35mm

Macao

Josef von Sternberg, Nicholas Ray
Part of

55th New York Film Festival

September 29 - October 15, 2017

Mitchum stars as an American runaway tasked with capturing a crime lord as he woos a singer played by Jane Russell in this atmospheric crime yarn known for its unpleasant, tumultuous production.

DIRECTOR
Josef von Sternberg, Nicholas Ray
YEAR
1952
COUNTRY
USA
RUNTIME
81 minutes
FORMAT
35mm

Nicholas Ray was brought on to finish this atmospheric crime yarn after producer Howard Hughes forced Josef von Sternberg off the project. (Allegedly, Robert Mitchum helped write a few scenes with Ray.) But its initial director’s signature textures and tones still shine through: dresses and gloves sheathed in glitter; an Escher-like casino; a pier-set finale that recalls Sternberg’s The Docks of New York. It was, by all accounts, an unpleasant, tumultuous production. The final movie, though, is buoyant—a shimmering cinematic vacation starring Mitchum as an American runaway tasked with capturing a crime lord while also wooing a singer played by Jane Russell.

Macao
Macao
Macao
Macao
Macao

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