The Wrong Man (1956)

In 1953, an innocent man named Christopher Emmanuel "Manny" Balestrero is arrested after being mistaken for an armed robber.

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

Maxwell Anderson (screen play), Angus MacPhail (screen play)

Stars:

Henry Fonda, Vera Miles, Anthony Quayle

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Henry Fonda	...	Manny Balestrero
Vera Miles	...	Rose Balestrero
Anthony Quayle	...	Frank D. O'Connor
Harold J. Stone	...	Det. Lt. Bowers
Charles Cooper	...	Det. Matthews
John Heldabrand	...	Tomasini
Esther Minciotti	...	Mama Balestrero
Doreen Lang	...	Ann James
Laurinda Barrett	...	Constance Willis
Norma Connolly	...	Betty Todd
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Gene Conforti
Lola D'Annunzio	...	Olga Conforti
Kippy Campbell	...	Robert Balestrero
Robert Essen	...	Gregory Balestrero
Richard Robbins	...	Daniel - the Guilty Man

Storyline

Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero, "Manny" to his friends, is a string bassist, a devoted husband and father, and a practicing Catholic. His eighty-five dollar a week gig playing in the jazz combo at the Stork Club is barely enough to make ends meet. The Balestreros' lives will become a little more difficult with the major dental bills his wife Rose will be incurring. As such, Manny decides to see if he can borrow off of Rose's life insurance policy. But when he enters the insurance office, he is identified by some of the clerks as the man that held up the office twice a few months earlier. Manny cooperates with the police, as he has nothing to hide. Manny learns that he is a suspect in not only those hold-ups, but a series of other hold-ups in the same Jackson Heights neighborhood in New York City where they live. The more that Manny cooperates, the more guilty he appears to the police. With the help of Frank O'Connor, the attorney that they hire, they try to prove Manny's innocence. ...

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Plot Keywords:

innocence | trial | new york city | mistaken identity | based on true story | 

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Taglines:

"I found a real-life story more terrifying than any fiction... this is it!" Alfred Hitchcock

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian Spanish

Release Date:

26 January 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der falsche Mann

Filming Locations:

Catalpa Avenue, Ridgewood, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,200,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$2,000,000, 31 December 1956

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

DIRECTOR CAMEO (Sir Alfred Hitchcock): Narrating the prologue. This was the only time that he actually spoke in any of his movies.

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Goofs

Manny walks in the corridor of the prison carrying the pillow with nothing on it. When he is inside the cell a cannikin appears on the pillow.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Prologue narrator: This is Alfred Hitchcock speaking. In the past, I have given you many kinds of suspense pictures. But this time, I would like you to see a different one. The difference lies in the fact that this is a true story, every word of it. And yet it contains elements that are stranger than all the fiction that has gone into many of the thrillers that I've made before.

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Connections

Referenced in Irreconcilable Differences (1984)

User Reviews

An Highly Recommended Hitchcock Classic !!

Before i watched The Wrong Man, a lot of people were saying bad things about it, saying it was one of hitchcock's masterpieces gone wrong... and that the acting was wooden and the rest of it, but whatever you do, do not listen to any negative comments about this film!! it is absolutely brilliant !!! It was Hitchcocks first and only documentary style thriller and it works beautifully i think !!! It's based on a true story and i love the opening sequence when Hitchcock tells you about it being a true story... it is very different to any other Hitchcock film you've ever and i think will ever see, but it's brilliant. In my opinion he should have done more films like this.... Also Henry Fonda is absolutely wonderful as Manny... the whole way he handles the situation is wonderful to watch.... Also Vera Miles is amazing as the distressed wife... her perhaps best performance on screen !!

Over all my last words to you would be ... don't listen to negative reports go out and see this film !! it's brilliant and definitely a new and unique Hitchcock Film !!!!!!!!

A must see for all Hitchcock fans !!!