Overview
A working-class man returns home only to find himself entangled in a dangerous love triangle with a gangster.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- cynical
- foreboding
- smoky
- classic noir night
- late night viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a stylish, suspenseful, influential noir whose obsessive love story and cynical reversals outweigh occasional verbosity and plodding passages.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Steve's armored-car scheme is shaped by Anna's manipulation, Slim's criminal interests, and successive reversals of trust.
Steve abandons stability and devises a robbery largely to reclaim Anna and escape with her.
Siodmak and cinematographer Franz Planer use ominous camera movement and dark photography to fuse erotic allure with menace.
Working-class Los Angeles, the armored-car service, bars, and mobster networks form the film's social landscape.
Films like Criss Cross, and why
The Killers
classic film noir, doomed romance, criminal betrayal, and fatalistic atmosphere
Out of the Past
urban film noir, obsessive love, criminal conspiracy, and cynical reversals
The Asphalt Jungle
heist noir, entrapment, doomed criminal schemes, and shadowy visual style
Double Indemnity
film noir melodrama centered on obsessive desire, manipulation, and betrayal
Movie Details
- Director
- Robert Siodmak
- Release Date
- 1949-02-04
- Runtime
- 88 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (189)
Cast
- Burt Lancaster
- Yvonne De Carlo
- Dan Duryea
- Stephen McNally
- Esy Morales
- Tom Pedi
- Percy Helton
- Alan Napier
- Griff Barnett
- Meg Randall
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Criss Cross about?
- A working-class Los Angeles driver risks everything on an armored-car robbery to reclaim his dangerous former wife from a gangster.
- What is Criss Cross like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Criss Cross as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Criss Cross violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Criss Cross as moderate.
- What did critics think of Criss Cross?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a stylish, suspenseful, influential noir whose obsessive love story and cynical reversals outweigh occasional verbosity and plodding passages.
- Which films are like Criss Cross?
- Films with a similar feel include The Killers, Out of the Past, The Asphalt Jungle, and Double Indemnity.
- How long is Criss Cross?
- Criss Cross runs 88 minutes.
- Where can I watch Criss Cross?
- In United States, Criss Cross is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
