Lang arrived in Hollywood in 1936 and quickly got to work on dark dramas, though when the film noir craze hit in the mid-40s, Lang was well prepared and got to work creating some of the most incredible noir films the world has ever seen. Unfortunately, many of Lang's American films have been more or less forgotten by history, taking a back seat to his early work. However, the films he made are more often than not gripping pieces of drama featuring all of the hallmarks of the film noir genre, Scarlet Street is just such a film.
Scarlet Street was based on a novel called La chienne (The Bitch) by Georges de La Fouchardière, and perhaps never was a story more aptly titled. Edward G Robinson stars as Christopher Cross, a middle aged man trapped in a loveless marriage whose only outlet for his frustration is his painting, which his bitter shrew of a wife mocks mercilessly. One day he rescues a pretty young thing, Kitty (Joan Bennett), from a thug on the street, she sees the weakness in Chris's eyes and the game is on. Kitty, the bitch of the book's title, sets forth taking Chris for everything he has, which isn't much in spite of her expectations.
A woman like Kitty is expensive to keep, and Chris does his best to keep her out of trouble, what he doesn't realize is that she's taking him for a ride. The man from whom Chris saved Kitty in the street was actually Johnny, as is every scumbag in every film noir, played with extraordinary vigor by Dan Duryea. Johnny steers Kitty into increasingly cruel manipulations of Chris's feelings and abuses of his generosity, all for Johnny's own benefit. As Chris's resources dwindle, he begins to stray from his straight and narrow path, and eventually reaches his breaking point. The climax is a stunning and fantastic piece of revenge, and must be seen to be believed.
The three lead performances in this film are remarkable. Robinson's turn as Chris is as far from his bombastic performance in Little Caesar as you could get. Chris Cross is weak, and allows himself to be manipulated in order to feel powerful and feel as though he is providing for Kitty. Joan Bennett's Kitty, on the other hand, is despicably conniving and the kind of woman all of our mothers warned us about. She occasionally shows a bit of heart, but she is far too enmeshed in a violent love affair with Johnny to see her way out, she is manipulated by Johnny no less than she manipulates Chris. Dan Duryea's performance as Johnny foreshadows the kind of characters that would make Richard Widmark famous in the coming years. He's a fast talking, desperate man who has found his gold mine, not unlike Widmark's Harry Fabian in Night at the City.
Fritz Lang's film noir resume should have put him on equal footing with Jules Dassin as a master of the craft, but his films haven't survived history quite as well. Lang's noir films have been leaking out, a little at a time, through various companies for several years to little fanfare. However, thanks to Warner Archive and now Kino Classics, it seems these films are ripe for reappraisal. Scarlet Street is a brilliant crime drama, and I defy any fan of film noir not to enjoy this fast paced, tightly plotted gem. Highly recommended.
The Disc:
Kino's Scarlet Street Blu-ray comes to us courtesy of a print from the Library of Congress, and it looks pretty decent in HD. This isn't the finest black and white transfer I've ever seen on Blu-ray, but it looks decent and unmanipulated. Unfortunately this means that a fair amount of print damage remains, however, if the alternative was to scrub the print of dirt and grain, I'm happy with what I've got. The audio is much cleaner than the video, and a delight to listen to. The score by HJ Salter is also glorious, and it is so beautiful that I actually let the menu on the disc run for a few minutes just to hear it. The music is dramatic and overwrought, but it fits the narrative and the character of Chris perfectly.
Kino's Blu-ray edition features two extras. The first is a feature commentary by film expert David Kalat. I've become sort of hit and miss with Kalat, his commentaries are always informative, but often sound too scripted and somewhat lifeless. While I certainly appreciate that he prepared for the commentary, a bit of spontaneity goes a long way in keeping my attention. The other extra is a gallery of production photos including some from a deleted scene.
Scarlet Street is a fantastic film noir that rivals the best of the melodramatic genre. Definitely check this one out!