The Man Who Walked Alone

I've noticed that a lot of the old movies that Tubi has are from Producers Releasing Corporation or other non-major studios. One that I watched recently was The Man Who Walked Alone, still available on Tubi as of this writing.

The man in question is Marion Scott (Dave O'Brien), who as the movie opens is walking along a country road trying to hitch a road into town when he comes along a farmer on the other side of the fence who thinks Marion looks familiar. Marion not having Claudette Colbert's legs, nobody is stopping for him, at least not until he goes out in the middle of the road. A woman swerves to miss Marion, and blows out a tire as a result. She's none too happy about it, and generally a bit of a spoiled brat in general, this being a would-be screwball comedy. So Marion offers to change the tire in exchange for a drive into town.

The woman, who eventually reveals her name to be Willie, wonders why Marion isn't in uniform, the movie having been released in early 1945. But when the car runs out of gas and Marion goes to buy some, Willie looks in Marion's bag and sees a uniform, implying that Marion was probably injured in the war and demobbed after recovering or somesuch. But Willie doesn't let on about having found out. Indeed, she doesn't reveal anything about who she is, which is an issue when the cops pull her over claiming she's driving a stolen car.

Thanks to the Production Code being in effect and this being a light comedy, you can guess that Willie isn't really a car thief, but she's still stringing Marion along. Next, she claims to work for the Hammonds, a wealthy family in town, as their secretary. But she claims doesn't have a key to the home office, goading Marion to break in which of course brings the police back and get the two of them in trouble with the law again.

However, it's finally revealed that Willie is the daughter in the Hammond family and that the car is owned by Willie's fiancé, whom she isn't really in love with. She gives Marion a job, leaving him around the Hammond estate and giving him the chance to pursue Willie romantically. Eventually, Willie's family and fiancé return home, leading to the finale in which everybody's true story is revealed and you can guess who winds up with whom in the final reel.

The Man Who Walked Alone is a serviceable enough B comedy. It's nothing great and definitely formulaic, but it entertains for its brief running time. Still, the B nature of the movie combined with it's not having been made at one of the big Hollywood studios, it's obvious why the movie is one that's largely forgotten. Good enough to pass the time on a rainy day, but nothing great.