IMDb RATING
7.2/10
8.9K
YOUR RATING
When one of two truck-driving brothers loses an arm, they both join a transport company where the other is falsely charged as an accessory in the murder of the owner.When one of two truck-driving brothers loses an arm, they both join a transport company where the other is falsely charged as an accessory in the murder of the owner.When one of two truck-driving brothers loses an arm, they both join a transport company where the other is falsely charged as an accessory in the murder of the owner.
Eddie Acuff
- Driver in Café
- (uncredited)
William Bendix
- Truck Driver Watching Pinball Game
- (uncredited)
Marie Blake
- Waitress
- (uncredited)
Chet Brandenburg
- Man Griping at Farnsworth
- (uncredited)
Eddy Chandler
- Driver
- (uncredited)
Richard Clayton
- Young Man
- (uncredited)
Joyce Compton
- Sue Carter
- (uncredited)
Alan Davis
- Driver
- (uncredited)
Joe Devlin
- Fatso
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe wife of producer Mark Hellinger, Gladys Glad, a former showgirl for Broadway producer Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., was responsible for getting this film made. Hellinger had brought home a large stack of scripts that he was to read for filming consideration. He had leafed through the script and read the summary, but felt that "nobody would pay money to see a bunch of truck drivers." His wife read this script, liked it, and pressured Hellinger to read it. Reluctantly, he did, the film eventually got made, and it became the sleeper hit of the year for Warners. It was made for an estimated $400,000 and grossed more than $4 million. (Source: Book "The Mark Hellinger Story" by Jim Bishop, New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1952)
- GoofsWhen Joe and Paul's truck crashes, a motorist in a 1933 Cadillac with California license number 2N 214 stops to give assistance. Later, at Ed and Lana Carlson's anniversary party the same car (and same license number) is shown as one of Ed's cars as he demonstrates his garage door opener.
- Quotes
Ed Carlsen: Early to rise and early to bed, makes a man healthy, but socially dead!
- ConnectionsFeatured in Hollywood: The Great Stars (1963)
- SoundtracksWhen the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano
(1940) (uncredited)
Music by Leon René
Played at Mandel's Cafe
Featured review
Two Pics For The Price Of One
In a story about the over-the-road trucking business, two wildcat truckers, named Joe (George Raft) and Paul (Humphrey Bogart) haul apples, pears, and lemons, enduring hardship and erratic wages. Joe and Paul are the brothers Fabrini, and they dream of being independent from the big boss man.
A Depression-era story set in California, "They Drive By Night" taps into the theme of hard-working Americans who can't make a decent wage, as a result of greedy corporations. In a roadside diner, Paul expresses their frustration: "Hey, why do we stay in this racket? We aren't going to make enough out of it to buy ourselves decent coffins". But Joe and Paul are tough dudes, and they're honest. And they've got their dames, waiting either at home or in their dreams.
The film's plot starts out okay with lots of highway action. But the midpoint plot turn sends the film hurling in an unfortunate direction. Enter Lana Carlsen (Ida Lupino), the irritatingly angry wife of a wealthy and irritatingly jovial corporate boss. The film's first and second halves are like two completely different films, each with a different focus, different tone, different style. The first half is gritty and noir-based. The second half is perfunctory.
The script is very talky. The best dialogue comes near the beginning when Ann Sheridan, playing a cynical waitress, tosses some really good zingers.
Characters are mildly interesting, except for the dreadful Lana Carlsen, whom I didn't like at all. Sue Carter (Joyce Compton) offers minor comic relief. And Ann Sheridan is a delight to watch.
Production design ranges from dirty and gritty in the first half to elegant and snazzy in the second. Those trucks the guys drive look like something out of "The Grapes Of Wrath" (1940). B&W cinematography is pleasantly dark in the first half, routine in the second.
The story's theme is appropriate for the era in which the film was made. But the plot is terribly bifocal. The viewer almost gets two films for the price of one.
A Depression-era story set in California, "They Drive By Night" taps into the theme of hard-working Americans who can't make a decent wage, as a result of greedy corporations. In a roadside diner, Paul expresses their frustration: "Hey, why do we stay in this racket? We aren't going to make enough out of it to buy ourselves decent coffins". But Joe and Paul are tough dudes, and they're honest. And they've got their dames, waiting either at home or in their dreams.
The film's plot starts out okay with lots of highway action. But the midpoint plot turn sends the film hurling in an unfortunate direction. Enter Lana Carlsen (Ida Lupino), the irritatingly angry wife of a wealthy and irritatingly jovial corporate boss. The film's first and second halves are like two completely different films, each with a different focus, different tone, different style. The first half is gritty and noir-based. The second half is perfunctory.
The script is very talky. The best dialogue comes near the beginning when Ann Sheridan, playing a cynical waitress, tosses some really good zingers.
Characters are mildly interesting, except for the dreadful Lana Carlsen, whom I didn't like at all. Sue Carter (Joyce Compton) offers minor comic relief. And Ann Sheridan is a delight to watch.
Production design ranges from dirty and gritty in the first half to elegant and snazzy in the second. Those trucks the guys drive look like something out of "The Grapes Of Wrath" (1940). B&W cinematography is pleasantly dark in the first half, routine in the second.
The story's theme is appropriate for the era in which the film was made. But the plot is terribly bifocal. The viewer almost gets two films for the price of one.
helpful•41
- Lechuguilla
- Mar 1, 2010
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Sie fuhren bei Nacht
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $400,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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