''Blind Alley'' is a 1939 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combi ...

directed by

Charles Vidor Charles Vidor (born Károly Vidor; July 27, 1900June 4, 1959) was a Hungarian film director. Among his film successes are ''The Bridge'' (1929), ''The Tuttles of Tahiti'' (1942), ''The Desperadoes'' (1943), ''Cover Girl'' (1944), '' Together A ...

and stars

Chester Morris John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Award nomination for ''Alibi'' ( ...

, Ralph Bellamy and Ann Dvorak. The film was adapted from the Broadway play of the same name by James Warwick. It was remade as '' The Dark Past'' in 1948, with

William Holden William Holden (born William Franklin Beedle Jr.; April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor, and one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film ''Stalag 17'' (1953) ...

and Lee J. Cobb. The remake was also released by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the multi ...

Plot

Hal Winston takes noted psychologist Dr. Shelby and his family hostage in their own home. Winston is a murderer and prison escapee with the cops on his tail. After meticulous planning with his accomplices, he forcefully enters the home of Dr. Shelby and threatens the occupants to remain complicit. During this time, Shelby examines Winston's psyche to reveal what has made the murderer who he is. Through many discussions, Shelby successfully uncovers the answers to his questions. The film takes place over the course of one night, while the criminals wait for a boat to escape.

Cast

as Hal Wilson * Ralph Bellamy as Dr. Shelby * Ann Dvorak as Mary * Joan Perry as Linda Curtis *

Melville Cooper George Melville Cooper (15 October 1896 – 13 March 1973) was an English actor. His many notable screen roles include the High Sheriff of Nottingham in ''The Adventures of Robin Hood (film), The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938), Mr. Collins i ...

as George Curtis * Rose Stradner as Doris Shelby * John Eldredge as Dick Holbrook (as John Eldridge) *

Ann Doran Ann Lee Doran (July 28, 1911 – September 19, 2000) was an American character actress, possibly best known as the mother of Jim Stark (James Dean) in '' Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955). She was an early member of the Screen Actors Guild and s ...

as Agnes *

Marc Lawrence Marc Lawrence (born Max Goldsmith; February 17, 1910 – November 28, 2005) was an American character actor who specialized in underworld types. He has also been credited as F. A. Foss, Marc Laurence and Marc C. Lawrence. Early life Lawrence ...

as Buck * Stanley Brown as Fred Landis * Scotty Beckett as Davy Shelby * Milburn Stone as Nick * Marie Blake as Harriet

Reception

David Sterritt of

TCM TCM may refer to: Arts and music Film * ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (franchise), a horror film franchise ** '' The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'', the original 1974 film ** ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (2003 film), the 2003 remake Games * ...

praised ''Blind Alley''s cinematography, and observed it had influenced the home invasion subgenre. In 1939, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reviewer wrote: "the rather whimsical experiment of grafting Dr. Freud's facile theory of dream symbols on a typical Columbia melodrama has justified itself admirably in the case of ''Blind Alley'', at the Globe, by producing, on the whole, a rather better-than-typical Columbia melodrama".

Radio adaptation

''Blind Alley'' was presented on '' The Screen Guild Theatre'' on February 25, 1940. The adaptation starred

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

and Joseph Calleia in the starring roles.

Technical

The film is in 1.37 : 1 aspect ratio and, printed, is 8 reels long.

References

External links

* * * {{Charles Vidor 1939 films American black-and-white films Films about psychiatry American films based on plays 1939 crime drama films Columbia Pictures films Films directed by Charles Vidor American crime drama films 1930s American films