Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.5

The Crooked Web Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 16, 2019

Note: This film is available as part of Noir Archive Volume 2: 1954-1956.

Kit Parker Films and Mill Creek Entertainment mined an interesting nonet of features for their Noir Archive Volume 1: 1944-1954, and now a second volume is forthcoming, with another nine outings that show what a reliable purveyor of noir or at least noir-ish films Columbia Studios continued to be through the mid-fifties. As the subtitle for the first volume made clear, that collection spanned a decade, from what was arguably the apex of noir in the mid-forties to the arguably somewhat less fertile era of Eisenhower. This second volume picks up in 1954 and continues forward two years, assembling a rather diverse collection of writers, directors and stars, some of whom at least many would probably consign to the so-called “B list”, though others, like Kim Novak, Jack Finney and even William Castle, certainly have claims to "A list" fame. One way or the other, though, there are some interesting titles in this second collection, and noir fans may well find this as appealing a set as the first outing.

Note: Some unavoidable potential spoilers are hinted at below.

The Crooked Web has a few nicely structured twists in its story of an attempt to bring a wayward man to justice, but one of the most interesting thing about it is where those twists are placed in the story. A lot of modern day filmmakers love to spend an hour and a half or so developing things, only to pull the veritable rug out from under the viewer, as if to say, “Ha! And you thought you knew what was going on!” Here, Lou Breslow’s screenplay sets up a situation where a drive-in owner named Stan Fabian (Frank Lovejoy) seems to be entering into an illicit business deal with Frank Daniel (Richard Denning), the brother of Stan’s girlfriend Joanie (Mari Blanchard). Later, it’s first suggested that maybe Frank and Joanie are a little more, um, intimate than siblings usually are, and then, a bit further on, it’s revealed that Frank and Joanie are not just not siblings, but on an “assignment” of sorts where Stan is the unwitting “mark”, albeit one who may deserve to have a target squarely on his back. This is another rather efficiently scripted and shot B-movie, one that does manage to work up a fair amount of tension, with some interesting developments for all three of the main characters.

The Crooked Web Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Crooked Web is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Kit Parker Films and Mill Creek Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. There's a fairly heavy grain field throughout this presentation which can look a little gritty at times, but this is on the whole a very nice looking presentation that preserves some of the fun location photography, while also supporting fine detail on elements like Denning's houndstooth jacket. There's one brief establishing shot at a beach that has one of the worst matte paintings I've personally seen. There is also some minor crush in several dark scenes, notably some inside cars. This presentation doesn't really have any major age related wear and tear other than some very minor speckling.

The Crooked Web Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Crooked Web features a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track that, like several in this set, can sound just a bit shrill when music is playing, but which delivers dialogue and effects well enough. There's a kind of funny expositional "Moishe the Explainer" sequence mid-film where Denning's narration sounds just a tad boxy, but other elements, like a song offered later in the film, sound full bodied, without any damage or distortion.

The Crooked Web Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

None of the three discs in this set feature any supplements.

The Crooked Web Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's some fun cat and mouse play in this film, though as innovative as a couple of early reveals are, I kind of wondered if the shock would have been elevated had they been delayed, if only a bit. Performances are generally excellent, and this presentation offers generally solid technical merits. Recommended.