the petrified forest at the time of this review be 71 year old . it have some paint outdoor set and a very young and pretty bette davis and with humphrey bogart and leslie howard repeat their stage role a and respectively and a dillinger type criminal and an idealistic dreamer . it less a film than a filmed play and it obviously a play and by robert sherwood . and guess what and it hold up with some wonderful acting and surprisingly refreshing theme . davis be gaby maple and who work in the desert café own by her grandfather . it there that she wait on alan and who speak loftily and listen to her dream of leave the hat arizona desert and join her mother in france and become an artist . in a short time and they fall for one another and but alan have to move on . he hitch a ride with a wealthy man and his wife and the chisholms and but on the way out of the desert and they run into the escaped murderer duke mantee and his gang and whose car have break down . they steal the henderson car . while their chauffeur be attempt to fix the mantee vehicle and alan realize that duke and the gang be head toward the café and and he walk back there . there and duke hold everyone hostage and include the returning chisholms and during which time and alan come to an important decision about gaby and himself and and what his life mean . the film have two unusual aspect and the first be the surprising treatment of the black character . one of the black men be part of duke gang and an equal member of it . when the chauffeur ask his bos if it okay to have a drink and the gang member scoff at his subservience . haven not you hear about the new liberation . he ask him and shove a drink in his hand . the second aspect be mrs. henderson feminist counseling of gaby . mrs. henderson urge gaby not to suppress her dream for someone else and in this case her grandfather and but to become an individual and know who she be and what she want . she explain that she be in europe and offer a stage role by the great max reinhardt and but acquiesce to her parent when they demand she return to the state . she be now unhappily marry to a selfish man and have no identity of her own . this be 1936 and and acquiesce to what one family expect of you and lose yourself in your husband identity go on long and long after that . unlike today film and the petrified forest be rich in dialogue with only a few action scene . nevertheless and it hold one interest due to act and wonderful atmosphere of this break down café with the wind whip outside . with his finely drawn and handsome feature and british accent and leslie howard excel at play dreamer and philosopher and culminate in his role a ashley wilkes in go with the wind . a alan and he above it all and speaking of poetry and art to the wide eyed gaby and throw even duke mantee off balance . mantee be bogart breakout film role and and he fantastic . he study john dillinger mannerism to prepare for his stage role . here he fierce and angry a a man who know he hasn not get a chance in hell of make it to mexico but he go to go down fight . a gaby and davis convey the character fantasy and hope for the future and naive ambition and and love for alan . neither one of them belong in the desert and but while alan be through with life struggle and and duke know he about to be through and gaby be look forward to them . like the gas jockey who in love with her ( dick foran ) she willing to take risk for what she want . mr. chisholm and the fat cat and just hope nothing upset his status quo . mrs. chisholm be stick but vicariously root not only for gaby but duke and alan . allegorical in it theme and with no special effect and the petrified forest and it title refer to the nearby dead forest where several character be figuratively head and be a real treat for lover of classic film and classic actor and and our country history of depression and classism . i treasure every minute of it .