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They Live by Night (1948)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
June 1948 (USA)
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Tagline:
Cops or no cops I'm going through!
Plot:
An escaped convict is injured and is helped by a woman with whom he has an ill-fated relationship. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Prison Farm
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Police
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Escaped Convict
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Car Accident
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Teen
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NewsDesk:
User Comments:
Actually quite good
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Cast
(Complete credited cast)| Cathy O'Donnell | ... | Catherine 'Keechie' Mobley | |
| Farley Granger | ... | Arthur 'Bowie' Bowers | |
| Howard Da Silva | ... | Chicamaw 'One-Eye' Mobley | |
| Jay C. Flippen | ... | Henry 'T-Dub' Mansfield | |
| Helen Craig | ... | Mattie Mansfield | |
| Will Wright | ... | Mobley | |
| Marie Bryant | ... | Nightclub Singer | |
| Ian Wolfe | ... | Hawkins | |
| William Phipps | ... | Young Farmer | |
| Harry Harvey | ... | Hagenheimer | |
| Will Lee | ... | Jeweler | |
| James Nolan | ... | Schreiber (as Jim Nolan) | |
| Teddy Infuhr | ... | Alvin Lambert | |
| Byron Foulger | ... | Lambert | |
| Guy Beach | ... | Rudy (as Guy L. Beach) |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
95 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The opening sequence was filmed from a helicopter. Although helicopters had been used in filming by 1947, mainly for aerial views or landscapes, this is one of the first times an action scene was filmed from the sky. The most difficult thing about it was to keep the actors in focus. It took them four takes; they eventually chose the second one.
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Goofs:
Continuity: Chicamaw's right eye is okay in a brief scene toward the end. Otherwise, the eye is opaque.
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Quotes:
[last lines]
Catherine 'Keechie' Mobley: [reading Bowie's letter to herself] "Hello girl. I'm gonna miss you. I gotta do it this way... I'll send for both of you when I can... no matter how long it takes, I gotta see that kid... he's lucky; he'll have you to keep him squared around."
[whispers]
Catherine 'Keechie' Mobley: I love you, Bowie.
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Catherine 'Keechie' Mobley: [reading Bowie's letter to herself] "Hello girl. I'm gonna miss you. I gotta do it this way... I'll send for both of you when I can... no matter how long it takes, I gotta see that kid... he's lucky; he'll have you to keep him squared around."
[whispers]
Catherine 'Keechie' Mobley: I love you, Bowie.
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Movie Connections:
Version of Thieves Like Us (1974)
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Soundtrack:
Your Red Wagon
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An early, nearly-forgotten picture from the director of "Rebel Without a Cause", this story of fugitive love (though not in the same was as "Bonnie and Clyde" or "Gun Crazy") is in its own right a rather accomplished picture.
Farley Granger is best remembered for his Hitchcock roles, and he gives a good, multifaceted performance. It's clear from the get-go that despite the company he keeps and despite his time in prison, he's really a scared, uncertain kid. Cathy O'Donnell is all but forgotten, but here gives a nearly Oscar-calibre performance, extremely convincing and appealing as his naive bride.
The film is also notable for early use of helicopter shots of cars, and for its refusal to vilify either the criminals or the cops (one of the policemen admits that "the system failed him", an astonishing statement for 1949).
All in all, a film which deserves to be resurrected from its obscurity.