Scarlet Street

Starring:Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, Dan Duryea, Margaret Lindsay, Jess Barker, Rosalind Ivan, Arthur Loft, Charles Kemper, Russell Hicks, Samuel S. Hinds, Vladimir Sokoloff, Anita Sharp-Bolster, Cy Kendall, Tom Dillon, Tom Daly (III), Gus Glassmire, Sherry Hall, Thomas E. Jackson, George Lloyd, Dick Curtis
Director: Fritz Lang
Studio: Alpha Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
In a way, Scarlet Street is a remake. It's taken from a French novel, La Chienne (literally, "The Bitch") that was first filmed by Jean Renoir in 1931. Renoir brought to the sordid tale all the color and vitality of Montmartre; Fritz Lang's version shows us a far harsher and bleaker world. The film replays the triangle set-up from Lang's previous picture, The Woman in the Window, with the same three actors. Once again, Edward G. Robinson plays a respectable middle-aged citizen snared by the charms of Joan Bennett's streetwalker, with Dan Duryea as her low-life pimp. But this time around, all three characters have moved several notches down the ethical scale. Robinson, who in the earlier film played a college professor who kills by accident, here becomes a downtrodden clerk with a nagging, shrewish wife and unfilled ambitions as an artist, a man who murders in a jealous rage. Bennett is a mercenary vamp, none too bright, and Duryea brutal and heartless. The plot closes around the three of them like a steel trap. This is Lang at his most dispassionate. Scarlet Street is a tour de force of noir filmmaking, brilliant and ice-cold.

Amazon.com

Kino Video's remastered edition of Scarlet Street finally does justice to one of the best film noir classics of the 1940s. Less than a year after scoring a critical and popular success with The Woman in the Window, director Fritz Lang reunited with stars Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, and Dan Duryea for this fatalistic New York City tale of a meek, middle-aged cashier and aspiring artist named Christopher Cross (Robinson) who unwittingly falls into a trap set by a pair of Greenwich Village con artists (Bennett, Duryea) who plot to sell his paintings and make off with the profits. In addition to Lang's masterful use of studio backlot locations and cinematographer Milton Krasner's exquisite control of light and shadow, the film draws its primary strength from the atypical performance by Robinson (typically so good at playing heavies, and a knowledgeable art collector off-screen) as a hen-pecked husband and self-professed failure whose withered ego makes him especially vulnerable to the false charms of Bennett, a femme fatale as heartless as she is ultimately doomed. Her scandalous behavior on screen and off (Bennett was the wife of producer Walter Wanger and Lang's mistress) and Duryea's pimpish amorality made Scarlet Street both immensely popular and scandalous enough to be banned in three states when the film was released in late 1945, but in Lang's dark vision of corrupted souls and avenging angels, nobody goes unpunished. The ending of Scarlet Street is as unforgiving as it is unforgettable, and in the hands of Fritz Lang, it's the purest essence of film noir at its finest. Kino's DVD release offers a high-definition digital transfer from a 35-millimeter negative preserved by the Library of Congress (in other words, it puts every previous video release to shame), and there's an astute, scholarly commentary by Lang expert David Kalat that puts Scarlet Street into critical perspective with Lang's career and film noir in general. For fans of the genre, this is a must-own DVD. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Edward G Robinson- Tough Guy No More!.......2007-07-04

Actor Edward G. Robinson evokes many images: biblical figure, esteemed business executive, erudite professor, and perennial gangster. In Fritz Lang's multi-layered noir classic Scarlet Street, Robinson convincingly portrays a meek, gulible store cashier who becomes intangled in a spider woman's alluring plot of deception. Lang's film is filled with sexual themes that pushed the limits of Hollywood's protectionist Production Code. The film's 1945 release date marked an immoral counterpoint to post WWII conventionality and American conservatism. Joan Bennett sizzles as the manipulative prostitute Kitty March. Kitty willingly accepts the mental and physical abuse of her pimp played brilliantly by noir stalwart Dan Duryea. But Kitty is no desperate fall girl, she has rationalized her relationship with Johnny as one enveloped in romantic love. To Kitty her "marriage" to Johnny is one that works because all couples that are deeply in love fight. The only elements missing in Kitty's blissful world are respectful occupations, extended families, a home, children, and shared intimacy. Lang's dark film purposely omits any hints of normalcy. Instead Kitty and Johnny's world is one characterized by street hustles, grifting, and deception. Their meal ticket mark is Chris Cross (Edward G. Robinson) who washes dishes in an apron for a wife that still adores her first, late husband. Chris has spent 25 unnoticed years as a store cashier and only truely enjoys life when he paints on Sunday afternoons. That is until Chris meets Kitty. Other reviewers have commented on the storyline, but a few scenes in this noir film are golden moments of the genre. When Kitty finally bursts Chris's naive bubble by shouting: " I've been wanting to laugh in your face ever since I met you. You're old and ugly and I'm sick of you!" murder becomes the only way for Chris to retain his manhood. Chris has gotten away with murder not once, but twice. The innocent Johnny is sent to the electric chair for Kitty's murder and thus both of Chris's tormentors are gone. Or are they really? Director Lang has weaved a complex picture that reveals many human weaknesses, vices, and temptations: embezzelment, infidelity, suicide, blackmail, prostitution, murder, injustice, and love are all present on this dark city canvass. This one is a must see and keeper for all noir enthusiasts.

A truely haunting movie.......2007-03-30

Catharsis is good for people.
Everyone has some blood on their hands as they get older.
This movie reaches into your guilts and twists.
I've seen it twice now.
The first time I liked it,
but didn't ever really want to see it again.
This time when I watched it I could appreciate
how the master film maker has worked.
It is said to be a remake of the French Renoir's La Chienne:
I don't know if I would want to be able to see that deeply into the human
condition?!

"Listen baby, you got him right where you want him...he's on the hook and can't get off.".......2006-11-04

The film Scarlet Street (1945), based on a novel by Georges de La Fouchardière, was produced and directed by Fritz Lang (Dr. Mabuse: The Gambler, M, The Big Heat), and stars Edward G. Robinson (Little Caesar, Double Indemnity, Key Largo), Joan Bennett (The Man in the Iron Mask, The Woman in the Window), and Dan Duryea (Criss Cross, The Flight of the Phoenix). Also appearing is Margaret Lindsay (The House of the Seven Gables), Jess Barker (The Night Walker), Rosalind Ivan (Johnny Belinda), and Charles Kemper (Gallant Journey).

As the film begins we meet a character named Christopher Cross (Robinson), a timid and unassuming middle-aged man, who is celebrating his 25th anniversary as a cashier in a department store. After the party winds down, a tipsy Chris gets turned around somewhere in Greenwich Village and comes across a woman taking the beating from a man, and rescues her, sort of...turns out the attacker, whose face we don't get to see, was fairly drunk and easily enough chased away. Anyway, Chris is immediately taken with the woman, a wannabe actress named Katharine 'Kitty' March (Bennett), allowing her to believe he's a wealthy artist, rather than telling her the dismal truth (seems Chris fancies himself a painter, but it's more or less a hobby rather than a career option). Here's where things get complicated...unbeknownst to Kitty Chris is lowly nine to fiver, married to a shrill harpy named Adele (Ivan), theirs being a marriage of convenience, and unbeknownst to Chris Kitty is involved with a real slick huckster named Johnny Prince (Duryea), the same guy who appeared to be attacking her on the street (turns out he was just trying to get some gambling money). Anyway, Johnny, ever the schemer, believing Chris to be a man of means, convinces Kitty to schmooze him up a bit for some dough, which she does, but Chris, who's a real sap, hasn't the green, so he procures it from his skinflint wife. Eventually Chris eventually comes clean to Kitty about the fact he's married and ends up setting her up in a posh pad, which allows not only for him to visit her, but also gives him a place to pursue his painting, something his wife thinks is a waste. Through a series of circumstances involving Johnny trying to sell Chris' paintings (he and Kitty still believe Chris to be a famous artist), Chris' works actually gain some attention, resulting in Johnny talking Kitty into pretending she painted them, rather than Chris (this wasn't too difficult given Chris never signed his own works). Anyway, as Kitty becomes famous Chris discovers the ruse (only Kitty's part, not her involvement with Johnny), and goes along with it, living vicariously through Kitty given the fact his work is garnering so much attention, but things turn sour once Chris learns of Kitty's involvement with Johnny along with how they've been playing him for a world class sucker...I won't say what happens but I will tell you a sharp implement is involved...

Of most all of the films I've watched recently, which is quite a few, this one had the most intricate storyline. If you've read through the previous paragraph it may seem like I've related a lot, but in actuality I've only touched upon a small number of highlights. There's so much more going on, in terms of both characters mentioned and those that weren't...everything about this feature worked for me, including the immaculate direction, the engaging writing, and the excellent performances. One aspect I was unsure of early on was the character played by Edward G. Robinson in that it seemed so different than what I've come accustomed to with some of his other films I've seen as I'm more or less used to seeing him portray hardnosed gangster types, not spineless, easily manipulated saps. Once I got past my own preconceived typecasting, though, it went down a lot easier, helped immeasurably by the fact Edward G. Robinson is probably one of the best actors to come out of the American cinema. As far as the other performers, Joan Bennett played her part perfectly as she was able to maintain her character's pretense of decorum, at least enough for a lovesick sap to buy off on, but once her character's guard was down we saw her for what she really was, an opportunist who desperately sought the affections of another, even more opportunistic individual played by Dan Duryea, whose character was about as oily and charming (and misogynistic) as they come. Seriously, this is the type of guy who could talk you out of your skin and be long gone before you realized what happened. One of my favorite sequences from the film comes as Kitty relates to Johnny the fact Chris is married and given they way his mind works, he suggests maybe Kitty can pry some money from Chris if it were thought by him that somehow his wife might learn of his relationship (which was nonsexual, by the way) with Kitty. Kitty replies about that being blackmail, to which Johnny states,

"It's only blackmail, baby, when you're dumb enough to get caught."

As I said the direction is wonderful as there was never a time when I wasn't engrossed in the material, which flows at a steady pace. One really interesting aspect for me was near the end, when Chris finally allows himself to realize his tragic folly, and reacts in a shocking, but not unexpected manner. All in all this is probably one of the best film noir features I've seen in awhile, and I'd highly recommend it as an example of a truly unique and fascinating feature within the genre.

The fullscreen (1.33:1) picture on this Kino Video DVD release looks sharp and clean, and it is indicated on the DVD case that digital transfer was culled from the 35mm negative preserved by The Library of Congress. There are a few, minor flaws, but they're barely noticeable. The Dolby Digital audio comes across very well, matching the quality of the picture. There are a couple of extras including an audio commentary track with author David Kalat and gallery containing images of promotional materials, deleted scenes, and some script excerpts.

Cookieman108

By the way, it seems there are a few, different DVD releases of this floating about, but I can only speak towards the quality of the one released by Kino Video, which seemed the priciest of the bunch. As far as the others, well, buyer beware...

At last a decent transfer.......2006-09-02

For so long dogged by unacceptable public domain DVD transfers, Kino has come up with a decent version of this masterpiece at last.

The relentless determinism and intellectual rigour of Fritz Lang's oppressively tragic universe does not give his viewers much cheer but his is a moving and valid vision nonetheless. Scarlet Street is possibly his bleakest film and is based on material that also inspired Jean Renoir's La Chienne (1931). I find this version the more compelling partly because the tight, closed worlds of American film noir crime dramas with their dark, cobbled streets devoid of many sources of light are perfectly attuned to Lang's sensibility; and partly because I love the leading actors-Edward G Robinson, Joan Bennett and Dan Duryea.

Robinson's finely-shaded acting (like Claude Rains he always gets it just right) is a tour de force: he captures to a tee the pathetic vulnerability of the retiring cashier Christopher Cross, who, hen-pecked by a shrewish wife (splendidly vicious Rosalind Ivan), nurses aspirations of escape into a retirement spent in amateur painting. In a chance encounter following his retirement dinner that could only have been engineered by the Fates and shot in Lang's most expressionistically oneiric style, he "saves" actress-cum-hooker Joan Bennett from a beating by "boyfriend" Dan Duryea (a whining pimp in a pin-stripe suit) and proceeds to develop a romantic obsession for her. Joan Bennett is a really class act as the sleazy, opportunistic femme fatale who trades on Robinson's delusions to gain entry to the lucrative art world by signing her name to his naive paintings.

As events pursue an inexorable path towards tragedy (in the truest classical sense of the term), Lang draws on arresting imagery from the art world to explore Robinson's middle-aged fantasies/delusions about his idee fixe (Bennett).This is complemented by Lang's precise chiaroscuro and stylized noir ambience to create an atmosphere of suffocating entrapment.

Paradoxically, the film combines these elements with some well-chosen domestic detail which is filmed with a naturalistic authenticity that is equally oppressive. It all adds up to a complex claustrophobic experience.

The final sequences are a descent into a hellish nightmare as Robinson, having literally gotten away with murder, is pursued by his conscience (the "Furies") and ends his days as a pitiful tramp on a park bench hearing voices in his head. For the audience it provides a catharsis worthy of its Greek models but it was incidentally a flagrant breach of the then-prevailing Hays code by the back door(with the wrong man being executed for the murder Robinson committed, and Robinson in a technical though not a moral sense, going unpunished for his crime).

Excellent Film.......2006-08-15

This is a great film. It's one of those movies that stay with you long after you've finished watching it. Great character development, great dialogue and a great story. This is one I actually re-watch often.

Average customer rating:

Remastered??
"The Leader in Film Noir, B-Westerns & Serials...VCI Enertainment"

Scarlet Street/The Red House
Starring: Scarlett Street (1945)/Red House (1947)
Manufacturer: Vci Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000EJ9V98
Release Date: 2006-03-28

Description

Actors: Edward G Robinson, Joan Bennett, Dan Duryea, Lon McCallister, Judith Anderson, Allen Roberts, Ona Munson; Two Edward G Robinson Film-Noir features: Scarlet Street and The Red House. Scarlet Street has a lonely middle-classed man becoming involved with a shady woman and her husband. In The Red House a young boy takes a job on a farm run by a peculiar farmer and his sister. DVD Bonus & Features: Menu Selection, Bonus: "Movietone Newsreel 1947", DVD-9, Dolby Digital Mono, 203 min, B&W, 1.33:1, NR, 1945 & 1947.

Customer Reviews:

Remastered??.......2007-06-14

I received this dvd and was very excited to view the red house...excellent movie with twists and turns and a very exciting ending...the only flaw i wish it was remastered... mind you it was much better than the vhs version but this one is a keeper especially if they decide to remaster it... On the other hand the scarlet street which they say was remastered surely wasn't.... the print was terrible and very dark and many film scratches throughout... excellent film noir just wish it was better done.If your an edward g robinson fan pick up these movies just not this double feature....i saw that another company has scarlet street remastered so i would advise you to try that one instead... it's worth the chance.

"The Leader in Film Noir, B-Westerns & Serials...VCI Enertainment".......2006-07-24

VCI Entertainment presents "Scarlet Street/The Red House" - Edward G. Robinson --- (Dolby digitally remastered)...featuring top performances by actors to die for from the '40s and '50s with outstanding drama and screenplays...from little known films we now refer to "film noir" that will leave you intrigued with all the suspense...so pop some popcorn, sit back and enjoy the movie.

First up we have Universal Pictures "Scarlet Street" (1945) (103 min. B/W)...under director & producer Fritz Lang, writers by Georges de La Fouchardière (novel La Chienne (as Georges De La Fouchardiere), André Mouézy-Éon play La Chienne (as Mouezy-Eon) and Dudley Nichols, music score by Hans J. Salter...the cast includes Edward G. Robinson (Christopher Cross), Joan Bennett (Kitty March), Dan Duryea (Johnny Prince), Margaret Lindsay (Millie Ray), Rosalind Ivan (Adele Cross), Samuel S. Hinds (Charles Pringle), Jess Barker (Janeway), Arthur Loft (Dellarowe), Vladimir Sokoloff (Pop LeJon), Charles Kemper (Patcheye), Russell Hicks (J.J. Hogarth), Anita Bolster (Mrs. Michaels), Fred Essler (Marchetti), Edgar Dearing (Policeman), Tom Dillon (Policeman). . . . . . our story reaches into the depths of a man's soul Edward G. Robinson, who is so hungry for love and kindness that he falls for the wrong girl Joan Bennett...for 25 years he is given a gold watch for his services as cashier in a bank for honesty and integrity...Bennett's boyfriend Dan Duryea is a con man who can see dollar signs as Robinson paints masterpieces and Duryea sells them under Bennett's name...will this threesome survive without death knocking at their door...director Fritz Lang gives us one of the top Classic Film Noir with this masterpiece of human drama.. . . . . .special footnote, Edward G. Robinson was named #24 greatest actor on "The 50 Greatest Screen Legends by the American Film Institute", "'Little Caesar' becomes at Robinson's hands a figure out of a Greek tragedy, a cold, ignorant, merciless killer, driven on and on by an insatiable lust for power, the plaything of a force that is greater than himself.", according to The New York Times (1930)...from the lips of Edward G., "Paintings never really belong to one of us, if we are fortunate, as I have been, we are allowed at most a lovely time of custody...acting and painting have much in common, you begin with the external appearance and then strip away the layers to get to the essential core, this is reality and that is how an artist achieves truth, when you are acting, you are playing a part, you are being somebody else, you are also, at the same time, being yourself, to be entrusted with a character was always a big responsibility to me."

BIOS:
1. Edward G. Robinson (aka: Emanuel Goldenberg)
Birth Date: 12/12/1893 - Bucharest, Romania
Died: 1/26/1973 - Hollywood, California
2. Joan Bennett
Birth Date: 2/27/1910 - Palisades, New Jersey
Died: 12/07/1990 - Scarsdale, New York
3. Dan Duryea
Birth Date: 1/23/1907 - White Plains, New York
Died: 6/07/1968 - Hollywood, California
4. Fritz Lang (Director) (aka: Friedrich Christian Anton Lang)
Birth Date: 12/05/1890 - Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now Austria]
Died: 8/02/1976 - Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California

Second on the double bill is United Artists "The Red House" (1947) (100 min. B/W)....under director & screenwriter Delmer Daves, producer Sol Lesser, screenplay by George Agnew Chamberlain & Else Jerusalem, musical score by Miklos Rozsa ....the cast includes Edward G. Robinson (Pete Morgan), Lon McCallister (Nath Storm), Judith Anderson (Ellen Morgan), Allene Roberts (Meg Morgan), Julie London (Tibby), Rory Calhoun (Teller), Harry Shannon (Dr. Byrne), Arthur Space (The Sheriff), Walter Sande (Don Brent), Ona Munson (Mrs. Storm), Pat Flaherty (Cop). . . . .our story and characters are perfectly cast with Edward G. Robinson and Judith Anderson who have raised Allene Roberts since she was a baby...Lon McCallister is hired to help with the chores on the farm and falls in love with Allene...Julie London and Rory Calhoun who is hired to guard the Red House give supporting performances...but it is Edward G. who is in magnificent form; he is only a handful of actors who could combine toughness and vulnerability in the manner Robinson did, and his performance is crucial to The House....meanwhile what is the dark secret of The Red House and what will be the final outcome...wonderful directon from Delmer Daves, who keeps you guessing until the last minute...the film music by Miklos Rosa is eerie and as always completely original in the Rosa style, it's a keeper.

BIOS:
1. Lon McCallister (aka: Herbert Alonzo McCallister Jr.)
Birth Date: 4/17/1923 - Hollywood, California
Died: 6/11/2005 - South Lake Tahoe, California
2. Judith Anderson
Birth Date: 2/10/1897 - Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Died: 1/03/1992 - Santa Barbara, California
3. Rory Calhoun (aka: Francis Timothy McCown)
Birth Date: 8/08/1922 - Los Angeles, California
Died: 4/28/1999 - Burbank, California,
4. Delmar Daves (Director) (aka: Delmer Lawrence Daves)
Birth Date: 7/24/1904/- San Francisco, California
Died: 8/17/1977 - La Jolla, California

SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES:
Movietone Newsreel 1947

Great job by VCI Entertainment for releasing "Scarlet Street/The Red House", featuring Edward G. Robinson, digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more of the same from the '40s and '50s vintage...order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment, stay tuned once again with a top notch "Classic Film Noir" that only VCI Entertainment (King of the Serials) can deliver...just the way we like 'em!

Total Time: 203 mins on DVD ~ VCI Home Video 5011 ~ (3/28/2006)

Average customer rating:

Terrific film noir with beautiful Joan Bennett
EVIL THY NAME IS JOAN !
Dan Duryea on picking up girls
THE MOVIE IS GOOD; THE DVD IS HORRIBLE!!
Unusual role for Robinson

Scarlet Street
Starring: Edward G. Robinson , Joan Bennett , Dan Duryea , Margaret Lindsay , and Jess Barker
Director: Fritz Lang
Manufacturer: Alpha Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00005YUN7
Release Date: 2002-02-19

Amazon.com

In a way, Scarlet Street is a remake. It's taken from a French novel, La Chienne (literally, "The Bitch") that was first filmed by Jean Renoir in 1931. Renoir brought to the sordid tale all the color and vitality of Montmartre; Fritz Lang's version shows us a far harsher and bleaker world. The film replays the triangle set-up from Lang's previous picture, The Woman in the Window, with the same three actors. Once again, Edward G. Robinson plays a respectable middle-aged citizen snared by the charms of Joan Bennett's streetwalker, with Dan Duryea as her low-life pimp. But this time around, all three characters have moved several notches down the ethical scale. Robinson, who in the earlier film played a college professor who kills by accident, here becomes a downtrodden clerk with a nagging, shrewish wife and unfilled ambitions as an artist, a man who murders in a jealous rage. Bennett is a mercenary vamp, none too bright, and Duryea brutal and heartless. The plot closes around the three of them like a steel trap. This is Lang at his most dispassionate. Scarlet Street is a tour de force of noir filmmaking, brilliant and ice-cold.

Customer Reviews:

Terrific film noir with beautiful Joan Bennett.......2007-02-03

This is a great film noir starring the wonderful Edward G. Robinson, beautiful Joan Bennett and terrific Dan Duryea. Joan is spectacular in this film as the gold-digging hussy who in the beginning still has attacks of conscience. Duryea really plays it up as her sleazy con man boyfriend - smooth like vodka on the rocks. Robinson plays a sweet, harmless unhappily married man looking for someone who understands & appreciates him. The actress playing his wife is obnoxious and mean as a skunk. Duryea & Bennett take Robinson for a "ride" milking him for everything they can get. However, the "sweet and harmless" Robinson finally gets even with both of them - and they had it coming! The print quality of this dvd is pretty good - hopefully, they'll remaster it. I think this film is up there with "Out of the Past", "Double Indemnity", "Criss Cross". I just loved seeing Bennett play a sassy female turned vicious gold-digger with no heart. She was a terrific actress and never received the honors due.

EVIL THY NAME IS JOAN !.......2006-04-04

German born director Fritz Lang was a master of the mystery,suspense,noir genre.(Fury,The Big Heat) In this film he reunites the cast of his classic noir "THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW", Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, and Dan Duryea in a tale of murder and betrayal.To this reviewer the most riviting performance is that of the great (and beautiful) Joan Bennett.The way she deceives the naive Edward G. is a screen classic.Barbara Stanwyck, Claire Trevor,and Marie Windsor could also manipulate men by promising the moon and NOT delivering without a trace of remorse, Linda Darnell could also manipulate but, with at times, a heart of gold.(A LETTER TO THREE WIVES) but Joan here is unsurpassed in her greed.I don't like remakes of great films,but if a remake is made of Scarlett Street I vote of GINA GERSHON in the the Kitty March (Joan) role.GINA would set the screen on fire!

Dan Duryea on picking up girls.......2006-02-28

Edward G Robinson often played a tough guy, but he occasionally went in the opposite direction. In this movie he played a wimp, a henpecked nebbish, who snapped.

There are a few turnarounds to look for. The most obvious one is the moment when he snaps, when he changes from an abused wimp into a man who won't take any more abuse. The change doesn't fit him though, leading him to act out of character and do something he lives to regret.

An almost comedic turnaround happens when we meet his wife's previous husband. The shrewish and demanding wife always used that husband as a weapon to make poor Edward feel inferior, but when the prior husband suddenly appears in the flesh, not dead after all, he doesn't live up to his press clippings.

A striking turnaround occurs, in more ways than one, when Edward rescues a damsel in distress from a thief on the street who is pushing her around, only to find out later that his damsel in distress is in love with her attacker and thoroughly enjoys the distress he puts her through.

This femme fatale illustrates that many women feel sexual chemistry with confident, cocky men, not with nice, attentive guys who are eager to please. It's actually course 101 in how to pick up a girl, minus the slapping.

In fact, next time you think of buying a book to teach you how to win the interest of a new girl, don't buy the book, just watch Scarlett Street. Do what the villain does, and avoid doing or saying anything that Edward G Robinson says and does. Be cocky and brash, self centered and demanding, and you have just improved your odds.

Girls may like wimps as friends, but being too attentive too soon makes you look needy and desperate, and places you in the "friend" category right off the bat. Make her think she has to do her best to impress you, not the other way around. Watch Dan Duryea giving a lesson in how to make girls fall for you. Now you know why all the pretty girls went with gorillas in high school and ignored you.

The ending is a Hollywood ending. The human conscience is more punishing than the law could ever be. Somehow I doubt that. I can't picture Saddam Hussein tormented about all the poor Kurds he hurt. But this is Hollywood, not Iraq.

I could have accepted Robinson's torment as being unique to himself and therefore believable, but it is set up by someone's comment that this degree of remorse is to be expected. Baloney.

Other reviews on this site indicate that the film was forced into showing all the remorse because it was necessary to punish Robinson for his crime, without sending him to prison. I believe it. I believe that the moviemakers felt compelled to do that.

It explains but doesn't excuse the unreality of the ending. I could only buy that degree of remorse if they had set it up for me, as a very special case unique to this one character. They didn't.

THE MOVIE IS GOOD; THE DVD IS HORRIBLE!!.......2005-08-17

BUYERS BEWARE!! Any video produced by Alpha is going to be questionable. This DVD produced by this outfit is absolutely horrid. The films jerks and there are points of black outs during scenes in various places. It kept me from otherwise enjoying a fine example of 40's film noir. The sound varies from clear to distortion at points as well. This would have been a thoroughly enjoyable flicks if they had produced it from a restored master, such as the kind that TCM uses on their network. The movie itself is replete with fine performances, most notably by Edward G. Robinson as a middle aged man trapped in an unhappy married who falls in love with a prostitute played by Joan Bennett. Though I question credibility in his character....nobody could be so stupid as to be taken in by this woman unless he was so blinded by love and unhappiness that he failed to see how she was using him. Its a true, haunting portrait of a sad, lonely, frustrated man who becomes Schizophrenic at the end. It is truly a remarkable performance. Joan Bennett and Dan Duryea (the prostitute and her pimp) are equally fine in their respective roles. The film is a dark and moody piece but it certainly is in need of a decent film transfer. The DVD here is horrendous. If you can overlook this flaw, you may be able to at least enjoy watching this fine film. Needless to say, other than scene selection, no other extras are included in Alpha's cheap product which is the reason I give this product (not the movie) 2 stars.

Unusual role for Robinson.......2005-06-24

Edward G. Robinson plays meek middle aged bank cashier and amateur painter Christopher Cross in Fritz Lang's somewhat disappointing "Scarlet Street". Robinson, henpecked and mired in a loveless marriage of convenience with a harpy for a wife has a chance meeting with sultry streetwalker Kitty March played by Joan Bennett. The plain looking Robinson fall head over heels with Bennett. None too smart, she gets the impression that he's a wealthy and celebrated painter. In cohoots with her boyfriend, the sleazy Johnny Prince played by Dan Duryea they string him along siphoning him for money which helps set them up in a posh apartment. Robinson is allowed to use the pad for an art studio where he also stores his paintings.

This bizarre relationship continues and Bennett and Duryea's demands for cash grow larger and Robinson resorts to stealing. Duryea gets the idea to have Robinson's amateurish artwork appraised. Amazingly an established art critic views several of his works an an outdoor Greenwich Village art exhibit and annoints the works as created by a genius. When the scheming duo of Bennett and Duryea get wind of this unlikely bit of good fortune they set it up as if Bennett was actually the artist of the unsigned works.

Bennett gains celebrity status which is curiously all right with the lovestruck Robinson. Things are going famously for Duryea and Bennett until in a fit of rage she tells off Robinson, revealing her true feelings. Robinson goes beserk and kills her, framing Duryea for the murder. Robinson gets away with the crime but his conscience gets the better of him. He becomes a prisoner of his own mind wandering the streets as a mentally deluded drunken bum.

Lang's controversial film really didn't present much to make it anything special. The acting was OK but Robinson was miscast in this role. The fact that Robinson was in essence unpunished for his crime was against the censureship codes of moviemaking at the time and the film was banned at the box office.

Film Noir - Quicksand/Scarlet Street/Suddenly

Average customer rating:

DO NOT BUY FROM Caiman.com

Film Noir - Quicksand/Scarlet Street/Suddenly
Starring: Barbara Bates , Jeanne Cagney , Wally Cassell , Jimmie Dodd , and Lester Dorr
Director: Irving Pichel
Manufacturer: Vintage Home Ent.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 3 (Border Incident / His Kind of Woman / Lady in the Lake / On Dangerous Ground / The Racket)
Fallen Angel (Fox Film Noir)
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The Crooked Way

ASIN: B000228EUE
Release Date: 2004-05-18

Description

Enter a realm of mystery, suspense, and femme fatales in these 3 classic black & white films. QUICKSAND - Danny Brady is a garage mechanic who falls for a waitress who destroys his life in less than a week. SCARLET STREET - Christopher Cross is a cashier whose only outlet for his frustrations is painting. Realizing that he has been duped for his work, Cross resorts to murder. SUDDENLY - John Baron (Frank Sinatra) and his band of paid killers take over a house while posing as FBI agents in the small town of Suddenly.

Customer Reviews:

DO NOT BUY FROM Caiman.com.......2005-01-13

The film quality is OK and it is a good 3 piece selection. The problem I have is the Vendor, Caiman.com. The DVD skips and appears corrupted in spots and after 3 emails to Caiman's "automated" customer service link, claire@caiman.com., I've received no reply on my issue. My recommendation is not to buy from Caiman.com as they are unresponsive and apparently no one is on board to help, should there be an issue. I've had good success with MovieWeb and Alphacraze.

r.

The Edward G. Robinson: The Stranger/Scarlet Street

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The Edward G. Robinson: The Stranger/Scarlet Street
Starring: Edward G. Robinson
Manufacturer: Pop Flix
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000FWHVO6
Release Date: 2006-07-11

5 Film Noir Killer Classics (D.O.A./Detour/The Stranger/Scarlet Street/Killer Bait)

Average customer rating:

5 film noir collections compared
"Detour " to England?
A bit of gold in black and white.
OK Transfers, but the extras are nice
Not Exactly Crisp......

5 Film Noir Killer Classics (D.O.A./Detour/The Stranger/Scarlet Street/Killer Bait)
Starring: Edmund O'Brien
Manufacturer: Questar
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 2 (Born to Kill / Clash by Night / Crossfire / Dillinger (1945) / The Narrow Margin (1952))
Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 1 (The Asphalt Jungle / Gun Crazy / Murder My Sweet / Out of the Past / The Set-Up)
Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 3 (Border Incident / His Kind of Woman / Lady in the Lake / On Dangerous Ground / The Racket)
Kiss of Death (Fox Film Noir)
Where the Sidewalk Ends (Fox Film Noir)

ASIN: B0001MMGRW
Release Date: 2004-04-06

Amazon.com

Like many public-domain DVD sets, this six-disc set compiles a handful of well-liked features from one genre--in this case, a quintet of venerable '40s noir. Where Questar's box exceeds expectations is on its sixth disc, which is chock full of extras that make the set a must-have for viewers looking for a crash course in Hollywood thrillers. The lineup of flicks is solid--Rudolph Mate's D.O.A., in which Edmond O'Brien must find out who has poisoned him; Edgar G. Ulmer's minimalist Detour, which pits desperate Tom Neal against feral Ann Savage; Orson Welles's The Stranger (which is technically more suspense than noir), in which his Nazi-turned professor locks horns with Edward G. Robinson--who's also featured in Fritz Lang's moody Scarlet Street. The set is rounded out by the lesser-known Killer Bait, and if the picture quality isn't as crystal-clear as on major studio releases, the supplemental features more than make up for it. Disc 6 features two swell featurettes, one on the genre itself and the other on its predatory ladies, as well as a color gallery of poster art and a terrific compilation of trailers for such films as Bullets or Ballots and The Postman Always Rings Twice. For noir first-timers, this set is a killer place to start. --Paul Gaita

Description

Lights out! Questar presents five killer examples of film noir, the shadow-drenched genre of middle-class crime, anxiety, and desperation that blackened American movie screens in the 40's and 50's. Each of these thrillers comes in a crisp archival print on a separate DVD, which includes riveting bonus features on some of the people and ideas behind this darkest—and most enduringly popular—of all movie genres. Disc One: D.O.A. - On vacation from his clinging girlfriend, a complacent accountant (Edmund O'Brien) unknowingly swallows a drink spiked with radioactive poison and then spends the last desperate hours of his life trying to find out who "killed" him—and why. Directed by Rudolph Mate. Disc Two: Detour - Hitchhiking across the country to reunite with his girlfriend, the film's "hero" encounters two sinister characters—one of them a venomous, blackmailing woman whom he "accidentally" murders. Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer. Disc Three: The Stranger - Orson Welles directs and stars in this thriller about a monstrous Nazi official who's hiding out as a small-town American college professor. A war crimes detective turns up determined to expose him—even if it means endangering the Nazi's innocent wife. Disc Four: Scarlet Street - Homely, henpecked Chris Cross (Edward G. Robinson) leads an honorable, if tedious, middle-class life until he falls madly in love with the dangerously seductive young Kitty (Joan Bennett). Directed by Fritz Lang. Disc Five: Killer Bait - A bickering couple find a bag of money in the back seat of their car. The husband wants to turn the illicit cash in, but his money-hungry wife has a different idea—and she'll do anything to realize it. Directed by Byron Haskin. Disc 6: SPECIAL FEATURES - Black and Blue: The History of Noir; Hot-Blooded and Cold-Hearted: The Dames of Film Noir; Classic Lines Quiz; Over 35 Film Noir Trailers including Double Indemnity, 1944, Reservoir Dogs, 1992, Sunset Blvd, 1950...

Customer Reviews:

5 film noir collections compared.......2005-06-11

This is mainly a contents listing of 5 box sets of film-noir collections. Quality is excellent for the Warner box--the films are not public domain and were remastered. The four other collections are of public-domain films, some of which were fixed up somewhat. Film quality is variable (dropouts, scratches, cropped images, fuzziness, low contrast). Most films are quite watchable, and there are some very good versions, especially if low price is considered (e.g., Hitch-hiker--only on CLA9). However, there are some marginal issues (e.g., Red house--only on FN10) and some extremely bad issues (e.g., Man who cheated himself--only on CLA9).

Ratings based on video-audio quality and emphasizing value for money: 5* = CLA1; 4* = CLA9, KIL5, MY10; 3* = FN10

COLLECTIONS--SUMMARY:
*** CLA1 = Film noir classic collection (Warner, 2004) [5 movies, 1944-50] $49.95 list. Extras: 5 film commentaries; 1 introduction; 2 trailers. Note: Volume 2 with 5 more noir films will appear in 7/05.
*** CLA9 = Classic film noir (St. Clair, 2005) [9 movies, 1946-53] $9.95 list. Extras: poster gallery (in color); featurette (About film noir, TT5:00); 7 trailers (TT16:00)
*** FN10 = Film noir: 10 movies (Brentwood, 2004) [10 movies, 1934!, 1945-52] $19.95 list. Extras: 40 trailers (4/disk)
*** KIL5 = 5 film noir killer classics (Questar, 2004) [5 movies, 1945-49] $29.95 list. Extras: The posters of film noir (in color, TT3:50); 2 featurettes (What is film noir?, TT13:00; Femme fatale, TT7:53); 38 Film noir trailers (TT1.58:07)
*** MY10 = Mystery classics: 50 movie pack (Treeline, 2004) [10 film noir movies, 1945-54, 40 other movies, 1931-52] $34.95 list. Extras: none

COLLECTIONS--CONTENTS:
Asphalt jungle, The (1950) = CLA1
Borderline (1950) = FN10 Note: at best marginally film noir!
Call it murder (aka Midnight) (1934) = FN10 Note: a 1934 film, not film noir!
Detour (1945) = CLA9 FN10 KIL5 MY10 Note: right-hand-drive vehicles in first scene a goof of film, not a reissue mistake!
D.O.A. (1950) = CLA9 FN10 KIL5
Gun crazy (aka Deadly is the female) (1949) = CLA1
He walked by night (1948) = FN10 MY10
Hitch-hiker, The (1953) = CLA9
Hollow triumph (aka The scar--UK) (1948) = CLA9
Impact (1949) = MY10
Kansas City confidential (1952) = FN10 MY10
Man who cheated himself, The (1950) = CLA9
Murder, my sweet (aka Farewell my lovely) (1944) = CLA1
Out of the past (1947) = CLA1
Quicksand (1950) = CLA9 MY10
Red house, The (1947) = FN10 Note: rural film noir!
Scarlet Street (1945) = FN10 KIL5 MY10
Second woman, The (1951) = FN10 MY10
Set-up, The (1949) = CLA1
Strange love of Martha Ivers, The (1946) = CLA9
Stranger, The (1946) = CLA9 FN10 KIL5 MY10 Note: The separate Roan Group issue (with Cause for alarm, 1951) is superior.
Suddenly (1954) = MY10
Too late for tears (aka Killer bait) (1949) = CLA9 KIL5 MY10

"Detour " to England?.......2005-02-28

Be warned: "Detour" is fine film noir, but this version, at least the one I bought, has an apparent film reversal in the early hitchhiking scenes, which show the cars' drivers on the right side! Don't know how this got through. In other sections of the film, there are brief but noticeable lapses in lighting and sound quality. A good movie, but these inconsistencies in film quality are annoying at the least. This is an inexpensive set for what you get, but what you get may be less than you expect. Have since watched "Killer Bait" and "Scarlet Street" and give them both good marks, despite the lesser quality of "Scarlet Street" noted by earlier reviewers.

A bit of gold in black and white........2004-08-24

A very worthwhile package for the money. All the movies are well-known and good examples of the genre, the copies are reasonable except, as another reviewer has mentioned, 'Scarlet Street' which has a rather soft focus. The packaging graphics have had some thought put into them, too. Disc six with the Extra Features is interesting and it includes the following:
1. A thirteen minute documentary (narrated by silver throated Ed Ragozzino) 'What is Film Noir', not a bad summing up of the style.
2. 'Femme Fatale - The Noir Dame', a seven minute wrap-up of the ladies, the commentary is snowing clichés after a few seconds though.
3. 'Film Noir Trailers', at seventy-eight minutes, this was one reason I bought the package though it has to be said it is rather wide ranging because it includes, for example, 'Citizen Kane' and 'Magnificent Ambersons', hardly noir!
4. 'The Posters of Film Noir', a good selection of thirty or so posters that the pause button was made for.

So, a good deal for the price.

OK Transfers, but the extras are nice.......2004-07-06

The bonus disc has over 40 trailers for B&W Noirs and suspense films. In addition, some great film noir movie posters.

Also, the box set is set up nice. Looks great. Not to shabby for a public domain movie release.

All the transfers (except Scarlet Street) look fine. They're tinted blueish and yellow sometimes. Apparently, the films were pieced together from different sources. It's fairly seemless, though.

Scarlet Street still looks horrible. What a shame. That's the best film in this boxed set. Worth the price.

Not Exactly Crisp.............2004-06-29

The liner notes say that these are "...crisp, archival prints". Well, not exactly. This set is pretty good, but not fantastic. The authoring leaves some pixellation and blotchiness in the darker scenes. Also, they have tinted some of the scenes grey. I guess that was to try and cover up some fading. "D.O.A." is pretty good, but a clearer version is the one put out by Image Entertainment. This set does contain the best and most complete version of "DETOUR" that i have seen, although it still needs more restoration (Criterion, can you hear me?). I think "THE STRANGER" looks OK, but ROAN GROUP puts out a better disc of it. Concerning "SCARLET STREET", it looks about as good as what anyone else is putting out. I guess no one has been able to find a nice, clean, fine grain print of this movie yet. The movie "KILLER BAIT" is also known as "TOO LATE FOR TEARS" and it looks better in this set than the "TEARS" disc that Image puts out. As for content, all of these movies are good ones.

Mystery Classics Volume 11: Detour, Too Late for Tears, Mystery Liner, Scarlet Street

Average customer rating:

Mystery Classics Volume 11: Detour, Too Late for Tears, Mystery Liner, Scarlet Street
Starring: Mystery Classics
Manufacturer: Mill Creek Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0009W308I
Release Date: 2004-01-01

Average customer rating:

Terrific film noir with beautiful Joan Bennett
EVIL THY NAME IS JOAN !
Dan Duryea on picking up girls
THE MOVIE IS GOOD; THE DVD IS HORRIBLE!!
Unusual role for Robinson

Scarlet Street [Region 2]
Starring: Edward G. Robinson , Joan Bennett , Dan Duryea , Margaret Lindsay , and Jess Barker
Director: Fritz Lang
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000060NYN

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Terrific film noir with beautiful Joan Bennett.......2007-02-03

EVIL THY NAME IS JOAN !.......2006-04-04

Dan Duryea on picking up girls.......2006-02-28

THE MOVIE IS GOOD; THE DVD IS HORRIBLE!!.......2005-08-17

Unusual role for Robinson.......2005-06-24

Average customer rating:

Scarlet Street

Manufacturer: Synergy Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

amazon.com

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

[DVD] Double Feature - Scarlet Street (1945) + The Stranger (1946)

Average customer rating:

Edward G. Robinson Marathon

[DVD] Double Feature - Scarlet Street (1945) + The Stranger (1946)

Manufacturer: Digiview
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Cause for Alarm
Along Came Jones
The Dark Corner (Fox Film Noir)

ASIN: B000BGSY42

Product Description

Scarlet Street (1945) Chris Cross, 25 years a cashier, has a gold watch and little else. That rainy night, he rescues delectable Kitty from her abusive boyfriend Johnny. Smitten, amateur painter Chris lets Kitty think he's a wealthy artist. At Johnny's urging, she lets Chris establish her in an apartment (with his shrewish wife's money). There, Chris paints masterpieces; but Johnny sells them under Kitty's name, with disastrous and ironic results. The Stranger (1946) Wilson of the War Crimes Commission is seeking Franz Kindler, mastermind of the Holocaust, who has effectively erased his identity. Wilson releases Kindler's former comrade Meinike and follows him to Harper, Connecticut, where he is killed before he can identify Kindler. Now Wilson's only clue is Kindler's fascination with antique clocks; but though Kindler seems secure in his new identity, he feels his past closing in.

Customer Reviews:

Edward G. Robinson Marathon.......2005-11-16

Edward G. Robinson spectaular feaures over 3 hours of this great actor in his prime. Real film noir with dark themes and heavy drama! The Stranger has the added bonus of being directed by the legendary director Orson Welles.

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