leigh was. She and Dave O'Brien have great chemistry together in this. The rest of the cast are just as good and I would recommend this movie to anyone to watch.