Title: They Live By Night
Year: 1955
Director: Nicholas Ray
Country: US
Language: English
Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without a Cause) never disappoints, and his first feature They Live By Night (1948) is no exception. Adapting Edward Anderson’s Depression-era novel Thieves Like Us, the film is a classic "love on the run" story that has been described as "Romeo & Juliet meets film noir".
An escaped convict (Farley Granger) injured during a robbery falls in love with the woman (Cathy O'Donnell) who nurses him back to health, but their relationship seems doomed from the beginning.
They Live By Night is a moody thriller; its use of cinematography creates a foreboding and unsettling atmosphere. The screenplay often foreshadows the fate of our main antihero. The jazzy score, in addition to sounds in the distance, such as a train horn, add to a poetic realism & conjure an America that has left our man behind.
Vehicles are often seen as tools of freedom in North America, but in They Live By Night we see them as tools of captivity. Bandits must stick to the roads, license plates can be easily tracked, and they may often run into roadblocks. In gangster pictures the main character views their vehicle as a lifeline, but Nicholas Ray is smart enough to know that their reliance on the machine is their downfall.
The romantic narrative may be a bit melodramatic, but They Live By Night paved the way for Bonnie and Clyde (1967) and other similar gangster pictures. Ray's first feature is a fine film, a worthy double feature along with Rebel Without a Cause (1955).
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