Details
Movie Description
Following the tradition of 1960s and '70s Westerns in which the criminals are the heroes, THERE WAS A CROOKED MAN takes devilish pride in the antics of armed robber and murderer Paris Pitman, Jr. (Kirk Douglas), as he stages a prison break with fellow lawless bumblers from a jail run by a warden (Henry Fonda) who'd rather reform than punish, forsaking hard labor for building and learning. Fonda conveys integrity with just his eyes, reinforcing his reputation as a Western icon, while Douglas's twinkle and grin invites the viewer to laugh along with him as he dupes both his cronies and the warden. After the breakout, Fonda pledges to bring Douglas back dead or alive in this entertaining, surprising film from Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
Synopsis
An honorable and tough-as-nails warden (Henry Fonda) of an Old West jail sets out to reform his prisoners, including an armed robber, bad-tempered snitch, quiet Asian, would-be womanizer, and pair of hapless swindlers in this caper. But the worst intentions can't be driven out of all of them, especially the smooth-talking robber, Kirk Douglas, who is determined to escape and recover the load of cash he has hidden outside, instigating a prison break that causes more than a little mayhem.
Film Notes
Color by Technicolor; shot in Panavision.
Additional cast: C.K. Yang (Ah-Ping), Victor French (Whiskey), Bert Freed (Skinner), Jeanne Cooper (Prostitute), Barbara Rhoades (Schoolteacher), Gene Evans (Col. Wolff), Ann Doran (Mrs. Lomax), Pamela Hensley, Edward McKinley, Larry D. Mann, Karl Lukas, Paul Prokop, and Bart Burns.
Additional credits: Peter V. Herald (production supervisor)
Copyright 1970 Warner Bros.-Seven Arts.
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