He Ran All the Way

Nick Robey [John Garfield] is a petty thief who botches a robbery, shooting a policeman and leaving his partner Al Molin [Norman Lloyd] severely wounded. He escapes with over $10,000 and, deliberately melting into the city crowd, slips away to a local swimming pool. There, he encounters Peg Dobbs [Shelley Winters], a bakery worker, and accompanies her back to her family’s apartment. Peg’s mother, father, and young brother head out to see a movie, and when they return Robey uses the moment to seize the family as hostages, determined to escape no matter the cost.

Outside, a citywide manhunt unfolds while Robey becomes increasingly paranoid. Peg’s initial attraction gives way to fear as her parents plead with him to leave, but he refuses to back down. He allows Mr. Dobbs to go to work, warning that calling the police would bring dire consequences. Peg keeps working, while her father urges her to stay away, yet she returns that night. A desperate call to Nick’s mother to deliver money is rebuffed, and Peg eventually agrees to run away with Robey, who hands her $1,500 to buy a new car.

The tension escalates the next day as Robey clashes with Mr. Dobbs, though he lets him leave once Peg returns. Dobbs and Mrs. Dobbs (Mrs. Dobbs is played by Selena Royle) decide to go to the police, while Robey fixates on the plan to get the car delivered to the front door after the headlights are fixed. The neighborhood feels eerily quiet, feeding Robey’s fear that the police are closing in. In a brutal moment of control, he drags Peg down the stairs toward the exit. Mr. Dobbs waits outside and fires at Robey as they reach the door. When Robey’s gun slips beyond reach, Peg shoots him instead. Mortally wounded, Robey crawls to the curb just as his new car arrives, and the police arrive soon after, bringing the harrowing ordeal to a cold, inevitable end.

Last Updated: October 07, 2025 at 08:28