The Naked City

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1h 36m

Crime

Drama

List

87%

30 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

After a former model is drowned in her bathtub, Detective James Halloran (Don Taylor) and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald) attempt to piece together her murder. A friend of the victim mentions "Mr. Henderson," and the police also find the actions of Frank Niles (Howard Duff) peculiar. As Muldoon and Halloran start to fill in the details of the victim's past, they find that she had a lively social life, filled with many suitors, and the mystery becomes even more complex.

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Brandon Judell

indieWire

This horrendously acted, written, and directed crime caper tries to discover who chloroformed a beautiful blonde model and then drowned her in her own bathtub.

Jun 15, 2021

Full Review

Variety Staff

Variety

Throughout, despite its omniscient, stark melodrama, there has been no sight lost of an element of humor.

Jul 3, 2008

Full Review

Bosley Crowther

New York Times

A definite parochial fascination is liberally assured all the way and the seams in a none-too-good whodunnit are rather cleverly concealed.

Rated: 3/5

Mar 25, 2006

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

The Naked City marks the first filmic attempt to describe such a setting as if it were a living being […] The city demands both love and hate; it reveals all the beauty and terror that humanity is capable of within a few hundred square miles.

Rated: 3.5/4

Mar 8, 2024

Full Review

Brian Susbielles

InSession Film

The narration sets us up as New York City being stripped bare, no more glamour or glitz, but a city with its own dark scenes

Mar 7, 2023

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

... a pioneering police procedural that captures the mundane details of canvassing for clues and chasing down leads with loose performances.

Nov 6, 2022

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Jay H

This movie is ruined by very obvious and very annoying narration.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

04/29/24

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Steve D

Good idea, lame execution.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

04/01/24

Full Review

rhinohouse

Brilliant shots of postwar New York City mixed with a great cast and classic Film Noir script. Can't go wrong with this well restored masterpiece.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/20/23

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Saint M

A film that walks a fine line between brilliant and boring, yet never falls to one side or the other.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

My husband and I grew up in New York City in the 1950's and the fact that this movie was filmed there in its entirety made it special for us. The plot was flawless, the script didn't miss a beat and there's just something about those old black and white movies that sets them apart.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/16/23

Full Review

Gary D

Very strong cast. Many familiar faces if not names. Well acted., and a good representation of the time period.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/10/21

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Jules Dassin

Director

Barry Fitzgerald

Det. Lt. Dan Muldoon

Howard Duff

Frank Niles

Dorothy Hart

Ruth Morrison

Don Taylor

Det. Jimmy Halloran

Frank Conroy

Captain Donahue

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Synopsis

After a former model is drowned in her bathtub, Detective James Halloran (Don Taylor) and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald) attempt to piece together her murder. A friend of the victim mentions "Mr. Henderson," and the police also find the actions of Frank Niles (Howard Duff) peculiar. As Muldoon and Halloran start to fill in the details of the victim's past, they find that she had a lively social life, filled with many suitors, and the mystery becomes even more complex.

Director: Jules Dassin
Screenwriter: Albert Maltz, Malvin Wald, Malvin Wald
Distributor: Image Entertainment Inc., Universal Pictures, The Roan Group
Production Co: Universal International Pictures, Hellinger Productions
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 4, 1948, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 27, 2017
Runtime: 1h 36m
Sound Mix: Mono

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