One Way Street

One Way Street
One Way Street
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Hugo Fregonese
Written by	Lawrence Kimble
Produced by	Leonard Goldstein
Starring	James Mason; Märta Torén; Dan Duryea
Cinematography	Maury Gertsman
Edited by	Milton Carruth
Music by	Frank Skinner
Color process	Black and white
Production; company	Universal Pictures
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	April 19, 1950 (1950-04-19) (Los Angeles); May 11, 1950 (1950-05-11) (New York);
Running time	79 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

1950 film by Hugo Fregonese

One Way Street [sic] is a 1950 American crime film noir directed by Hugo Fregonese and starring James Mason, Märta Torén and Dan Duryea. The film takes place mainly in Mexico.^[2]

Plot

Physician Frank Matson steals $200,000 from mob boss John Wheeler, who has just completed his own heist along with his gang. Matson flees, intending to go to Mexico City, with Wheeler's girlfriend Laura Thorsen accompanying him. However, mechanical problems with the airplane force a landing in rural Mexico, where Matson and Laura establish a pleasant life and he provides medical treatment for the villagers.

Matson learns that Wheeler knows his location, so he and Laura return to Los Angeles, planning to return the money, only to find that Wheeler has been shot by Ollie, the one remaining member of Wheeler's gang. Matson shoots and kills Ollie.

Later, as Matson prepares to phone an airline to arrange his and Laura's return to Mexico, he is struck by a car traveling down the one-way street.

Cast

James Mason as Dr. Frank Matson
Märta Torén as Laura Thorsen (as Marta Toren)
Dan Duryea as John Wheeler
Basil Ruysdael as Father Moreno
William Conrad as Ollie
Rodolfo Acosta as Francisco Morales
King Donovan as Grieder
Robert Espinoza as Santiago
Tito Renaldo as Hank Morales
Margarito Luna as Antania Morales
Emma Roldán as Catalina (as Emma Roldan)
George J. Lewis as Capt. Rodriguez (as George Lewis)

Production

Jeff Chandler was originally announced for the lead role.^[3]

Reception

In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "What it all adds up to is a standard romantic melodrama illustrating the facts that crime obviously doesn't pay and that the scenery and people below the border are colorful ... Like its title, 'One Way Street' is explicitly obvious and not especially exciting."^[1]

References

^ a b Crowther, Bosley (1950-05-12). "The Screen: Three New Films Are Shown". The New York Times. p. 33.
^ One Way Street at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films.
^ Brady, Thomas F. (1949-07-26). "Bette Davis Seeks to Leave Warners: Negotiations Are Under Way to Cancel Contract, Making Actress a Free Agent". The New York Times. p. 31.

External links

One Way Street at IMDb
One Way Street at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
One Way Street at the TCM Movie Database
One Way Street film trailer on YouTube

[nytreview-1] Crowther, Bosley (1950-05-12). "The Screen: Three New Films Are Shown". The New York Times. p. 33.

[2] One Way Street at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films.

[3] Brady, Thomas F. (1949-07-26). "Bette Davis Seeks to Leave Warners: Negotiations Are Under Way to Cancel Contract, Making Actress a Free Agent". The New York Times. p. 31.