Road House (1948), a film noir classic, stars one of the queens of noir, Ida Lupino. She is outstanding as the lounge singer who tears apart an old friendship with fatal results. The film contains the elements necessary to a fine melodrama - a love triangle consisting of a conniving, murderous villain (Richard Widmark), and a pair of lovers (Lupino and Cornel Wilde) who are wrenched apart by the spurned lover.

Jefty Robbins (Widmark) owns a roadhouse/bowling alley in a small town near the Canadian border. Pete Morgan (Wilde) is the manager, and Susie Smith (Celeste Holm) is superfluous as the cashier. Jefty returns from a trip to Chicago with lounge singer Lily Stevens (Lupino), and Pete is immediately angered because her inflated salary will cut into his percentage of the profits. However, Lily's popularity with the customers allays Pete's misgivings, and the couple warm to each other.

Jefty, of course, has first dibs on the beautiful entertainer, but she tactfully rebuffs him. When it becomes obvious that Lily and Pete have fallen in love, Jefty contrives a scheme to frame Pete who winds up on trial and is then paroled into Jefty's diabolical clutches. How the lovers, along with Susie, manage to escape and put an end to Jefty's reign of terror climaxes in the last half hour with nail biting intensity. Some of the scenes can seem a bit corny to audiences more used to mind-numbing violence and explicit sex, but in the context of the times, Road House is an excellent film.

As with most films of this era, everyone smokes, but in Road House a cigarette seems to be lit all the time. Lily, in particular, almost always has a cigarette dangling from her sultry lips. This, plus the violence and subject matter, make the film unsuitable for children.

Special Features

€¢ Audio Commentary by film historians Kim Morgan and Eddie Muller

€¢ Featurette: Killer Instincts: Richard Widmark and Ida Lupino at Twentieth Century Fox. Several film historians and writers, including Robert Osborne, Alan K. Rode, Foster Hirsch and Kim Morgan talk about Richard Widmark and Ida Lupino. Widmark was called the "friendliest guy on the lot" in contrast to the villainous roles he was then known for. As for his acting: "He had a quality that no other actor at that time had," and "He invented the modern psychopath of movies."

Lupino was called a spirited independent whom people liked. Her voice was not dubbed for the singing in Road House, and the song Again was written for the film.

Actress Kathleen Hughes who had a small part in the film remarked that they "shot scenes over and over and over."

€¢ Interactive Press Book

€¢  Photo Gallery  

Director: Jean Negulesco

Writers: Screenplay, Edward Choorov; Story, Margaret Gruen and Oscar Saul

Cast: Ida Lupino, Cornel Wilde, Celeste Holm, Richard Widmark

Rating: Not Rated. Not for children

Classic Movie Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

DVD Release Date:    Steptember 2, 2008

Run Time: 95 minutes

Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Format: Black & White, Full Frame

Photo credits: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment