House of Strangers

{{short description|1949 film by Joseph L. Mankiewicz}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox film | name = House of Strangers | image = House of strangers68.jpg | alt = | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Joseph L. Mankiewicz | producer = Sol C. Siegel | screenplay = Philip Yordan{{efn|Uncredited contributions by Joseph Mankiewicz and Jerome Cady.}} | based_on = {{based on|''I'll Never Go There Any More''<br>(1941 novel)|Jerome Weidman}} | starring = Edward G. Robinson<br/>Susan Hayward<br/>Richard Conte | music = Daniele Amfitheatrof | cinematography = Milton R. Krasner | editing = Harmon Jones | studio = 20th Century-Fox | distributor = 20th Century-Fox | released = {{Film date|1949|7|1|}} | runtime = 101 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = $1.6 million<ref>Geist p 152</ref> | gross = $2 million (US/Canadian rentals)<ref name="top">{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/stream/variety177-1950-01#page/n58/mode/1up|title=Top Grossers of 1949|magazine=Variety|date=4 January 1950|page=59|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> }}

'''''House of Strangers''''' is a 1949 American drama film noir directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz from a screenplay by Philip Yordan, starring Edward G. Robinson, Susan Hayward, Richard Conte, Luther Adler, Paul Valentine and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in his film debut.<ref name="House of Strangers">{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/78560/house-of-strangers|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110920094743/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/78560/House-of-Strangers/|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 20, 2011|title=House of Strangers|website=Turner Classic Movies|access-date=March 3, 2016}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{AFI film|id=25962|title=House of Strangers}}.</ref> It is based on Jerome Weidman's 1941 novel ''I'll Never Go There Any More'', which in turn is inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''King Lear''.

The film was released by 20th Century Fox on July 1, 1949. It received positive reviews and was a commercial success. The film was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1949 Cannes Film Festival, and Edward G. Robinson won the Best Actor Award.

==Plot== Gino Monetti is a rags-to-riches Italian-American banker in New York City whose questionable business practices result in a number of criminal charges. Three of his four grown sons, the ambitious Joe, playboy Tony, and physically imposing Pietro (a budding prizefighter), unhappy at their domineering father's dismissive treatment of them, refuse to help Gino when he is put on trial. Joe is especially angry—he has to support a wife with expensive tastes. Max, a lawyer, is the only son who stays loyal to his father. He believes Gino has done nothing that warrants punishment by jail time, and serves as Gino's attorney during the trial.

After Gino signs ownership of his bank over to his wife Theresa as a temporary protective measure, Joe persuades his mother to sign it over to him and seizes control. Gino is relegated to an early retirement with a meager monthly allowance. The three brothers conspire to send Max to jail as well. When Max tells Joe of his plan to bribe a sympathetic juror to ensure a mistrial for Gino, Joe arranges for the police to catch him in the act. Max is disbarred and sentenced to seven years in prison; Max's fiancé Maria Domenico breaks off their engagement to marry Tony, but Irene Bennett, a former client of Max's whom he fell in love with, waits for him.

Meanwhile, Gino's trial ends in an acquittal, but he remains humiliated by Joe, Tony, and Pietro's betrayal and is directionless without his bank to run. He drinks and smokes heavily, and writes countless letters to Max decrying his other sons' mistreatment of them both. Irene urges Gino to stop sending the letters, knowing that Gino is trying to divide the brothers and provoke Max to take revenge, but Gino refuses. Eventually, Gino dies, and Max is let out of prison for a half-day to attend the funeral. There, Max vows revenge on his brothers and ignores his mother's pleas to let go of the hate that Gino had cultivated between them.

Max returns to the family home after completing his sentence, intent on destroying his brothers and their bank, but has a sudden change of heart when he realizes that his father was the source of the family conflict. Max is then confronted by his brothers, who still believe Max will follow through on his vow. After a fight in which Max is incapacitated, Joe orders Pietro to throw Max off their house's balcony to his death. Pietro hesitates, and Joe begins insulting Pietro in the same way their father always had, prompting Pietro to turn on Joe instead. Max saves Joe from Pietro's wrath by convincing Pietro that if he kills Joe, he would be doing exactly as their father would have wanted. Max then leaves his brothers to re-join Irene and travel to San Francisco, where they plan to start a new life together.

==Cast== {{castlist| * Edward G. Robinson as Gino Monetti * Susan Hayward as Irene Bennett * Richard Conte as Max Monetti * Luther Adler as Joseph "Joe" Monetti * Paul Valentine as Pietro Monetti * Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as Antonio "Tony" Monetti * Debra Paget as Maria Domenico * Hope Emerson as Helena Domenico * Esther Minciotti as Teresa Monetti, Gino's wife * Diana Douglas as Elaine Monetti * Tito Vuolo as Luca ;Uncredited * Thomas Browne Henry as Judge * David Bauer as Prosecutor * Mushy Callahan as Boxing Referee<ref name=":0" /> * Lelia Goldoni as Emilia}}

== Production ==

=== Development === Fox had the rights to Jerome Weidman's novel ''I'll Never Go There Any More''. Producer Sol C. Siegel hired Philip Yordan to turn it into a script. According to Ben Maddow, "the story was actually written by the producer of that film. He sent it as a long memo to Phil."<ref>McGilligan p 181</ref>

Yordan said the novel "didn't make any sense at all" so he asked Siegel if he could wrote an original story. He claims he wrote a series of scenes, and used that to construct a screenplay.<ref>McGilligan p 363</ref>

According to producer Sol Siegel, Yordan wrote approximately 75 pages after which Siegel fired him. Mankiewicz finished the script, based on Yordan's treatment, and rewrote all the dialogue. The Screen Writers Guild ruled the screenplay credit should be shareed between Mankiewicz and Yordan with Yordan getting sold story credit; this upset Mankiewicz who refused any credit so Yordan was awarded a solitary credit.<ref>McGilligan p 341, Geist pp 148-149</ref>

Fox did a loose remake of the film, ''Broken Lance'' (1954), which wound up winning Best Oscar for Original Story - for Yordan. "Phil Yordan made a career out of that screenplay," said Mankiewicz.<ref>Geist p 149</ref> ===Casting=== The working title of the film was ''East Side Story''.<ref name=":0" /> Victor Mature was originally cast as one of the Manetti brothers, but was replaced before filming began.<ref name=":0" />

=== Filming === Shooting took place at the Fox studio backlot in Hollywood, with Manhattan location shooting at locales like Little Italy.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Geist p 152</ref> The boxing sequences were filmed at Ocean Park Arena in Santa Monica, California.<ref name=":0" />

The character "Gino Monetti" was loosely based on Bank of America founder Amadeo Giannini, a comparison that drew the ire of the actual Giannini family due to the fictional Monetti's corruption.<ref name=":0" /> During filming, 20th Century Fox president Spyros Skouras became upset, believing that the character in fact paralleled his own family.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Geist p 150</ref>

Yordan said "I didn't like what Mankiewicz did [with the script]. He decided to shoot it like a play. Everything was done in full figure. If you look at the picture, you'll see the floor, the heads, and the feet. He should have done a lot of close-ups."<ref>McGilligan p 363</ref>

==Reception==

=== Critical response === Bosley Crowther of ''The New York Times'' wrote the film was "a sizzling and picturesque exposure of a segment of nouveau-niche life within the Italian-American population". He also noted Edward G. Robinson "does a brisk and colorful job of making 'Papa' Monetti a brassy despot with a Sicilian dialect, and Paul Valentine, Luther Adler and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. are good as his weak sons. Likewise Richard Conte plays Max with a fine, superior air."<ref>{{cite news |last=Crowther |first=Bosley |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/07/02/archives/richard-conte-susan-hayward-edward-robinson-in-house-of-strangers.html |title=The Screen in Review |work=The New York Times |page=8 |date=July 2, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025}}</ref>

''Variety'' called ''House of Strangers'' "a strong picture" and noted "Joseph L. Mankiewicz has directed with a feeling for balancing the more humorous moments with the dramatic ones. Sol C. Seigel has given the film good production values. Philip Yordan's screenplay is a faithful, workmanlike adaptation of the Jerome Weidman novel."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/variety174-1949-06/page/n140/mode/1up?view=theater |title=Film Reviews: House of Strangers |magazine=Variety |page=13 |date=June 15, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

''Harrison's Reports'' called ''House of Strangers'' "[a] gripping drama, excellently produced, directed and acted [...] Edward G. Robinson gives an exceedingly fine performance, probably, the best in his career; he arouses considerable sympathy, despite his faults and shortcomings."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/harrisonsreports31harr/page/n125/mode/1up?view=theater |title='House of Strangers' with Edward G. Robinson, Susan Hayward and Richard Conte |magazine=Harrison's Reports |page=98 |date=June 18, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

''Time'' magazine noted: "Except for a wobbly beam or two—notably some unlikely melodramatics at the end—''House'' is a well-constructed movie. Into its making went an intelligent screen play by Playwright Philip Yordan; some distinguished lighting effects and camera work by Milton Krasner; and Director Joseph Mankiewicz's talent for handling atmosphere and sets as effective projections of character."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://time.com/archive/6785776/the-new-pictures-jul-18-1949/ |title=Cinema: The New Pictures |magazine=Time |date=July 18, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025}}</ref>

Among retrospective reviews, Dennis Schwartz liked the film, writing, "Joseph L. Mankiewicz stylishly helms the dark screenplay by Philip Yordan of Jerome Weidman's novel ''I'll Never Go There Any More'' ... It's a bitter psychological family drama that focuses on hatred as the family's driving force instead of love. Max is the ambivalent hero, the only one in the film who is a true film noir character, who is punished for being loyal to his father yet is someone who has rejected the ways of the old-country and its traditionalism for the ethics of the New World. Superb performances by Conte, Robinson, and Adler lift the ordinary dramatics into loftier territory."<ref>{{cite web |last=Schwartz |first=Dennis |url=http://homepages.sover.net/~ozus/houseofstrangers.htm |title=House of Strangers |website=Ozus' World Movie Reviews |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219041748/http://homepages.sover.net/~ozus/houseofstrangers.htm |archive-date=2013-12-19 |date=December 13, 2004 |access-date=July 12, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 71% of 7 critics gave the film a positive review.<ref>{{Cite Rotten Tomatoes|id=house_of_strangers|type=m|title=House of Strangers|access-date=September 9, 2025}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ===Box office=== The film was a box office disappointment. Sol Siegel claims Fox gave the film limited distribubtion because Spyros Skouras thought the film was making fun of him and his family.<ref>Geist p 151</ref> === Awards and nominations === The film was entered into competition at the 1949 Cannes Film Festival.<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/4154/year/1949.html |title=Festival de Cannes: House of Strangers |access-date=2009-01-09|website=Cannes Film Festival}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/variety175-1949-09/page/n16/mode/1up?view=theater |title=Pix Lineup at Cannes |magazine=Variety |page=15 |date=September 7, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref> While it lost the Palme d'Or to Carol Reed's ''The Third Man'',<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/09/18/archives/british-film-wins-cannes-fete-prize-the-third-man-starring-two.html |title=British Film Wins Cannes Fete Prize |work=The New York Times |page=83 |date=September 18, 1949 |access-date=September 9, 2025 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Edward G. Robinson won the prize for Best Actor.<ref name="Awards 1949">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/1949/awardCompetition.html |title=Festival de Cannes: Awards 1949 |access-date=2009-01-09|website=Cannes Film Festival}}</ref>

==''Broken Lance''== The story was filmed again by Fox as ''Broken Lance'' (1954).

== Influence == ''Turner Classic Movies'' writer Rob Nixon notes the film's apparent influence on Francis Ford Coppola's ''The Godfather'' (1972),<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=House of Strangers |url=https://www.reelingreviews.com/reviews/house-of-strangers/ |access-date=2026-02-02 |website=Reeling Reviews |language=en-US}}</ref><blockquote>"The parallels are obvious... the powerful Italian patriarch who rules his family-run business empire with an iron fist; the four sons and their varied roles and reputations within that realm; the favored son who has his own life and work outside the family business but is drawn into it when his father is in serious trouble; that son's "exile" after an illegal act on behalf of his father; the same son's relationship with both a girl of his ethnicity and a non-Italian who has no connection and stands in opposition to the world of his family."</blockquote>Nixon also notes the presence of Richard Conte, who would go on to play Don Emilio Barzini in ''The Godfather'' and was briefly considered to play Vito Corleone.<ref name=":1" />

==''The Last Patriarch''== {{Infobox television episode | series = The 20th Century-Fox Hour | image =  | image_size =  | image_alt = |title=The Last Patriarch | caption = | season = 2 | series_no = | episode = 5 | director = Lewis Allen | writer = Maurice Zimm | story = | teleplay = | based_on = film script by Philip Yordan | narrator = | presenter = | music = | photographer = | editor = | production = | airdate = {{Start date|1956|11|28}} | length = 60 mins | guests = *Walter Slezak as Emil Markheim *John Cassavetes as Max Markheim *Virginia Leith as Irene Bennett *Vince Edwards as Carl Markheim *Alexander Scourby as Joe Markheim *Marilyn Saris as Maria *Angela Greene as Elaine Markheim | prev = | next = | season_article = | episode_list = }} The story was filmed for television in 1956 as '''"The Last Patriarch"''' with Walter Slezak and John Cassavetes in the lead roles.<ref>{{IMDB title|id=501930|title=The Last Patriarch}}</ref> ===Reception=== ''The Rock Island Argus'' said Cassavetes and Slezack were both "excellent".<ref>{{cite news|title=Channel chatter|newspaper=The Rock Island Argus|date=1 December 1956|page=9}}</ref>

''The Atlanta Journal'' called it "a shabby drama".<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal |date=29 November 1956|page=47|title=Time lock tension fails}}</ref>

==Bibliography== * {{cite book|title= Pictures will talk : the life and films of Joseph L. Mankiewicz|last=Geist|first= Kenneth L |year=1978 |publisher=Scribner}} * {{cite book|first=Pat|last=McGilligan|title=Backstory 2: Interviews with Screenwriters of the 1940s and 1950s|location= Berkeley|publisher= University of California Press|year=1991|url=https://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft0z09n7m0;brand=ucpress}} {{-}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==Notes== {{notelist}}

==External links== {{commons category}} * {{AFI film|id=25962|title=House of Strangers}} * {{IMDb title|id=0041487|title=House of Strangers}} * {{TCMDb title|id=78560|title=House of Strangers}} * {{YouTube|M7gDQZE_CYQ|''House of Strangers'' film trailer}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:House Of Strangers}} Category:1949 films Category:1949 drama films Category:20th Century Fox films Category:American black-and-white films Category:American drama films Category:1949 English-language films Category:Film noir Category:Films based on American novels Category:Films directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz Category:Films produced by Sol C. Siegel Category:Films scored by Daniele Amfitheatrof Category:Films set in New York City Category:Films set in the 1930s Category:1949 American films Category:English-language drama films Category:Films shot in Los Angeles Category:Films shot in New York City