Scarlet Street (1945)

This one is better than I guessed it would be from the plot description. I quite enjoyed this gem! Edward G. Robinson is Christopher Cross - a man very lonely even though he's been married for 5 years. He's never had the love of woman and wants that in life so badly that he tried to get with a woman years younger than him, Katharine 'Kitty' March. Kitty is in-love with Johnny Prince who is NO Prince at all, in-fact he's a real jerk but so Kitty. Together Johnny and Kitty decide to try to take Christopher for all his money by Kitty playing on Chris' loneliness. Little does Kitty know that Chris is broke and ends up stealing money to give to Kitty because he's grown feelings for her. But things end up much worse than Johnny, Kitty or Chris ever planned for.There is a twist in the middle with Chris, and his wife Adele and her dead husband - that leads to an even stranger ending.Well worth watching, a very good mystery film! 9/10

The Scarlet Street has a semblance of Film Noir, but it doesn't have a male (usually) lead disillusioned and at odds with a post war society, but more disillusioned with the world. And as the movie begins we can immediate empathize and connect with Robinson's character, and from this connection we truly feel what it's like for him when he loses everything, from making that one choice in his life. Director Lang, truly makes the film one of the most depressing shocking pieces of cinema that has to be seen, most people don't really want to see a movie that not going to have a happy ending, but seeing this film will be worth it. It's so rich in cinematography, acting, editing, director influence, it would be a shame not to see it

Scarlet Street was a movie that some could say portrayed a modern day prostitute and pimp scenario, or a prostitute with a client. Kitty one of the main actresses lives a double life, she takes advantage of a "mature" gentleman Chris Cross who is a famous painter at the time in New York City. Kitty is in a relationship with an abusive significant other and just wants to be treated like a proper women. Later on in the movie Kitty reveals that she was just using Chris for his money, and he is distraught with emotion by this. Fritz Lang did a wonderful job directing by leaving you with a cliff hanger of a ending not your typical Hollywood style happy ending, but one more full of gluttony and shame. He also has a spectacular eye while character portrayal from angles and foreshadowing with the light placement. I would say this is a good movie if you enjoy classical mystery/ thriller. Also the twist of the a classical character portrayal from outfits and style to a mid 1940's movie was excellent on the directors part. I enjoyed this movie and do recommend it to others.

Christopher Cross, as portrayed by Edward G. Robinson, is mild-mannered, polite, and generally someone the audience can sympathize--or even identify--with. Throughout the film, I found myself cringing for him each time he was tricked into further complicating and upsetting his life.Nearly every character is infuriating this way, which speaks to the acting and the writing. It's not a typical movie about serving justice in response to unjust actions; it says more about the cruel nature of the world.In addition to that, the camera work and sets make for a really beautiful film. There was a lot of glass involved in the sets of Scarlet Street, and the cinematography made the most of it. The settings are often light-filled, beautiful, in direct contrast with the goings-on of the film (though in many ways reflective of Cross's deluded feelings of love). This puts it in a very strange place in terms of noir film, staying true to the genre in as many ways as it (generally visually) does not.At its heart, though, that is exactly what it is. Though the visuals aren't gritty, the story elements and tone certainly are. Cross is a man deceived, and then haunted. The employment of non-diegetic, internal sound to represent that haunted feeling Cross has makes the audience feel as many things as watching Cross be deceived earlier in the film.Scarlet Street is unforgettable because it's so powerful.