Lang’s darkest American film is a twisted moral tale that benefits from Edward G Robinson’s fine performance as a company man who is driven to embezzlement as a result of his passion for a scheming vixen. Lang’s impeccable shadowed visions and the air of slovenly decadence with which he surrounds the woman and her secret lover, plus the raw force of the bitter ending, set this apart from the subsequent tales of seduction by a femme fatale. Also stars Joan Bennett and Dan Durea. Based on the play La chienne by George de la Fouchardiere and previously filmed by Jean Renoir.