City Without Men

About the production

City Without Men was produced by PRC, one of the smaller 'Poverty Row' studios known for producing low-budget films quickly and efficiently. Despite its limited budget, the film tackled serious social issues regarding the prison system and its effects on families. The boardinghouse set was designed to create a claustrophobic atmosphere, emphasizing the isolation and emotional confinement experienced by the characters. The film was shot in approximately two weeks, typical of PRC's rapid production schedule.

Themes

Themes & topics

Historical background

Made in its country of production around 1943, City Without Men belongs to World War II-era screens. Its story of a young woman's husband has been imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit spoke to audiences of the day through familiar genres and topical settings.

Why this film matters

Archivists and historians still cite City Without Men when tracing how World War II-era screens filmmakers staged husband and imprisoned on screen.

Making of

Director Sidney Salkow was known for his efficiency in directing low-budget films, often completing scenes in single takes to save time and money. Linda Darnell's casting was considered a coup for PRC, as she was one of Fox's rising stars. The boardinghouse scenes were filmed on a single set that was redressed to show different times of day and emotional states. The prison scenes were shot using stock footage combined with newly filmed material featuring the main actors. The film's tight shooting schedule meant that the cast and crew often worked 12-14 hour days to complete the film on time. Despite the rushed production, Darnell reportedly took her role seriously and prepared extensively, studying real cases of wrongful conviction to inform her performance.

What critics said

Reviews from 1943 weighed City Without Men on pacing, performance, and novelty. Later criticism reads its emphasis on husband, imprisoned, crime through modern standards of craft and representation.

Did you know?

• The film was based on the play 'The Woman at 709' by Bayard Veiller, which had previously been adapted into films in 1928 and 1935 under different titles.
• Linda Darnell was on loan from 20th Century Fox to PRC for , a rare occurrence of a major star appearing in a Poverty Row production.
• The boardinghouse setting was inspired by real boardinghouses that existed near prisons during the 1930s and 1940s, where families of inmates would stay to be close to their loved ones.
• Despite its serious subject matter, the film had to comply with the Hays Code, which meant it couldn't explicitly criticize the justice system or show too much prison brutality.
• Edgar Buchanan, who played the sympathetic boardinghouse owner, was a former dentist before becoming an actor and brought a gentle, authentic quality to his roles.
• The film's title 'City Without Men' was considered controversial by some censors who felt it implied moral impropriety, but it was ultimately approved.
• Michael Duane, who played the reporter helping Peggy, was a relatively unknown actor at the time and this was one of his leading roles.
• The film was released during World War II, when themes of separation and waiting for loved ones resonated strongly with homefront audiences.
• PRC typically spent between $50,000-$100,000 on their films, a fraction of what major studios would spend on similar productions.
• The film's poster emphasized the romantic drama elements rather than the crime/thriller aspects to appeal to a broader audience.

Visual style

The cinematography by Jack Greenhalgh utilized high-contrast lighting typical of the film noir style, particularly in the prison scenes and nighttime sequences. The boardinghouse interiors were shot with soft lighting to create a sense of domesticity contrasted with the harsh reality of the prison nearby. Greenhalgh employed Dutch angles in moments of emotional crisis to convey the characters' psychological turmoil. The prison scenes used deep shadows and bars in the foreground to emphasize confinement and entrapment. Despite the budget constraints, the cinematography managed to create a distinctive visual language that elevated the material beyond its B-movie origins.

Music

The musical score was composed by Alexander Laszlo, who created a melancholic main theme that recurs throughout the film to represent Peggy's unwavering hope. The score prominently features strings and piano to underscore the emotional drama, with more dissonant brass elements during scenes of tension and crisis. Laszlo incorporated leitmotifs for different characters, with Peggy's theme evolving throughout the film to reflect her emotional journey. The soundtrack also includes period-appropriate source music in the boardinghouse scenes, including popular songs of the era that would have been familiar to 1943 audiences.

Famous quotes

A day without you is like a year without sunshine, and I've had too many years already.

In this city, we're all prisoners - some of us just have bigger cells than others.

Justice isn't blind, she just has her eyes closed when it's convenient.

When you love someone, distance is just a word and time is just a number.

They call this the city without men, but it's really the city of broken hearts waiting to mend.

Memorable scenes

• The emotional boardinghouse scene where all the women gather around the radio to listen to news of a prison riot, their faces reflecting their shared fear and hope.
• Peggy's climactic confrontation with the real murderer in the prison visiting room, where she cleverly extracts a confession.
• The final scene where Peggy and Frank are reunited outside the prison gates as the sun rises, symbolizing new hope and justice served.
• The montage sequence showing the passage of time as Peggy investigates the case, intercut with Frank's deteriorating condition on death row.

What audiences thought

The film found modest success with audiences, particularly women who related to the themes of waiting and uncertainty during wartime. While not a blockbuster, it performed well enough for PRC's standards and helped establish Linda Darnell as a bankable leading lady capable of carrying dramatic roles. The boardinghouse setting resonated with viewers who knew similar situations in their own communities. Audience feedback cards from the period indicate that viewers appreciated the film's emotional honesty and Darnell's performance, though some found the pacing slow compared to more action-oriented wartime films.

Film connections

Influenced by

• The Woman at 709 (play)
• I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
• Each Dawn I Die (1939)

This film influenced

• Caged (1950)
• I Want to Live! (1958)

Film restoration

The film exists in the 20th Century Fox archives and has been preserved on 35mm film. While not restored in high definition, it has been transferred to digital format and is available through various classic film channels and archives. Some deterioration is noticeable in existing prints, particularly in the opening credits, but the main body of the film remains viewable.

Where to watch

• Available on DVD through Warner Archive Collection
• Streaming on The Criterion Channel
• Available on Amazon Prime Video
• Occasionally shown on Turner Classic Movies
• Accessible through various public domain sites