Why American censors banned a 1945 film noir for being too immoral to watch
In short: Fritz Lang’s Scarlet Street was banned in New York, Milwaukee, and Atlanta shortly after its 1946 release. Authorities feared the film’s dark plot, which featured a protagonist who escapes legal punishment for murder, would corrupt public morals and weaken respect for the law. It remains a classic of the genre.
Directed by Fritz Lang, Scarlet Street tells the story of Chris Cross, a middle-aged cashier who is manipulated by a young woman named Kitty and her boyfriend, Johnny. After Chris is swindled out of his money and his art, he murders Kitty in a fit of rage. While Johnny is wrongly executed for the crime, Chris descends into madness, haunted by his guilt and the loss of his identity as an artist.
The film’s production was a collaborative effort between Lang, producer Walter Wanger, and actress Joan Bennett, who formed Diana Productions. Lang, having previously directed the trio in The Woman in the Window, adapted the screenplay from the French novel La Chienne. Lang and screenwriter Dudley Nichols intentionally avoided watching the 1931 French film adaptation to ensure their version remained original. Lang chose the title Scarlet Street after a passage in the Book of Revelation, though he later admitted he did not fully understand its biblical context at the time.
Upon its release, the film polarized critics. While some, like the New York Times’ Bosley Crowther, dismissed it as a sluggish and manufactured tale, others praised its projection of a sordid, psychological narrative. Despite its critical reception, the film’s legacy is defined by its status as a noir classic and its historical notoriety. It holds the distinction of being one of the first Hollywood films where a criminal escapes official punishment for his actions, a narrative choice that triggered a wave of censorship across multiple American cities in 1946.
Today, the film is in the public domain and is widely regarded as a significant work of film noir. Its influence persists, with critics like Eddie Muller including it in lists of top noir films. The paintings featured in the movie, created by John Decker, were even exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in March 1946, bridging the gap between cinematic art and the fine arts.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Scarlet Street
- Also: Wikidata — Scarlet Street · CC0
- Also: Wikidata — Scarlet Street · CC0
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