The Asphalt Jungle

This article is about the 1950 film. For the 1961 television series, see The Asphalt Jungle (TV series).

The Asphalt Jungle
File:The Asphalt Jungle poster.jpg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	John Huston
Produced by	Arthur Hornblow Jr.
Screenplay by	Ben Maddow John Huston
Based on	The Asphalt Jungle 1949 novel by W. R. Burnett
Starring	Sterling Hayden Louis Calhern Jean Hagen James Whitmore Sam Jaffe
Music by	Miklós Rózsa
Cinematography	Harold Rosson
Edited by	George Boemler
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release dates	May 23, 1950 (1950-05-23) (United States)
Running time	112 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1,232,000

The Asphalt Jungle is a 1950 film noir directed by John Huston. The heist film is based on the 1949 novel of the same name by W. R. Burnett and stars an ensemble cast including Sterling Hayden, Jean Hagen, Sam Jaffe, Louis Calhern, James Whitmore, and, in a minor but key role, Marilyn Monroe, an unknown at the time who was pictured but not mentioned on the posters.

The film tells the story of a group of men planning and executing a jewel robbery. It was nominated for four Academy Awards.

In 2008, The Asphalt Jungle was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Plot summary

When criminal mastermind Erwin "Doc" Riedenschneider (Sam Jaffe) is released from prison after seven years, he immediately goes to see a bookie named Cobby (Marc Lawrence) in an unnamed Midwest river city, who arranges a meeting with Alonzo Emmerich (Louis Calhern), a high-profile lawyer. Emmerich listens with interest to Doc's plan to steal jewelry worth a million dollars or more. Doc needs $50,000 to hire three men—a "box man" (safecracker), a driver, and a "hooligan"—to help him pull off the caper. Emmerich agrees to provide the money, then suggests that he (not one or more fences) assume the responsibility for disposing of the loot.

Doc first hires Louie Ciavelli (Anthony Caruso), a professional safecracker. Ciavelli only trusts Gus Minissi (James Whitmore), a hunchbacked diner owner, as the getaway driver. The final member of the gang is Dix Handley (Sterling Hayden), a friend of Gus. Dix explains his ultimate goal to Doll Conovan (Jean Hagen), who is in love with him. His dream is to buy back the horse farm that his father lost during the Great Depression. Dix, however, just keeps losing his ill-gotten gains betting on the horses via Cobby. This job would pay him the amount he needs.

During the meticulously planned crime (an 11-minute sequence in the film), the criminals carry out their work in a calm, professional manner. Ciavelli hammers through a brick wall to get into the jewelry store, deactivates a door alarm to let in Doc and Dix, and then opens the main safe in minutes using an explosive liquid ("the soup"). Unfortunately, the explosion somehow sets off the alarms of nearby businesses and brings the police to the scene more quickly than expected. On their way out, Dix has to slug an arriving security guard, who drops his gun, which discharges and wounds Ciavelli in the belly. The men get away unseen, but a police manhunt quickly begins.

Ciavelli insists on being taken home by Gus. Dix and Doc take the loot to Emmerich, who confesses he needs some more time to raise the cash they had expected. In reality, he is broke. He had sent a private detective named Bob Brannom (Brad Dexter) to collect sums owed to him, but Brannom returned only with excuses. Emmerich then plotted to double cross the others with Brannom's help (for an equal share). Emmerich suggests to Doc that he leave the jewelry with him, but Doc and Dix become suspicious. Brannom then pulls out his gun. Dix is able to kill Brannom, but not without being wounded himself. Dix wants to shoot Emmerich as well, but Doc persuades him not to. Doc tells the lawyer to contact the insurance companies and offer to return the valuables for 25% of their value.

Emmerich disposes of Brannom's body in the river, but the police find the corpse, along with the list of people who owe Emmerich money, and question him. He lies about his whereabouts, and after they leave, hurriedly calls Angela Phinlay (Marilyn Monroe in her first important role), his beautiful young mistress, to set up an alibi.

Under increasing pressure from Police Commissioner Hardy (John McIntire), a police lieutenant named Ditrich (Barry Kelley) (who had previously protected Cobby for money) beats the bookie into confessing everything in a vain attempt to save himself (he is later arrested for corruption).

With the confession, Hardy personally arrests Emmerich, managing to persuade Angela to tell the truth. Emmerich is permitted to leave the room for a minute and commits suicide. Gus is soon picked up, then attacks Cobby at the jail. When the police break down Ciavelli's door, they find they have interrupted his funeral.

That leaves only Doc and Dix, who separate. Doc asks a taxi driver to drive him to Cleveland, but is spotted at a roadside cafe (where he has spent some time watching an attractive young woman dance) by two policemen. He offers no resistance. Doll gets Dix a car, then insists on going along. When he passes out from loss of blood, Doll takes him to a doctor, who phones the police to report the gunshot wound. Dix regains consciousness after a plasma transfusion and escapes before they arrive. With Doll, he makes it all the way back to his beloved Kentucky horse farm across the Ohio river from Cincinnati. He stumbles into the pasture and collapses, dead on arrival.

Cast

• Sterling Hayden as Dix Handley
• Louis Calhern as Alonzo D. Emmerich
• Jean Hagen as "Doll" Conovan
• James Whitmore as Gus Minissi
• Sam Jaffe as "Doc" Erwin Riedenschneider
• John McIntire as Police Commissioner Hardy
• Marc Lawrence as Cobby
• Barry Kelley as Lt. Ditrich
• Anthony Caruso as Louis Ciavelli

• Teresa Celli as Maria Ciavelli, Louis' wife
• Marilyn Monroe as Angela Phinlay
• William "Wee Willie" Davis as Timmons
• Dorothy Tree as May Emmerich, Alonzo Emmerich's sickly wife
• Brad Dexter as Bob Brannom
• Helene Stanley as Jeannie
• John Maxwell as Dr. Swanson
• Frank Cady as Night Clerk (uncredited)

Background and production

The film was an adaptation by director John Huston and screenwriter Ben Maddow of the 1949 novel by W. R. Burnett. It was backed by the major film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which allowed the production a relatively free hand.

Both Huston and war hero star Sterling Hayden were members of the Committee for the First Amendment, which opposed the blacklisting of alleged communists active in the film industry during the Red Scare.

The PCA's main concerns with the script were the detailed depiction of the heist and the fact that the character of the corrupt lawyer Emmerich seemed to cheat justice by killing himself. Neither the studio nor the censors interfered significantly with the script, however, and both the heist and the suicide featured in the final cut.

Reception

Box office

According to MGM records the film made $1,077,000 in the US and Canada and $1,060,000 overseas resulting in a profit of only $40,000.

Critical response

The Asphalt Jungle received predominantly positive reviews from critics.

A review in Photoplay stated:

"This brutally frank story of crime and punishment in a Midwestern city was directed by two-time Academy Award winner, John Huston—son of the late Walter Huston. John's pictures are usually grim (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre), but always dramatic and exciting. This time he exposes the behind-the-scenes details of the robbery of a jewelry store... This picture is packed with stand-out performances... There's a beautiful blonde, too, name of Marilyn Monroe, who plays Calhern's girl friend, and makes the most of her footage."

The New York Times said of the film:

"Louis Calhern as the big lawyer who tries to pull a double cross and muffs it is exceptionally fluid and adroit and Sterling Hayden is sure-fire as a brazen hoodlum who just wants to go back home. Likewise Sam Jaffe does wonders as a cool-headed mastermind, James Whitmore is taut as a small 'fixer' and John McIntire is crisp as a chief of police. But, then, everyone in the picture—which was produced incidentally, by M.G.M.—gives an unimpeachable performance. If only it all weren't so corrupt."

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 96% of critics gave the film a positive review, based on twenty-five reviews.

Accolades

Year	Organization	Award category	Recipients and nominees	Result
1950	Venice Film Festival	Volpi Cup for Best Actor	Sam Jaffe	Won
		Golden Lion for Best Film	The Asphalt Jungle	Nominated
	National Board of Review	Best Director	John Huston	Won
	Directors Guild of America Award	Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film	John Huston	Nominated
1951	Edgar Allan Poe Awards	Best Motion Picture Screenplay	Ben Maddow and John Huston	Won
	Academy Awards	Best Actor in a Supporting Role	Sam Jaffe	Nominated
		Best Cinematography - Black-and-white	Harold Rosson	Nominated
		Best Director	John Huston	Nominated
		Best Adapted Screenplay	Ben Maddow and John Huston	Nominated
	British Academy of Film and Television Arts	Best Film from any Source	The Asphalt Jungle	Nominated
	Golden Globe Award	Best Cinematography	Harold Rosson	Nominated
		Best Director	John Huston	Nominated
		Best Screenplay	Ben Maddow and John Huston	Nominated
	Writers Guild of America Award	Best Written Drama	Ben Maddow and John Huston	Nominated
		The Robert Meltzer Award (Best Written Film Concerning Problems with the American Scene)	Ben Maddow and John Huston	Nominated

Legacy

The Asphalt Jungle was one of the most influential crime films of the 1950s.

The film spawned a television series, The Asphalt Jungle, starring Jack Warden, Arch Johnson, and William Smith (billed as "Bill Smith"), which ran for thirteen episodes in the spring and summer of 1961 on ABC. The series, though, resembled the film in name only, except for one episode, "The Professor," which was constructed as a sequel to the feature. Aside from this one-shot, however, none of the characters in the film appeared in the television scripts, and the plots were devoted to the exploits of the major case squad of the New York Police Department. One of the most notable features of the series is the theme song written by Duke Ellington.

Burnett's novel The Asphalt Jungle was the basis of the western film The Badlanders (1958) directed by Delmer Daves, as well as the blaxploitation film Cool Breeze (1972), directed by Barry Pollack.

The Asphalt Jungle instigated the crime thriller subgenre of caper films. The 1955 French film Rififi, which critics such as Leonard Maltin have labeled as the best heist film ever, drew much inspiration from The Asphalt Jungle.

In 2008, The Asphalt Jungle was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Colorization

The movie was the subject of a film colorization lawsuit and controversy in France. Turner Entertainment Company entered into an agreement with the French television channel, La Cinq, to broadcast the colorized movie. John Huston's heirs objected, filing a lawsuit against broadcasting this version. In November 23, 1988, The Asphalt Jungle was prohibited from being broadcast in France. On July 6, 1989, La Cinq won on appeal, broadcasting the film on August 6, 1989, the day after the anniversary of the death of Marilyn Monroe. Finally in Turner Entertainment Co. v. Huston, on May 28, 1991, the Court of Cassation cancelled the judgment delivered on July 6, 1989, stating that colorizing the movie transformed the original artwork enough to potentially transgress the author's moral rights. Huston's heirs had sought to block the broadcast of the colorized version.

External links

• The Asphalt Jungle at the American Film Institute Catalog
• The Asphalt Jungle at IMDb
• The Asphalt Jungle at AllMovie
• The Asphalt Jungle at the TCM Movie Database (includes detailed film synopsis and film clip)
• The Asphalt Jungle at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Asphalt Jungle at Film Noir of the Week by film historian William Hare
• The Asphalt Jungle film trailer on YouTube