House by the River (1950)

A deranged writer murders a maid after she resists his advances. The writer engages his brother's help in hiding the body, and then watches as the brother becomes the prime suspect.

Director:

Fritz Lang

Writers:

Mel Dinelli (screenplay), A.P. Herbert (novel)

Stars:

Louis Hayward, Lee Bowman, Jane Wyatt

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Louis Hayward	...	Stephen Byrne
Lee Bowman	...	John Byrne
Jane Wyatt	...	Marjorie Byrne
Dorothy Patrick	...	Emily Gaunt
Ann Shoemaker	...	Mrs. Ambrose
Jody Gilbert	...	Flora Bantam
Peter Brocco	...	Harry - Coroner
Howland Chamberlain	...	District Attorney
Margaret Seddon	...	Mrs. Whittaker - Party Guest
Sarah Padden	...	Mrs. Beach
Kathleen Freeman	...	Effie Ferguson - Party Guest
Will Wright	...	Inspector Sarten
Leslie Kimmell	...	Mr. Gaunt
Effie Laird	...	Mrs. Gaunt

Storyline

The unsuccessful writer Stephen Byrne tries to force his servant Emily Gaunt sexually while his wife Marjorie Byrne is visiting a friend and accidentally strangles her. His crippled brother John Byrne coincidently comes to his house in that moment, and Stephen asks him to help to get rid of the corpse and avoid an scandal, since his wife would be pregnant. The naive and good John helps his brother to dump the body in the river nearby his house. Stephen uses the disappearance of Emily to blame her and promote his book. When the body is found by the police, all the evidences points to John, and he becomes the prime suspect of the murder.

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Plot Keywords:

writer | murder | maid | river | death | 

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Taglines:

WOMEN SPOKE OF HER with Scorn...MEN THOUGHT OF HER with Longing!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 March 1950 (USA)

Also Known As:

Floodtide

Filming Locations:

Republic Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fidelity Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name of the river is never mentioned.

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Quotes

John Byrne: You must be very, very ill Stephen...
Stephen Byrne: Ill?

User Reviews

Atmospheric

Chilling and spellbinding, with supernatural elements which are so underplayed and low-key that you discount them until the end. Not to give anything away here, but if you watch this film - and you should - you'll be amazed as a denouement that anywhere else might seem hopelessly clichéd works here to the films advantage.

The bizarre love triangle of evil husband, faithful (and unsuspecting) wife, and his likewise faithful (yet secretly in love with her) brother does sometimes seems at odds with the eerie shots of the titular river, beautifully lit in black and white (which adds to the effect), but not to the detriment of the film.