There Was a Crooked Man...
A silver-tongued thief turns an Arizona penitentiary into a battlefield of schemes while an idealistic warden tries to impose order.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- sardonic
- picaresque
- bitter
- classic western night
- prison movie marathon
What critics said
Critics generally found intelligence, wit, strong performances, and visual enjoyment in the film, while noting that its low-key, meandering prison melodrama never fully coheres.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Paris Pitman is incarcerated in an Arizona prison isolated in the desert, making confinement the film's defining western space.
Paris Pitman repeatedly manipulates inmates, guards, and authorities while pursuing his hidden fortune.
The film alternates between prison melodrama and Mankiewicz's sharp, somewhat bitter humor.
Pitman's concealed $500,000 loot drives his plans and the ambitions of those around him.
Films like There Was a Crooked Man..., and why
Cool Hand Luke
shared western setting, prison-centered conflict, sardonic humor, and charismatic criminal protagonist
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
shared revisionist western atmosphere, ensemble criminality, and bitter comic tone
The Great Escape
shared prison escape plotting, manipulative antihero, and darkly comic drama
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
shared western prison setting, cynical morality, and stylized ensemble drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Joseph L. Mankiewicz
- Release Date
- 1970-09-18
- Runtime
- 123 min
- Rating
- 6.8 / 10 (149)
Cast
- Kirk Douglas
- Henry Fonda
- Hume Cronyn
- Warren Oates
- Burgess Meredith
- John Randolph
- Lee Grant
- Arthur O'Connell
- Martin Gabel
- Michael Blodgett
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is There Was a Crooked Man... about?
- A silver-tongued thief turns an Arizona penitentiary into a battlefield of schemes while an idealistic warden tries to impose order.
- What is There Was a Crooked Man... like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of There Was a Crooked Man... as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is There Was a Crooked Man... violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in There Was a Crooked Man... as moderate.
- What did critics think of There Was a Crooked Man...?
- Critics generally found intelligence, wit, strong performances, and visual enjoyment in the film, while noting that its low-key, meandering prison melodrama never fully coheres.
- Which films are like There Was a Crooked Man...?
- Films with a similar feel include Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Great Escape, and The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean.
- How long is There Was a Crooked Man...?
- There Was a Crooked Man... runs 123 minutes.
- Where can I watch There Was a Crooked Man...?
- In United States, There Was a Crooked Man... streams on Philo.
