They Live by Night (1948)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Nicholas Ray

Writers:

Edward Anderson (novel)
Nicholas Ray (adaptation)
(more)

Release Date:

26 October 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Romance

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.

Plot Keywords:

Prison Farm | Police | Escaped Convict | Car Accident | Teen

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	...	Plumber (as Guy L. Beach)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jane Allen	...	Woman (uncredited)
Paul Bakanas	...	Shadow (uncredited)
Regan Callais	...	Young Wife (uncredited)
Lewis Charles	...	Auto Lot Attendant (uncredited)
Curt Conway	...	Man in Tuxedo (uncredited)
Suzi Crandall	...	Lulu (uncredited)
Helen Crozier	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Boyd Davis	...	Herman Hawkins (uncredited)
Gail Davis	...	Girl at Parking Lot (uncredited)
James Dobson	...	Boy at Parking Lot (uncredited)
Ralph Dunn	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Frank Ferguson	...	Bum (uncredited)
Dan Foster	...	Groom (uncredited)
Fred Graham	...	Motorcycle Cop (uncredited)
Eula Guy	...	Mrs. Haviland (uncredited)
N.L. Hitch	...	Bus Driver (uncredited)
J. Louis Johnson	...	Restroom Porter (uncredited)
Chester Jones	...	Waiter in Nightclub (uncredited)
Tom Kennedy	...	Cop (uncredited)
Kate Drain Lawson	...	Tillie (uncredited)
Frank Marlowe	...	Robert Mansfield, Mattie's Husband (uncredited)
Myra Marsh	...	Mrs. Schaeffer (uncredited)
Marilyn Mercer	...	Bride (uncredited)
Charles Meredith	...	Commissioner Hubbell (uncredited)
Carmen Morales	...	Mother on bus (uncredited)
Jimmy Moss	...	Boy on bus (uncredited)
Stanley Prager	...	Short Order Man (uncredited)
Erskine Sanford	...	Doctor (uncredited)
Mickey Simpson	...	Shadow (uncredited)
Russ Whiteman	...	Man (uncredited)
Lynn Whitney	...	Waitress (uncredited)
Douglas Williams	...	Drunk (uncredited)

Directed by
Nicholas Ray

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Edward Anderson		novel "Thieves Like Us"
Nicholas Ray		adaptation
Charles Schnee		screenplay

Produced by
John Houseman	....	producer
Dore Schary	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Leigh Harline
Woody Guthrie		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
George E. Diskant

Film Editing by
Sherman Todd

Art Direction by
Albert S. D'Agostino
Alfred Herman		(as Al Herman)

Set Decoration by
Darrell Silvera
Maurice Yates

Costume Design by
Adele Balkan		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup supervisor
Helen Grizuk	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
James H. Anderson	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
James Lane	....	assistant director

Sound Department
John L. Cass	....	sound (as John Cass)
Clem Portman	....	sound

Special Effects by
Russell A. Cully	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Edward Bergholz	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Paul Ivano	....	director of photography: second unit (uncredited)
Ollie Sigurdson	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Music Department
C. Bakaleinikoff	....	musical director
Gene de Paul	....	composer: song "Your Red Wagon" (as Gene DePaul)
Richard M. Jones	....	composer: song "Your Red Wagon"
Don Raye	....	composer: song "Your Red Wagon"

Other crew
Mercy Weireter	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• RKO Radio Pictures

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1948) (USA) (theatrical)
• C&C Television Corporation (1955) (USA) (TV)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

The Twisted Road (UK)
Your Red Wagon (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

RKO Encino Ranch - Balboa Boulevard & Burbank Boulevard, Encino, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

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.

Goofs:

Continuity: Chicamaw's right eye is okay in a brief scene toward the end. Otherwise, the eye is opaque.

Quotes:

Arthur 'Bowie' Bowers: [waking up mother on bus] M'am, you're baby's crying.
Mother on bus: Well, I've been on the bus three days. When we get to the next stop, I'll fix her bottle.
[ignoring the baby and going back to sleeo]
Mother on bus: Till then, I just don't care.

Movie Connections:

Featured in They Live by Night: The Twisted Road (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

Your Red Wagon

Actually quite good

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.