Scarlet Street (1945)

Director:

Fritz Lang

Writers:

André Mouézy-Éon (play)
Dudley Nichols (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

28 December 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery

Tagline:

The GREAT STARS and DIRECTOR of "Woman in the Window"

Plot:

When a man in mid-life crisis befriends a young woman, her venal fiancé persuades her to con him out of some of the fortune she thinks he has.

Plot Keywords:

Adultery | Capital Punishment | Marriage As Hell | Murder | Painter

Cast

Edward G. Robinson	...	Christopher Cross
Joan Bennett	...	Katharine 'Kitty' March
Dan Duryea	...	Johnny Prince
Margaret Lindsay	...	Millie Ray
Jess Barker	...	David Janeway
Rosalind Ivan	...	Adele Cross
Arthur Loft	...	Dellarowe
Charles Kemper	...	Patch-eye Higgins
Russell Hicks	...	J.J. Hogarth
Samuel S. Hinds	...	Charles Pringle
Anita Sharp-Bolster	...	Mrs. Michaels (as Anita Bolster)
Vladimir Sokoloff	...	Pop LeJon
Cy Kendall	...	Nick (as Cyrus W. Kendall)
Tom Dillon	...	Policeman
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Richard Abbott	...	Critic at Gallery (uncredited)
John Barton	...	Hurdy-gurdy man (uncredited)
Rodney Bell	...	Barney (uncredited)
Richard Cramer	...	Principal keeper (uncredited)
Dick Curtis	...	Detective (uncredited)
Tom Daly	...	Penny (bartender) (uncredited)
Edgar Dearing	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Henri DeSoto	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Joe Devlin	...	Joe Williams, Morning World (uncredited)
Neal Dodd	...	Priest (uncredited)
Ralph Dunn	...	First Policeman in Park (uncredited)
Fred Essler	...	Marchetti (uncredited)
Byron Foulger	...	Jones (apartment manager) (uncredited)
Lance Fuller	...	(uncredited)
Gus Glassmire	...	Employee (uncredited)
Arthur Gould-Porter	...	Critic at Gallery (uncredited)
Sherry Hall	...	Employee (uncredited)
William Hall	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Chuck Hamilton	...	Chaffeur (uncredited)
Herbert Heywood	...	Bellboy (uncredited)
Boyd Irwin	...	Critic at Gallery (uncredited)
Thomas E. Jackson	...	Chief of Detectives (uncredited)
Edward Keane	...	Detective (uncredited)
Milton Kibbee	...	Employee (uncredited)
Fritz Leiber	...	Evangelist (uncredited)
Ralph Littlefield	...	Employee (uncredited)
George Lloyd	...	Vince Conway, Ledger (uncredited)
Lou Lubin	...	Tiny (bartender) (uncredited)
Robert Malcolm	...	Policeman (uncredited)
George Meader	...	Holliday (uncredited)
Howard M. Mitchell	...	Employee (uncredited)
Horace Murphy	...	Milkman (uncredited)
Clarence Muse	...	Ben (Bank Janitor) (uncredited)
Lee Phelps	...	First Policeman in Hogarth's office (uncredited)
Constance Purdy	...	Matron (uncredited)
Beatrice Roberts	...	Secretary (uncredited)
Dewey Robinson	...	Derelict saving Cross (uncredited)
Syd Saylor	...	Tom Crocker, Evening Globe (uncredited)
Wallace Scott	...	Drunk (uncredited)
Jack Statham	...	Employee (uncredited)
Kerry Vaughn	...	Blond girl (uncredited)
Emmett Vogan	...	Prosecuting attorney (uncredited)
Dick Wessel	...	Detective (uncredited)
Matt Willis	...	Policeman in Hogarth's office (uncredited)
Charles C. Wilson	...	Watchman (uncredited)
Will Wright	...	Globe Loan Office Manager (uncredited)

Directed by
Fritz Lang

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Georges de La Fouchardière		novel and play "La Chienne" (as Georges De La Fouchardiere)
André Mouézy-Éon		play "La Chienne" (as Mouezy-Eon)
Dudley Nichols		writer

Produced by
Fritz Lang	....	producer
Walter Wanger	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Hans J. Salter		(as H.J. Salter)

Cinematography by
Milton R. Krasner		(director of photography) (as Milton Krasner)

Film Editing by
Arthur Hilton

Art Direction by
Alexander Golitzen

Set Decoration by
Russell A. Gausman
Carl J. Lawrence		(as Carl Lawrence)

Makeup Department
Carmen Dirigo	....	hair stylist
Jack P. Pierce	....	makeup director

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Melville Shyer	....	assistant director

Art Department
John Decker	....	paintings: Christopher Cross's (uncredited)

Sound Department
Glenn E. Anderson	....	sound technician
Bernard B. Brown	....	sound director

Special Effects by
John P. Fulton	....	special photography

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Travis Banton	....	costumes

Other crew
Walter Wanger	....	presenter

Production Companies

• Fritz Lang Productions (as A Fritz Lang Production and also A Diana Production)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1945) (USA) (theatrical)
• Film Classics (1949) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Timeless Video (1994) (USA) (VHS)
• Brentwood Home Video (1995) (USA) (DVD)
• Hollywood Classics (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Take 2 Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• United American Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Questar Home Video (1999) (USA) (VHS)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Questar Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Vintage Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Kino Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Passport International Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• VCI Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Corinth Films (????) (USA) (DVD)
• LS Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Notausgang Film (1982) (West Germany) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Universal Pictures (1950) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Video Yesterday (????) (USA) (VHS)

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | Finland:K-16 (re-rating) | Finland:(Banned) (original rating) | UK:PG | West Germany:12 (nf) | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #11276) | Australia:PG

Company:

Fritz Lang Productions

Trivia:

Is part of the Public Domain.

Goofs:

Continuity: Near the end of the movie, when Chris is in the hotel room with the blinking neon light, the time between when the neon light flashes on changes from shot to shot. It varies anywhere from just under a second to just over 2 seconds, depending on the shot.

Quotes:

Reporter on Train: [referring to being executed] I'd rather have a judge give me the works than to have to do it to myself.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Watching the Detectives (2007)

Soundtrack:

Melancholy Baby

The penultimate film noir

I am of the firm belief that Orson Welles's Touch Of Evil is the ultimate film noir, but this little gem comes in at a very, very close second.

The Lang direction and visual style is apparent on every frame, and the performance of Edward G. Robinson is among his best, and often strangely neglected.

For me, the essence of noir films has as much to do with the bleak outlook on human existence as it does the visual sense, and at the very beginning of this film, we see (IMHO) the single, most perfect noir moment: Chris Cross (Robinson) is given a dinner, a nice little send off for a nice little man. On his way out, a friend asks if Chris is going to ride the train home, as is his normal pattern. Chris has something on his mind though, and chooses to walk instead.

That one single moment, that one choice... and because of that, this man will lose his home, his wife, his career and the very thing that makes him want to continue, his art.

One moment, one choice, and an entire life is destroyed.

THAT is noir!