Having served in Korea, Jeff (Glenn Ford) comes back home and resumes his job on the railroad. His supervisor, Buckley (Broderick Crawford), is consumed by suspicion that Vicki (Gloria Grahame), his wife, is having an affair with her former employer, a man of considerable means. When she arrives back one evening, he demands she compose a letter designed to entice this gentleman onto a train in an empty compartment—an…

Fritz Lang directed Human Desire, which was adapted by Alfred Hayes from Émile Zola's "The Human Beast." The movie stars Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, and Broderick Crawford; Daniele Amfitheatrof composed the music, and Burnett Guffey served as cinematographer. This story had been brought to film twice previously, first in 1920 as *Die Bestie im Menschen* and again in 1938 as *La Bête humaine*. The narrative centers…