| While the City Sleeps | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:While_the_City_Sleeps_(1956_poster).jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Fritz Lang |
| Screenplay by | Casey Robinson |
| Based on | The Bloody Spur 1953 novel by Charles Einstein |
| Produced by | Bert E. Friedlob |
| Starring | Dana Andrews Rhonda Fleming George Sanders Howard Duff Thomas Mitchell |
| Cinematography | Ernest Laszlo |
| Edited by | Gene Fowler Jr. |
| Music by | Herschel Burke Gilbert |
Production company | Bert E. Friedlob Productions |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
While the City Sleeps is a 1956 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang and starring Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Howard Duff, Thomas Mitchell, Vincent Price, John Drew Barrymore and Ida Lupino. Written by Casey Robinson, the newspaper drama was based on The Bloody Spur by Charles Einstein, which was inspired by the case of Chicago serial killer William Heirens (a.k.a. the "Lipstick Killer"). (The film even alludes to the crimes of Heirens in the script's dialogue, suggesting that the film's antagonist, also known as the "Lipstick Killer", is a copycat killer.)[1] Five decades after the film's release, critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "Fritz Lang ('M') directs his most under-appreciated great film, more a social commentary than a straight crime drama."[2]
- ^ While the City Sleeps at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis (March 2, 2005). "While the City Sleeps".