At first blush, Crime Of Passion comes across as a conventional film with conventional attitudes about gender circa 1957. As it proceeds, the viewer realizes that it’s a deeply subversive movie that mocks the misogynists and suburbanites in the cast. I grew up in deep shit suburbia so anything that mocks it is okay with me.

My enjoyment of Crime Of Passion was enhanced by the presence of three of my favorite players, Barbara Stanwyck, Sterling Hayden, and Raymond Burr. Stanwyck plays Kitty Ferguson, a hardboiled advice columnist for a San Francisco newspaper. That’s right, the great Barbara Stanwyck plays a sob sister who’s tired of the disrespect from her grumpy editor.

Hayden plays LAPD detective Lt. Bill Doyle. He’s in San Francisco pursuing a murderer with his sexist boss, Captain Charlie Alidos played by Royal Dano who turns out to be a royal asshole.

Stanwyck and Hayden have their meet cute during his trip to San Francisco. She has information about his case, which she’d rather not share with Dano who insulted her the first time they met. Hayden is a straight arrow, so he shares credit for the arrest with his asshole boss.

Hayden’s chemistry with Stanwyck is palpable:

The first act of the movie ends with Stanwyck and Hayden tying the knot in LA. She’s decided to try life as a trad wife. It doesn’t go well. She’s appalled by evenings with the cops and their vacuous wives. Stanwyck is a brainy broad and they go on about cream cheese and olives. I am not making this up.

Stanwyck is frustrated with Hayden’s lack of ambition. She gave up her career for him, so she wants him to be somebody:

Unfortunately for his frustrated spouse, the easy going detective is content to be a sidekick to his asshole boss. That changes when Raymond Burr as Inspector Tony Pope enters the scene.

Stanwyck contrives a meeting with Fay Wray who plays Alice Pope and they become fast friends; on Stanwyck’s manipulative terms.

The Stanwyck-Wray meet cute leads to Burr taking on Hayden as a protege. He has ulterior motives: Burr is the only one of the LAPD detectives to notice Stanwyck’s intellect and drive. They eventually become too close, if you catch my drift.

That’s all the plot I’m willing to share. This feature is called pulp fiction, not pulp spoilers. Suffice it to say that things don’t end well for Stanwyck and Burr. Hayden emerges with his integrity intact.

Hayden and Burr are cast against type. Hayden is a lovable lug, not a crusty copper. In his last film noir role, Burr leaves villainy behind. He was ready to play Perry Mason. All three players stick the landing as it were.

Crime Of Passion is a writer’s film. Jo Eisinger wrote the screenplay from his own original story. The dialogue is snappy and on point and keeps the story moving. Director Gerd Oswald doesn’t distinguish himself but he doesn’t get in the way either.

Grading Time: I give Crime Of Passion 3 1/2 stars and an Adrastos Grade of B+.

Let’s take a gander at the promotional artwork for this 1957 flick. We begin with the American and Spanish language long sheets.

Who among us doesn’t love a quad poster? Don’t answer. That was a rhetorical question.

There’s a lot of smoking in this movie. Stanwyck, Hayden, and Burr all smoke incessantly. I must smell like an ashtray. Let’s see what they have in the lobby to reduce the stench:

I struck out. What can ya do except move on to the lobby cards?

The trailer is not online, so here’s an amusing clip from the press room in San Francisco:

Mmm, sammiches. I’ll take the lox and cream cheese if no one else wants it. Mmm, lox.

The last word goes to Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley intro and outro.