Night and the City (1950)

Director:

Jules Dassin

Writers:

Jo Eisinger (screenplay)
Gerald Kersh (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

April 1950 (UK)

Genre:

Crime | Sport | Thriller

Plot:

Harry Fabian (Richard Widmark) is a London hustler with ambitious plans that never work out. One day...

Plot Keywords:

Scheme | Arena | Hustler | Wrestler | Wrestling

Cast

Richard Widmark	...	Harry Fabian
Gene Tierney	...	Mary Bristol
Googie Withers	...	Helen Nosseross
Hugh Marlowe	...	Adam Dunn
Francis L. Sullivan	...	Philip Nosseross
Herbert Lom	...	Kristo
Stanislaus Zbyszko	...	Gregorius
Mike Mazurki	...	The Strangler
Charles Farrell	...	Mickey Beer
Ada Reeve	...	Molly the Flower Lady
Ken Richmond	...	Nikolas of Athens (as Ken. Richmond)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Adelaide Hall	...	Singer (scenes deleted)
Eliot Makeham	...	Undetermined Role (scenes deleted)
Betty Marsden	...	Undetermined Role (scenes deleted)
Derek Blomfield	...	Young Policeman (uncredited)
Clifford Buckton	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Peter Butterworth	...	Thug (uncredited)
Edward Chapman	...	Hoskins (uncredited)
Clifford Cobbe	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Patricia Davidson	...	Night Club Hostess (uncredited)
Maureen Delaney	...	Anna O'Leary (Blackmarket) (uncredited)
Aubrey Dexter	...	Fergus Chilk, Kristo's Lawyer (uncredited)
Maudie Edwards	...	Mary's Singing Voice (voice) (uncredited)
Stanley Escane	...	Man (uncredited)
Thomas Gallagher	...	Bagrag a Bar Owner (uncredited)
Rex Garner	...	Waiter (uncredited)
James Hayter	...	Figler, King of the Beggars (uncredited)
George Hirste	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Hamilton Keene	...	Charles, American Bar Bartender (uncredited)
Kay Kendall	...	One of Helen's Girls (uncredited)
Hubert Leslie	...	Nightwatchman (uncredited)
Arthur Lovegrove	...	Thug (uncredited)
Water Magnee	...	A second (uncredited)
John Mann	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Lew Marko	...	Referee (uncredited)
Gibb McLaughlin	...	Googin the Forger (uncredited)
MacDonald Parke	...	American from Chicago (uncredited)
Charles Paton	...	Watchman (uncredited)
Chunky Pattison	...	Dwarf (uncredited)
Frank Pettitt	...	Cabby (uncredited)
Philip Ray	...	Man (uncredited)
Eddy Reed	...	American from Chicago (uncredited)
John Rudling	...	Man (uncredited)
Johnnie Schofield	...	Cashier (uncredited)
Betty Shale	...	Mrs. Pinkney (uncredited)
John Sharp	...	Man (uncredited)
Leonard Sharp	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Tomy Simpson	...	Cozen (uncredited)
Ray St. Bernard	...	Strangler's Opponent (uncredited)
Alan Tilvern	...	Beggar (uncredited)
C. Denier Warren	...	Small American from Chicago (uncredited)
Freddie Watts	...	Man (uncredited)
Brian Weske	...	Messenger Boy (uncredited)
Russell Westwood	...	Yosh, Kristo's Goon (uncredited)

Directed by
Jules Dassin

Writing credits
Jo Eisinger		(screenplay)
Gerald Kersh		(novel)
Austin Dempster		contributing writer (uncredited)
William E. Watts		contributing writer (uncredited)

Produced by
Samuel G. Engel	....	producer
Darryl F. Zanuck	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Benjamin Frankel		(British version)
Franz Waxman		(American version)

Cinematography by
Mutz Greenbaum		(director of photography) (as Max Greene)

Film Editing by
Nick DeMaggio		(as Nick De Maggio)
Sidney Stone

Casting by
Weston Drury Jr.		(uncredited)
Douglas Fairbanks Jr.		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
C.P. Norman

Makeup Department
E. Attwright	....	assistant makeup artist (uncredited)
David Aylott	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Barbara Ritchie	....	hair stylist (uncredited)
Iris Tilley	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Percy Hermes	....	unit manager (uncredited)
Ronald Kinnoch	....	production manager (uncredited)
Bert Pearl	....	assistant production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jack N. Green	....	third assistant director (uncredited)
Tony Hearne	....	first assistant director: second unit (uncredited)
Douglas Hermes	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Percy Hermes	....	assistant director (uncredited)
George Mills	....	assistant director (uncredited)
John Street	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
George Beech	....	draughtsman (uncredited)
Ted Clements	....	draughtsman (uncredited)
Peter Murton	....	draughtsman (uncredited)

Sound Department
Peter Handford	....	sound recordist
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound recordist (as Roger Heman)
Hugh Strain	....	sound assistant (uncredited)
John Streeter	....	sound camera operator (uncredited)
Kevin Sutton	....	sound assistant (uncredited)
Charles Van der Goor	....	sound maintenance (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Hal Britten	....	camera operator: second unit (uncredited)
V. Butler	....	second grip (uncredited)
Austin Dempster	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Eddie Earp	....	clapper loader: second unit (uncredited)
Arthur Evans	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Godfrey A. Godar	....	focus puller (uncredited)
Jo Jago	....	cinematographer: second unit (uncredited)
Walter Lassally	....	focus puller: second unit (uncredited)
David Oxenham	....	clapper loader (uncredited)
A. Southall	....	second grip (uncredited)
Joe Vincent	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
John Jones	....	casting assistant (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Oleg Cassini	....	costumes: Miss Tierney
Margaret Furse	....	costumes: Miss Withers
Ivy Baker	....	wardrobe supervisor (uncredited)
Evelyn Gibbs	....	wardrobe mistress (uncredited)

Music Department
Muir Mathieson	....	musical director: UK version
Edward B. Powell	....	orchestrator: USA version (as Edward Powell)
Bernard Mayers	....	orchestrator: Waxman (uncredited)
Cyril J. Mockridge	....	orchestrator: Waxman (uncredited)
Eric Rogers	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Arthur Alligan	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Ernest Betts	....	publicist (uncredited)
R.E. Dearing	....	assistant to producer (uncredited)
Robert E. Dearing	....	personal assistant to producer (uncredited)
Fred Fox	....	personal assistant to producer (uncredited)
Élise Girard	....	press attache France 2005 re-release (uncredited)
Noreen Hipwell	....	production secretary (uncredited)
Water Magnee	....	wrestling trainer/adviser (uncredited)
Mike Mazurki	....	technical adviser: wrestling (uncredited)
Mike Mazurki	....	technical advisor: wrestling (uncredited)
Peggy McClafferty	....	continuity (uncredited)
Hazel Swift	....	assistant continuity (uncredited)
Mickey Wood	....	technical advisor: wrestling (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Productions

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Company (1950) (UK) (theatrical)
• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1950) (USA) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1963) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Fox Video (1993) (USA) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox (1951) (France) (theatrical)
• Actions Cinémas/Théâtre du Temple (2005) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Oy Fox Films (1951) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Seven Films (2008) (Greece) (theatrical) (reissue)
• Carlotta Films (200?) (France) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2005) (France) (DVD)
• Oregon Filmes/Fox (200?) (Brazil) (DVD)
• UFA/DVD (2008) (Germany) (DVD) (collection: Hollywood Highlights)

Other Companies

• Western Electric Recording  recording system

Runtime:

101 min | USA:96 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Norway:16 | USA:Approved (certificate #14096) | Germany:16 | Finland:K-15 (new rating: 2001) | France:U | Australia:PG | Finland:(Banned) (1950-1965) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A

Filming Locations:

East End Docks, London, England, UK

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Productions

Trivia:

Finnish censorship visa # 32043 delivered on 19-9-1950 (banned). New decision on 9-4-1965 (K-16).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Although the action takes place in London during the 1930s, there is a scene in which we can see an enormous illuminated advertisement in the front of a building: "Errol Flynn, Ida Lupino and Eleanor Parker in ESCAPE ME NEVER". This film was produced in 1947.

Quotes:

Googin the Forger: If you ain't got socks you can't pull 'em up, can you?

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Savages (2007)

Soundtrack:

Don't Fence Me In

like a rat in a trap of his own creation

Every where Richard Widmark's loser character Harry Fabian turns in this film he finds golden opportunities smothered in bad timing. Widmark utilizes a variation of that smarmy, snickering sinister giggle-chuckle that was memorialized in Kiss of Death.It serves the actor well in this film in its toned-down form but offers up a sort of pathetic body language for Fabian, the character. It may be that this American ex-patriot character is just way out of his depth. His hucksterism is not much appreciated by many of his acquaintances in this seedy London underworld. If Harry Fabian would simply accept that he is destined to be a 3rd rate shill and stooge,he might have fund some small pleasures. However, his mind is a shade too quick and his ambition too pumped. He's a user with not a shread of remorse about stepping on others, ripping them off, keeping one tiny step ahead of exposure. This is a superb film, squalid and sinister in its portrayal of greed, corruption and betrayal.