Elmer Rice's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Street Scene was purchased for the screen by producer Samuel Goldwyn in 1931. The entire story takes place on the street in front of a foreboding old New York brownstone, between one evening and the next afternoon. The individual fates of eight neighboring Manhattan families intertwine during this brief stretch of time. Special emphasis is given the Maurrant family: the philandering mother (Estelle Taylor), the drink-sodden husband (David Landau) and long-suffering daughter Rose ...
Read More
Elmer Rice's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Street Scene was purchased for the screen by producer Samuel Goldwyn in 1931. The entire story takes place on the street in front of a foreboding old New York brownstone, between one evening and the next afternoon. The individual fates of eight neighboring Manhattan families intertwine during this brief stretch of time. Special emphasis is given the Maurrant family: the philandering mother (Estelle Taylor), the drink-sodden husband (David Landau) and long-suffering daughter Rose (Sylvia Sidney). When the husband catches the wife "in the act" with bill-collector Russell Hopton, the resulting tragedy is not shown, but reflecting in the wildly varying reactions of neighbors and passersby. Though resisting the temptation to "open up" the play, director King Vidor nonetheless injects his cinematic know-how into the proceedings, by utilizing an entirely different camera setup or angle for each individual "take." The cast of Street Scene includes several carry-overs from the Broadway original, including David Landau, Max Montor, Matt McHugh (brother of Frank), John Qualen, George Humbert, Tom H. Manning, and Anna Konstant (Sidebar: Shirley Kaplan, the role played by Ms. Konstant, was portrayed in the London production of Street Scene by Greer Garson). Unavailable for TV for many years due to legal tangles, Street Scene was freed up for the small screen when it lapsed into public domain in the early 1980s. Hal Erickson, Rovi
Read Less
Add this copy of Street Scene to cart. $9.99, very good condition, Sold by BADBOOKS rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from ORLANDO, FL, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by United Artists.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Sylvia Sidney, William Collier, Jr., Estelle Taylor, Max Montor, David Landau, Louis Natheaux, Russell Hopton. Very good in very good packaging. Language: English. Run time: 80 mins. Originally released: 1931.
Add this copy of Street Scene to cart. $11.82, new condition, Sold by Importcds rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Sunrise, FL, UNITED STATES, published 2017 by United Artists.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Sylvia Sidney; William Collier, Jr.; Estelle Taylor; Max Montor; David Landau; Louis Natheaux; Russell Hopton. New. Run time: 80 mins. Language: English. New in new packaging. USA Orders only! Brand New product! please allow delivery times of 3-7 business days within the USA. US orders only please.
Add this copy of Street Scene to cart. $14.14, good condition, Sold by Books From California rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Simi Valley, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Alpha Video.
Add this copy of Street Scene to cart. $31.00, fair condition, Sold by Goodwill of Orange County rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Santa Ana, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2000 by United Artists.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. This item has very light surface scratches that do not affect the use of the disc/s. This is a USED item and case may have light wear. All items unless otherwise noted will include disc, case, and artwork. Codes have been used. Other contents such as booklets may vary, please inquire for details. All items ship Monday-Friday within 2-3 business days.
Directed by King Vidor, "Street Scene" (1931) is set in a New York City tenement over a sweltering summer day and examines the lives of those who called the tenements home. The film is based on the 1929 Pulitzer-Prize winning play of the same name written by Elmer Rice, who also directed the Broadway production. Many of the actors in the play are also featured in this film.
The movie was filmed on a realistic-looking set depicting the run-down apartment building where the story takes place and the adjacent block. The site is filmed from a variety of angles and perspectives giving the viewer the sense being in an actual block. With the heavily naturalistic atmosphere the film tells many stories and develops many characters in showing the American melting plot. The characters include an Italian immigrant couple struggling to have a baby, a younger family with a newborn, a nosy neighbor, a bully, a music student and teacher, a family about to be dispossessed for not paying the rent and its heartless social worker, a reader of Karl Marx, and more. The main action gradually focuses on a pair of stories. A middle aged woman and mother is having an affair with a milkman when she suffers neglect and abuse from her husband. Her young and beautiful daughter Rose is in love with her apartment neighbor, a young, bookish Jewish man, Sam, who is working hard to become a lawyer. The mother's affair ends tragically if predictably. Sam and Rose recognize their love for one another but decide to take the time to establish their own lives.
The movie shows the prejudices and the poverty of New York immigrant life as well as the possibility of a better, fulfilled life. Some of the characters may be stereotypical but they come to life in this film. In addition to the setting and the story, the movie features an outstanding Gershwin-influenced musical score by Alfred Newman. Rice's play and film were later adopted into an opera by Kurt Weil with lyrics by Langston Hughes.
The film brought home to me a feeling for life in New York City and in the United States, particularly the lives of immigrants seeking the promise of this country. It shows something special in the American experience for all its difficulty. It reminded me of the possibilities I have had in my own life, almost entirely lived in large American cities. I hadn't known this film before and was glad for the opportunity to see it.
