Criterion Collection (series)

The Naked City

Starring: Barry Fitzgerald Director: Jules Dassin

DVD Features:

Audio:

• Dolby Digital Mono 1.0 - English

Additional Release Material:

• Additional Footage - Jules Dassin at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2003)
• Audio Commentary - Malvin Wald - Screenwriter
• Interview - 1. James Sanders
                  2. Dana Polan
• Trailer - Theatrical Trailer

Text/Photo Galleries:

• Essay - Luc Sante
• Stills/Photos

Major Awards:

Academy Awards - Best Cinematography (1948)

Product Description:

The story is based on facts about a young woman who is brutally murdered in the streets of New York City and the subsequent manhunt for her killer, who eventually leads the police to a ring of thieves. Academy Award Nominations: 3, including Best Motion Picture Story. Academy Awards: Best (Black-and-White) Cinematography, Best Film Editing.

Plot Synopsis:

Filmed on location, this gripping crime drama tells a tragic tale of life in gritty New York City. When a beautiful girl is found murdered in her bathtub, homicide detectives painstakingly comb Manhattan in search of the killer. Their investigation leads them to a playboy, and culminates in a thrilling chase on the Williamsburg Bridge.

Plot Keywords:

Big City | Classic | Drama | Essential Cinema | Film Noir | Murder | Recommended | Suspense | Theatrical Release | True Story

Exerpts:

"There are eight million stories in the Naked City; this has been one of them." -- Narrator (Mark Hellinger). "This is the city as it is. The children at play, the buildings in their naked stone." -- Narrator (Mark Hellinger). "A lamb led to slaughter, an idiot robbed of self-respect." -- Doctor, describing himself. "It's one o'clock on a hot summer night and this is the face of New York when it's asleep, or as near asleep as it ever is... Every murder turns on a bright hot light, and a lot of people, innocent or not, have to walk out of shadows to stand investigation." -- Narrator (Mark Hellinger). "I told her -- I knew she'd turn out no good -- I hate her. So clever she was -- even had to change her name." -- Mother describing her daughter's corpse. "This time yesterday she was just another pretty girl. Today she's the marmalade on ten thousand pieces of toast." -- Narrator (Mark Hellinger), describing dead girl. "Lady, ever see a man looks like this?" -- Detective to witness. "Every high class jeweller in town? Oh, my poor feet!" "Be glad you're not a horseback cop." -- Halloran (Don Taylor) and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald). "I have been thirty-eight years on the force, but in a lifetime of investigation you are probably the biggest and most willing liar I have ever met." -- Lieutenant Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald) to Frank Niles (Howard Duff).

Production Notes:

• Narrator/producer Mark Hellinger was a former journalist. "The Naked City" was his last feature film. The film was was the inspiration for the TV series, "Naked City." Director Jules Dassin remembers: "For about ten years I was refugee from 'Naked City.' You name the metropolis, I was asked to do a 'Naked City' there." During the McCarthy period, Dassin was blacklisted in the US and went on to direct films in Europe. Additional cast: Anne Sargent (Mrs. Halloran), Adelaide Klein (Mrs. Batory), Grover Burgess (Mr. Batory), and Tom Pedi (Detective Parelli). The body of the dead blonde is supposedly played by Shelley Winters, but this is uncredited. Film debuts for actors David Opatashu, James Gregory, and Nehemiah Persoff.

Cast and Crew: