The Road to Ruin 1934

Ann Dixon and Eve Monroe are high school friends navigating the tangled social world of adolescence. Eve is more daring, introducing Ann to habits that feel new and forbidden—smoking, drinking, and a freer, more flirtatious set of expectations among their peers. When Ann timidly asks, > Do you let boys kiss you? <, the moment highlights a divide between curiosity and caution, hinting at the consequences that can come when boundaries blur and judgment wanes. This question sits at the heart of their evolving relationship and the choices that follow.

One weekend, Ann Dixon and Eve Monroe join other teens at a lakeside excursion, accompanied by Tommy and Ed. What begins as a carefree outing soon shifts as Ann experiences what appears to be her first intimate moment, leaving her shaken and crying. Tommy wonders if she resents him, yet Ann continues to see him, and the group grows closer through dinners at various venues where alcohol flows and intimate moments become more frequent. The line between innocence and risk becomes increasingly blurry as the nights unfold.

A pivotal turn comes when a night of drinking brings Ralph Bennett into Ann’s orbit. Ralph notices Ann and is attracted to her, especially as he sees Tommy’s condition worsen from drink. With Tommy rendered less capable of protecting or guiding her, Ralph moves in, and a tension-filled dynamic develops. When Tommy attempts to intervene, he and Ed are expelled from the establishment, leaving Ann to drift further into Ralph’s orbit. Tommy’s warning—that Ralph might be “bad news for a girl like you”—echoes through the subsequent events as Ann anchors herself to this new, unstable relationship.

At Ralph’s home, a decisive moment occurs: he provides Ann with a drink that leads to a confrontation with desire, and the night culminates in what appears to be intercourse, a moment framed by her lack of resistance rather than mutual consent. The relationship continues as Ann lies to her parents about where she has been, allowing secrecy to replace transparency at home. The couple later attends a party at Brad’s house, a gathering where drinking is rampant and social boundaries fade.

The party escalates into chaos as a dice-based game resembling strip poker unfolds. The girls shed more clothing while others tumble into the pool, and the festivity disintegrates into disorder. Neighbors are outraged, and the police arrive to restore order. Ralph disappears into the night, leaving Ann and Eve to face the consequences of the debauched evening. The two girls end up under the care of Mrs. Merrill, the head of the Girls Division of the Juvenile Department, who arranges for them to be examined by a doctor before they can be released.

The medical examination reveals troubling truths: Eve is labeled a “Sex Delinquent” and tested positive for the Wassermann test, one of the earliest screenings for syphilis. In explaining the broader issue, Mrs. Merrill tells Ann’s mother, Mrs. Dixon, that today’s youth need the armor of knowledge and sex instruction to navigate such dangers more safely. The film uses these moments to underline a moral that youth must be equipped with information, rather than left to stumble in ignorance.

As the story unfolds through implication rather than explicit depiction, it hints that Ann may be pregnant. She confides in Ralph and discovers that he is married, and the man’s suggestion turns toward abortion. The procedure is described with stark bluntness—as a “clumsy, unsanitary operation”—and it leaves Ann gravely ill. On her deathbed, her mother asks for forgiveness for failing her daughter, and with a quiet, restrained resignation, Ann passes away.

The aftermath of these events weighs heavily on the community and underscores a timeless tension: the collision of youthful desire with social judgment and the costs of clandestine choices. The narrative remains focused on the consequences of early experiences, the fragility of trust, and the vulnerability of young women navigating a world that often offers little guidance or protection. The characters—each defined by their choices and fates—contribute to a somber meditation on responsibility, education, and support for young people as they grow and confront the realities of adulthood.