Flamingo Road

"A wrong girl for the right side of the tracks."

1949 1h 34m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 60

DramaRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A stranded carnival dancer takes on a corrupt political boss when she marries into small-town society.

“A wrong girl for the right side of the tracks.”

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Cast

Joan Crawford
Lane Bellamy
Zachary Scott
Fielding Carlisle
Sydney Greenstreet
Sheriff Titus Semple
David Brian
Dan Reynolds
Gladys George
Lute Mae Sanders
Virginia Huston
Annabelle Weldon
Fred Clark
Doc Waterson
Gertrude Michael
Millie

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Michael Curtiz
Writers: Robert Wilder
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

77 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Michael Curtiz, shot by Ted D. McCord. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Max Steiner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Folmar Blangsted shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Joan Crawford and Zachary Scott and Sydney Greenstreet carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A wrong girl for the right side of the tracks.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0041373 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Michael Curtiz directs. Ted D. McCord behind the camera. Max Steiner scores. Folmar Blangsted cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
277 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Michael Curtiz, shot by Ted D. McCord. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Max Steiner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Folmar Blangsted shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Joan Crawford and Zachary Scott and Sydney Greenstreet carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A wrong girl for the right side of the tracks.".
8IMDB entry: tt0041373 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 60 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Ted D. McCord
Original score: Max Steiner
Editing: Folmar Blangsted
Costume design: Travilla
Makeup / hair: Betty Delmont
Sound: Robert B. Lee
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Status: Released
Budget: $1,528,000
Box office: $2,896,000
Return: 190% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Flamingo Road (1949)

Also by

Michael Curtiz

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2015-06-14
★ 7/10
Ya can't go wrong in this town if you say Yep to the right people and Nope to the rest. Flamingo Road is directed by Michael Curtiz and adapted to screenplay by Robert Wilder from his own play of the same name (with Sally Wilder). It stars Joan Crawford, Sydney Greenstreet, Zachary Scott, David Bryan and Gladys George. Music is by Max Steiner and cinematography by Ted D. McCord. When circumstance sees Lane Bellamy (Crawford) stuck in Bolden City, she quickly finds herself embroiled in a love affair and involved in a war with political tyrant Sheriff Titus Semple (Greenstreet). The Moody kind always cause trouble. Southern Gothic - cum - politico melodrama with noirish tints, Flamingo Road gets above average due to high tech credits and a superbly nasty turn from Greenstreet. Essentially the pic is about a girl from the other side of the tracks making her way up the social ladder, but she has to lock horns with a nasty piece of work and battle with affairs of the heart. Flamingo - Affluent - Road! It's strong on narrative terms, the screenplay neatly blending the greed of political posers with almost perverse social wiles. Curtiz (Mildred Pierce/The Unsuspected) and McCord (Johnny Belinda/The Breaking Point) keep it brisk and atmospherically moody, while the impressive Greenstreet - all sweaty, ambiguous and devilish, is surrounded by a more than competent cast of supporting players. What of Crawford? Wisely "requesting" that Curtiz be given the director's job, she's compelling and classically committed to the role. It's true to say she is too old for the character, something which her fans are known to hate reading, while both the actors playing her love interests are almost 10 years her junior - which is a bit of a reality stretch for the era. However, such is her acting ability, she gets you on side quickly, with the makers shooting her in soft focus and the writer giving her good work to use off of the page. A strange movie in some ways, but intriguing and sharp and it's never dull. While the quality on show from both sides of the camera is most pleasing. 7/10

Production companies