Rating: 
Summary: Take a detour away from this DVD
Review: I wasn't all that impressed with this movie, finding it too self-consciously "noir-ish" for its own good. But you know something? I'm going to give it another chance sometime in the future, as I can't help but feel that the reprehensible shape of the print used to make this DVD contributed to my lack of enjoyment of the story. In fact, it's like I haven't even SEEN the whole movie, as entire lines of dialogue were missing every few minutes, accompanied by horrible splices. Trust me, stay away form this particular DVD and wait for someone to release a print of it that's at least watchable.
Rating: 
Summary: "Did you ever want to forget anything?"
Review: In the 1945 black and white film, "Detour" Al Roberts (Tom Neal) plays piano in a run-down New York nightclub called Break O'Dawn. Girlfriend, Sue Harvey, is the singer. One day, Sue announces that she's tired of trying to scrape a living together, and she's heading for Hollywood. Al and Sue don't part on the best of terms, but Al soon realizes that life without Sue just isn't the same. Al decides to hitchhike all the way to California. This turns out to be no easy task, and it takes Al far longer than anticipated. Finally, he has no money, and his stomach is empty. Al's luck appears to change when he is picked up by the gregarious Charles Haskell Junior...."Detour" was made on a very small budget, and while the film is only 69 minutes long, the story is gripping. Some of the scenes are in fog or gloomy settings, and throughout, a feeling of despair permeates the story. The copy I watched was remastered from original 35mm film, and the quality of the picture was excellent. Al's story is gripping, and we can probably all relate to it in one way or another--he bemoans the lack of money, and it is this fact of life that places him in precarious circumstances. At one point, Al has choices, and the choice he makes sets him on a path from which he will never return. Tom Neal was really marvelous in the role of Al Roberts. He was so good, I looked up information about his career, and what I found sounded like something from a Film Noir plot. The revolting character of Vera (Ann Savage) is the perfect foil for Al's character. Vera is tough, and merciless while Al's indecisiveness makes him seem weak and vulnerable. Vera becomes Al's purgatory. If you are a fan of Film Noir and you've missed this gem, I recommend it--displacedhuman
Rating:
Summary: "Stop makin' noises like a husband," said the femme fatale
Review: One of my favourite movies of all time. A sleazy tale filled with bleakness that never lets up. Tom Neal plays the fatalistic Al spot-on. Ann Savage as the delightfully psychotic Vera is shrew-iffic. Oh my, is she ever a feisty dame! Gotta love a woman who isn't afraid to bite, kick and claw (the scene where a hitchhiking Al inquires about the scratch on the hand of the man who picked him up = classic). The voice-over (unreliable) narration can be cheesy, and so can some of the dialogue (though a good deal of it is clever and well written), yet it all works, and has become less cheesy-seeming as I've grown to love this film.
Rating:
Summary: THE FINEST " B " FILM NOIR.
Review: Quite possibly the bleakest and most nihilistic of the genre, it is well-known among film buffs that DETOUR was filmed on a shoe string budget in six days. Today this little gem enjoys an outstanding critical reputation for its depiction of a man caught in the grip of forces beyond his control. Neal is hitchhiking to Los Angeles to join his fiance. He is picked up by McDonald who tells him of a female hitchhiker he picked up earlier; she scratched him when he made advances toward her. When it begins to rain, Neal (who is driving while McDonald sleeps) tries to awaken the car's owner in order to put the convertible top up - and finds he's dead. Lo and behold, Neal stops to picked up Savage, the gal who was previously picked-up by the man he's just dumped - lifeless - in the the desert...Think you've got it figured out? Forget it, Charley, you haven't even scratched the surface! As the despicable vixen Vera, Ann Savage is no less than sensational and her comeuppance is the highlight of the film. A very significant, fine motion picture.
Rating:
Summary: Low-budget but highly influential and entertaining
Review: This film is has no real fat to trim--it's as lean and mean as they come. Sure, some of the acting is just okay--it was low-budget afterall--but it's a very entertaining, gripping story of an innocent guy caught up in circumstances beyond his control. It's dark, nasty, and offers no comfort to anyone. As Errol Morris has said of film noirs like this: "You ask, 'Why are these bad things happening to me?' and the answer, the almost-unacceptable answer is, "For no reason whatsoever".
Rating:
Summary: A PARTICULARLY HAUNTING FILM NOIR
Review: This is a short, low-budget film, but it leaves a BIG impact!
I'm not going to give away the plot except to write:
You wouldn't want to trade places with Tom Neal's character for anything by the end of the film. And you'll never pick up a hitch hiker, that's for sure. If you like film noir, this is a must-see.
Rating: 
Summary: An interesting "B" film noir
Review: This is an interesting "B" film noir shot on a shoestring budget from PRC a studio noted for its cheapie cheap, below average productions. For a number of film buffs this picture is their finest effort and has cult film status. Interesting performances from Tom Neal as the fatalistic, passive "hero" and Ann Savage as the vicious consumptive bitch who seals his doom.
Rating:
Summary: Film Noir By Kafka
Review: What is Franz Kafka wrote film noir.
That's what you get with Ulmer's stunning masterpiece: "Detour".
Ann Savage may be the most evil and unctuous villainesses to ever
grace the screen. And anyone can identify with Tom Neal's doomed
character. If you're serious about film noir, you MUST have this
amazing film in your collection. Proof that great films don't have to cost a mint
when true creativity is at play.
Rating:
Summary: Terrible print--beware
Review: While it's true that this is one of the seminal movies of film noir, the print here is absolutely reprehensible. I use that word not only because of the quality of the print, but also, much more insidiously, because on the packaging, it boasts that this is a "pristine new film-to-video transfer from original source materials" AND "Beautifully restored from the original 35mm nitrate masters". Well, "original" is the operative word here. This must have been a direct transfer with absolutely NO digital remastering AT ALL. And original? It's like they found the cheapest print of this film available and then purposely messed THAT up. There are so many unintentional jump cuts and skips in the film it is absolutely infuriating. Image Entertainment is charging (...)full retail price for this; they should be charging (less). Yes, you can still make out more than enough to understand the entire film, but with technology what it is today, why should there be this many errors and omissions? This is completely inexcusable. The three stars are for the film itself. If the print had been clean, I definitely would have given this five stars. This is really a shame. Image should be REALLY ashamed of themselves, especially given the specious advertising on the package.
Rating: 
Summary: Boy meets girl ala' Jim Thompson
Review: Wow, this is a tough,gritty film. It deserves every good word that has been ever printed about it. Since the other reviews cover the plot and style,all I have to say is that what makes this movie great for me is that it has a quality similar to a Greek tradgedy.Is it the woman or a weakness in himself that dooms him? You can see the hero's doom rushing to inevitably meet him,and he rushing to meet it,yet you hope he can somehow avoid it.Will he? That's the question that keeps you nailed to your seat. And the ending, it's right up there with the ending to the Paul Muni film "I am a Fugitive from the Chain Gang".
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