The Woman in the Window (1944 film)

The Woman in the Window
The Woman in the Window
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Fritz Lang
Screenplay by	Nunnally Johnson
Based on	Once Off Guard (1942); by J. H. Wallis
Produced by	Nunnally Johnson
Starring	Edward G. Robinson; Joan Bennett; Raymond Massey; Dan Duryea
Cinematography	Milton R. Krasner
Edited by	Gene Fowler Jr.; Marjorie Fowler
Music by	Arthur Lange
Production; company	International Pictures
Distributed by	RKO Pictures
Release date	November 3, 1944 (United States);
Running time	99 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The Woman in the Window is a 1944 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang and starring Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, Raymond Massey, and Dan Duryea. It tells the story of a middle-aged psychology professor^[2] who murders in self-defense the lover of a young femme fatale he just met while his family is on vacation.^[3]

Based on J. H. Wallis' 1942 novel Once Off Guard, the story features two surprise twists at the end. Screenwriter Nunnally Johnson, having written the script for The Grapes of Wrath (1940), was invited by International Pictures to a picture deal, and The Woman in the Window was chosen as its premiere project. There have been rumours that Lang substituted the film's dream ending in place of the originally scripted suicide ending to conform with the moralistic Production Code of the time. However, Lang claimed that it was his idea when asked directly in an interview.^[4]

The term "film noir" originated as a genre description in part because of The Woman in the Window.^[5]

^ "The Woman in the Window: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
^ Biesen, Sheri Chinen (2005). Blackout: World War II and the origins of film noir. Johns Hopkins University Press, ISBN 978-0-8018-8218-0
^ The Woman in the Window at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films.
^ Lang, Fritz (2003). Fritz Lang: Interviews. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 9781578065776.
^ Silver, Alain, and Elizabeth Ward, eds. Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, page 1, 3rd edition, 1992. Woodstock, NY: The Overlook Press. ISBN 0-87951-479-5.

[1] "The Woman in the Window: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved July 2, 2024.

[biesen-2] Biesen, Sheri Chinen (2005). Blackout: World War II and the origins of film noir. Johns Hopkins University Press, ISBN 978-0-8018-8218-0

[3] The Woman in the Window at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films.

[4] Lang, Fritz (2003). Fritz Lang: Interviews. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 9781578065776.

[5] Silver, Alain, and Elizabeth Ward, eds. Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, page 1, 3rd edition, 1992. Woodstock, NY: The Overlook Press. ISBN 0-87951-479-5.

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