Other than the premise, which sounded very interesting if not original, Sylvia Sidney was my main reason for wanting to see 'Mary Burns, Fugitive'. Such an expressive and sincere actress with eyes and expressions that told so much in a nuanced way. Melvyn Douglas also gave plenty of great performances, whether in suave roles or paternal ones. Brian Donlevy was a bit hit and miss for me and it did depend on the role, as cliched as that sounds.
'Mary Burns, Fugitive' turned out to be a solid film with a lot of notable things in a good way. Sidney certainly being one of them, not surprising as she was one of the best things of pretty much every film she starred in, and was pleasantly surprised by Donlevy. 'Mary Burns, Fugitive' is not a perfect film and its full potential is not followed all the way through. It could have done with more grit and there is one performance that was rather weak for my tastes.
That weak performance coming from a very bland Alan Baxter, who is neither sympathetic or formidable (didn't really detect much of anything really) and has little chemistry with Sidney. Which should have smoldered but instead doesn't even achieve lukewarm level.
As said, 'Mary Burns, Fugitive' could have done with a little more grit and thrills, not going for the full punch enough and not quite giving enough freshness to familiar elements. It starts a touch slow as well, before picking up quite quickly.
Sidney however is her usual expressive and easy to root for self and Douglas shows that he can do cantankerous just as well as he can do suave and fatherly, although his role is smaller than his billing indicates. Most surprising is the quietly menacing Donlevy. The rest of the cast also fare well, namely Pert Kelton, excelling in a role that one might think on paper wouldn't fit her. William K. Howard keeps the intrigue up and does generate some suspense.
It's stylishly and atmospherically shot, not looking too studio-bound or cheap. The script doesn't blow the mind, but it has energy at least, it's cohesive and the dialogue flows. The story likewise, complete with some neat twists and it entertained and intrigued me enough.
On the whole, solid but not spectacular. 7/10
