What possessed them to put color in _Scarlet Street_? This is a movie where the shadows, the rain, and even the dirty streets absolutely have to be black and white to make its somber, depressing feeling stronger. The lack of color isn’t just about looks; it's central to how the story gets darker and how hopeless things are for the people in it. Without that sharp contrast, it doesn't have the same impact—it's what ma…

The film presents Edward G. Robinson in an unusual role as a bank employee struggling with his unhappy home life and a hobby for painting. He intervenes to help a woman, Kitty March (Joan Bennett), who is experiencing problems with her boyfriend, Johnny Prince (Dan Duryea). He quickly becomes infatuated with her, but then learns she believes him to be rich and attempts to use him for financial gain through manipulati…

I’d probably like him more if he were harsh or unkind—if he snapped at me, that sort of thing. Here we have Christopher Cross, a man in middle age whose life seems to be going nowhere, lacking both love and any sense of purpose. It all changes one evening when he saves Kitty March from an attacker, which marks the beginning of a relationship with consequences for them and those around them. Just the year before…

This week's Noir of the Week is Scarlet Street. It’s one of my favorite films. Many of you are likely familiar with the story and hopefully have seen the new DVD release from Kino International. The film was directed by Fritz Lang and adapted from the 1930s French film, La Chienne. Scarlet Street tells the story of a bank cashier in the 1930s who falls victim to vice and then murder. I won’t detail the plot,…