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They Live by Night

For the album by The Hamsters, seeThey Live by Night (album).

They Live by Nightis a 1948 Americanfilm noirdirected byNicholas Rayin his directorial debut and starringCathy O'DonnellandFarley Granger.Based on Edward Anderson'sDepression-eranovelThieves Like Us,the film follows a young fugitive who falls in love with a woman and attempts to begin a life with her.[2]

They Live by Night
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNicholas Ray
Screenplay byCharles Schnee
Nicholas Ray
Based onThieves Like Us
1937 novel
by Edward Anderson
Produced byJohn Houseman
StarringFarley Granger
Cathy O'Donnell
Howard Da Silva
CinematographyGeorge E. Diskant
Edited bySherman Todd
Music byLeigh Harline
Production
company
Distributed byRKO Radio Pictures
Release dates
  • August 1948(1948-08)(London)[1]
  • November 5, 1949(1949-11-05)(U.S.)[1]
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The film opened theatrically inLondonin August 1948 under the titleThe Twisted Roadand was released in the United States byRKO Radio PicturesasThey Live by Nightin November 1949. Although the film received favorable reviews from film critics, it was abox-office failure,losing the studio$445,000 (equivalent to $5.7 million in 2023[3]).

Although the film is widely considered as the prototype for the "couple on the run" genre and the forerunner toBonnie and Clyde(1967), the story was first depicted inFritz Lang's 1937 filmYou Only Live Once,starringHenry FondaandSylvia Sidney.DirectorJim Jarmuschcites the film as one of the influences onno wave cinemaand his work in general.[4]Robert Altmandirected another adaptation of the novel in 1974 using the original title of the novel,Thieves Like Us.

Plot

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Arthur "Bowie" Bowers, a 23-year-old serving a prison sentence for a murder he committed at the age of 16, escapes from prison with two olderbank robbers,Chicamaw and T-Dub. The men take shelter with Chicamaw's brother, who operates a service station, and niece Catherine "Keechie" Mobley, who works there. Hoping to also free his incarcerated brother Robert, T-Dub concocts a plan to rob a bank and use the funds to hire a lawyer to prove awrongful conviction.[5]

The robbery goes smoothly. However, shortly after Bowie crashes his car, Chicamaw kills a police officer who had arrived at the scene. Chicamaw leaves an injured Bowie in the care of Keechie and joins T-Dub in another town. The sheepish Keechie swiftly grows fond of Bowie, who is also shy. They bond over their lack of experience in the world and soon develop a romance. Meanwhile, the press reports heavily on Bowie, wrongly pinning him as the ringleader of the robbery. Bowie and Keechie leave town by bus. Late one night, they find a chapel that performs quick marriages for $20. Bowie asks Keechie to marry him, and she agrees. Hawkins, the localjustice of the peace,performs the ceremony and sells the couple a convertible car.

Bowie and Keechie travel to a remote mountain resort where Keechie once stayed during her childhood and rent a cabin there, dreaming living openly together. Chicamaw arrives at the resort after tracking the couple there. He has gambled away his money and wants Bowie to help him and T-Dub commit another robbery. Bowie reluctantly agrees, but Keechie, fearing that Bowie will be killed, gives him his Christmas gift early, a wristwatch. The three men commit another robbery, but T-Dub is killed. Bowie and Chicamaw flee the scene by car. While driving, Bowie learns from a drunken Chicamaw that he is jealous of all the press attention that Bowie and Keechie have received. Bowie eventually forces Chicamaw out of the car at gunpoint.

When Bowie returns to the resort, he learns that Chicamaw was killed in a liquor-store robbery. In radio broadcasts, Bowie is again described as the ringleader of the robbery. Keechie reveals that she is pregnant. The couple depart the resort and head east, traveling mainly at night to not be seen. However, they spend a leisurely time in public, visiting a park and then a nightclub. In the club, Bowie is recognized by a gangster who orders him to leave town. Bowie suggests escaping to Mexico, and Keechie agrees.

Keechie becomes very ill, and they seek refuge at a motel owned by Mattie, T-Dub's sister-in-law. Mattie reluctantly allows them to stay. Bowie visits Hawkins, seeking help to cross the border, but Mattie reluctantly strikes a deal with police to identify Bowie's location in exchange for the release of her convicted husband Robert. Hawkins tells Bowie that he is unable to help him, and Bowie returns to the motel and informs Mattie that he will leave by himself to ensure the safety of Keechie and their unborn child. Mattie is wracked with guilt over her deal with the police but urges that Bowie say a final goodbye to Keechie, hoping to delay him long enough for the police to arrive. He agrees and writes a farewell letter to bring to Keechie. As he is about to enter the cabin, police descend on the scene, provoking Bowie to draw a gun. In response, the police fire, killing Bowie. Keechie, kneeling over Bowie's dead body, reads the farewell letter.

Cast

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Production

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Development

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The novelThieves Like Usby Edward Anderson had been acquired by RKO in 1941 for $10,000 (equivalent to $207,100 in 2023[3]). Numerous writers unsuccessfully tried to adapt the story as a screenplay. According to producerJohn Houseman,"I found the book and gave it to Nick to read, and he fell madly in love with it–as indeed I did, but Nick particularly was very familiar with that territory. He'd been there when he worked with theLomaxes,he'd been there when he worked for theDepartment of Agriculture,and so on. And that whole Depression stuff was terribly his stuff. So he sat down and wrote the treatment. I'd come home at night and we'd go over it; I'd edit it a little, that's all, and it was very, very good. "[6]Houseman, who had considerable authority as a producer, repeatedly submittedtreatmentscreated by novice directorNicholas Ray.

RKO saw no commercial value in the story, especially because Ray lacked experience as a director. In early 1947, producerDore Scharybecame RKO's production chief, hoping to transform it into Hollywood's most adventurous studio. Schary read Ray's treatment and signed Ray to a studio contract.

Houseman hiredCharles Schneeto write the screenplay, but Houseman did not want Schnee to alter Ray's treatment. Ray and Schnee worked together to adapt the treatment into a completed script, which was submitted to RKO in May 1947.

Casting

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Houseman arranged forFarley Grangerto test for RKO, and Ray was convinced that he had found Bowie. Granger suggestedCathy O'Donnellfor the female lead part. Both Granger and O'Donnell were under contract toSamuel Goldwynand had limited acting experience. Granger had appeared in just two films before his World War II service, while O'Donnell had just made the classicThe Best Years of Our Lives(1946). Ray insisted on the casting of Granger and O'Donnell. Granger later said: "Ray and John Houseman were among the few people who fought for me in my career. They said no, we will not make the film without him. When Nick believed in you, he was very loyal."[7]In his autobiography, Granger listedThey Live by Nightamong his favorite films.[8]

Many of the supporting cast and minor characters were played by friends of Houseman and Ray. RKO contract playerRobert Mitchumwanted the part of Chicamaw, but as he was a rising star who had recently received an Oscar nomination, RKO deemed the role of a bank robber unfit for him. The role of Chicamaw went toHoward Da Silva,who had made an impression inMarc Blitzstein's musicalThe Cradle Will Rock(1937), produced by Houseman. Other minor roles were played by people whom Ray knew from the New York theater, including Marie Bryant fromBeggar's Holidayas a nightclub singer,Curt ConwayandWill Lee,who would later playMr. Hooperon the children's television seriesSesame Street.

Filming

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Filming began on June 23, 1947, with the opening scene, a tracking shot of Bowie, T-Dub and Chickamaw escaping from prison in a stolen car. The action sequence was filmed from a helicopter, makingThey Live by Nightthe first major studio production to do so, predatingJames Wong Howe's celebrated final helicopter shot inPicnicby eight years. Four takes were required, and the second take was used in the final cut.

AsOrson Welleshad done in his directorial debut,Citizen Kane(1941), also made at RKO for Houseman, Ray experimented with sound and cinematography. Ray's biographer noted: "Only Welles similarly tried to define acoustic and even verbal textures as much as the visual."[9]Renowned film editorSherman Toddalso urged Ray to experiment and defy convention. Exteriors were filmed both on location and atRKO'smovie ranchinEncino,but Todd's editing blended the sequences well.

Filming completed in October 1947. Despite an excellentpreview,RKO was unsure about how to market the film and studio headHoward Hughesshelved it for two years before releasing it to a single theater in the UK to enthusiastic reviews. The film was finally released in the U.S. in November 1949 under the titleThey Live by Nightrather than the source novel's title ofThieves Like Us.The title was determined by audience poll and was favored by Hughes.

Release

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Box office

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The film recorded a loss of $445,000 (equivalent to $5.7 million in 2023[3]).[10]

Critical response

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In a contemporary review forThe New York Times,criticBosley CrowthercalledThey Live by Nighta "commonplace little story" and wrote: "Although it—like others—is misguided in its sympathies for a youthful crook, this crime-and-compassion melodrama has the virtues of vigor and restraint... 'They Live by Night' has the failing of wa xing sentimental over crime, but it manages to generate interest with its crisp dramatic movement and clear-cut types."[11]

Home media

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The film was issued onBlu-rayand DVD by theCriterion Collectionin August 2017.[12]

References

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  1. ^ab"They Live by Night".AFI Catalog of Feature Films.American Film Institute.Archivedfrom the original on June 7, 2019.
  2. ^[1]They Live by Night at Criterion
  3. ^abc1634–1699:McCusker, J. J.(1997).How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda(PDF).American Antiquarian Society.1700–1799:McCusker, J. J.(1992).How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States(PDF).American Antiquarian Society.1800–present:Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis."Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–".RetrievedFebruary 29,2024.
  4. ^Video Interview withJim Jarmuschon KGSM MediaCache
  5. ^[2]They Live by Night at Criterion
  6. ^Bernard Eisenschitz,Nicholas Ray: An American Journey.Faber & Faber, 1993.ISBN0-571-14086-6pg. 90
  7. ^Bernard Eisenschitzpg. 96
  8. ^Farley Granger,Include Me Out: From Goldywn to Broadway(New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007)
  9. ^Bernard Eisenschitz,Nicholas Ray: An American Journey(London: Faber & Faber, 1993)ISBN0-571-14086-6p. 102
  10. ^Richard Jewell & Vernon Harbin,The RKO Story.New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House, 1982. p239
  11. ^Crowther, Bosley (1949-11-04). "The Screen in Review".The New York Times.p. 33.
  12. ^Lund, Carson (August 15, 2017)."Review: Nicholas Ray's They Live by Night on Criterion Blu-ray".Slant Magazine.Archivedfrom the original on November 8, 2020.
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