The Stranger 1946
7.3 / 10
The Stranger
An investigator from the War Crimes Commission travels to Connecticut to find an infamous Nazi, who may be hiding out in a small town in the guise of a distinguished professor engaged to the Supreme Court Justice’s daughter.
An investigator from the War Crimes Commission travels to Connecticut to find an infamous Nazi, who may be hiding out in a small town in the guise of a distinguished professor engaged to the Supreme Court Justice’s daughter.
Videos & Photos
All 1 Videos & 34 Photos
cast
Full Cast & Crew
... Federal Agent Wilson
... Mary Longstreet
... Prof. Charles Rankin
... Judge Adam Longstreet
... Noah Longstreet
... Konrad Meinike
User reviews
See All 3 Reviews23 Jun 2021 by TheCakerBaker
Excellent cinematography and camerawork as can be expected from Welles. Entertaining throughout. Watch if you're a fan of film noir
Release Date:
Jul 02, 1946 (United States)
Run Time:
1hr 35`
MMPA Rating:
NR
Original Language:
English
Production Countries:
United States
Status:
Released
Plot Keywords:
Related Movies To
The Stranger
Excellent cinematography and camerawork as can be expected from Welles. Entertaining throughout. Watch if you're a fan of film noir
They searched the woods. I watched them, here, like God looking at little ants. We are in the college town of Harper, Connecticut, one day a man known only as Wilson arrives, he's a member of the War Crimes Commission, in short he's a Nazi Hunter. On his radar is the man thought to have invented the Nazi Death Camps, Franz Kindler, surely such a despicable and low human being is not residing in this lovely little place? The Stranger finds director (and star) Orson Welles fusing two rather interesting facts, fact one is that this picture, coming at a time when Welles was really struggling as a viable artist, is one of his most conventional pictures, fact two is that it's also one of his finest achievements. All Welles' traits are here, the expert use of shadows and lights, tricksy camera angles, buildings carrying auras. A clock tower at the centre of the piece is a foreboding character all by itself, listen out for the clock tower dongs and I swear to you they sound like a death knell beckoning us in to its belly, this is Welles crafting wonderful atmospherics to enhance the mood in this small and picturesque town. Yet it's probably with his acting performance that he achieves the best rewards, it's made clear to the viewers from the off that Welles is the villain of the piece, it's not in question, the issue is if he can avoid and escape the clutches of Edward G Robinson's determined Wilson?. Here Welles excels because this is no cartoon cut out Nazi portrayal, this is cold and calculating stuff, cynical with devilment seeping from his pores, he arrogantly believes that he is just and correct at every turn. Loretta Young (Mary Longstreet) plays off of Welles very well, on the surface it looked like she wasn't being asked to be anything more than a foolish love interest, but as the last quarter arrives she gets some meat to chew on and aided by Robinson in perfectly restrained form, gives us a finale that in true Welles tradition is as memorable as it is unfeasibly gorgeous. It's a fitting end to a truly great picture, highly recommended viewing, tight, tense and terrific. 9/10
This taut and suspenseful thriller finds a devilishly clever Edward G. Robinson ("Mr. Wilson") on the trail of the Nazi who allegedly devised the whole concept of mass annihilation in the concentration camps. Having released one of his erstwhile minions "Meinike", he hopes that he will lead to him the big fish. Well he does, sort of - but suddenly disappears in a small town leaving "Wilson" with little to go on but his target's infatuation with all things horological. Enter a typical, recently married, couple - the "Rankins" (Orson Welles & Loretta Young) on the surface, a perfectly average pair but one whom "Wilson" suspects has a sinister past and so he sets out to prove this. Welles is not great here, but workmanlike with this acting performance (he directed this too); Young a little too over-the top an times, but the last 20 minutes are gripping and psychologically charged - there is a palpable feeling of evil and menace as "Wilson" cleverly manipulates the situation to try to reel in his catch. Welles fares better with the direction - he builds a tension that, even though we know fairly early on who is whom - keeps us interested right til the end.
Cast & Crew of
The Stranger
Directors & Credit Writers
... Director
JV
Jack Voglin... Assistant Director
Cast
... Federal Agent Wilson
... Mary Longstreet
... Prof. Charles Rankin
... Judge Adam Longstreet
... Noah Longstreet
... Konrad Meinike
... Dr. Jeffrey Lawrence
... Mr. Solomon Potter
... Sara
... Student (uncredited)
... Passport Photographer (uncredited)
ND
Neal Dodd... Minister (uncredited)
NE
Nancy Evans... Undetermined Role (uncredited)
... War Crimes Commision Member (uncredited)
FG
Fred Godoy... Undetermined Role (uncredited)
... Fairbright (uncredited)
... Undetermined Role (uncredited)
... Todd, Customer in Potter's Store (uncredited)
... Undetermined Role (uncredited)
... Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Produced By
Related Movies To
The Stranger
The Amateur (2025)
0 /10
After his life is turned upside down when his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack, a brilliant but introverted CIA decoder takes matters into his own hands when his supervisors refuse to take action.
Run Time: 2hr 3` . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 09 Apr 2025
Director: James Hawes , Svetlana Punte
Producer: Jonathan Hook , Dan Wilson , Rami Malek
Stars: Rami Malek , Rachel Brosnahan , Caitríona Balfe , Laurence Fishburne , Holt McCallany , Jon Bernthal
STRAW (2025)
0 /10
What will be her last straw? A devastatingly bad day pushes a hardworking single mother to the breaking point — and into a shocking act of desperation.
Run Time: 1hr 45` . MMPA: R . Release: 05 Jun 2025
Director: Matt Hendren , Roger Berard , Tyler Perry
Producer: Nadia Brown , Angi Bones , Kim Taylor-Coleman
Stars: Taraji P. Henson , Sherri Shepherd , Teyana Taylor , Sinbad , Rockmond Dunbar , Ashley Versher
The Accountant² (2025)
0 /10
When an old acquaintance is murdered, Wolff is compelled to solve the case. Realizing more extreme measures are necessary, Wolff recruits his estranged and highly lethal brother, Brax, to help. In partnership with Marybeth Medina, they uncover a deadly conspiracy, becoming targets of a ruthless network of killers who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets buried.
Run Time: 2hr 13` . MMPA: R . Release: 23 Apr 2025
Director: Fernando Chien , Gavin O'Connor , Alina Gatti
Producer: Jamie Patricof , Gavin O'Connor , Scott LaStaiti
Stars: Ben Affleck , Jon Bernthal , J.K. Simmons , Cynthia Addai-Robinson , Daniella Pineda , Allison Robertson
Diablo (2025)
0 /10
Ex-con Kris Chaney seizes the daughter of a Colombian gangster to fulfill a noble promise to the young girl's mother. When her father enlists both the criminal underworld and a psychotic killer to exact his revenge, Kris relies on everything he's ever learned to stay alive and keep his word.
Run Time: 1hr 31` . MMPA: R . Release: 13 Jun 2025
Director: Ernesto Díaz Espinoza
Producer: Grady Craig , Francisco Carrillo , Scott Adkins
Stars: Scott Adkins , Marko Zaror , María del Rosario , Lucho Velasco , Diana Hoyos , Alanna de la Rosa
Deep Cover (2025)
0 /10
Kat is an improv comedy teacher beginning to question if she’s missed her shot at success. When an undercover cop offers her the role of a lifetime, she recruits two of her students to infiltrate London’s gangland by impersonating dangerous criminals.
Run Time: 1hr 39` . MMPA: R . Release: 12 Jun 2025
Director: Tom Kingsley , Kelly Maracin Krieg
Producer: Alex Johnson , Colin Trevorrow , Walter F. Parkes
Stars: Bryce Dallas Howard , Orlando Bloom , Sean Bean , Paddy Considine , Ian McShane , Nick Mohammed
Life After Fighting (2024)
0 /10
Retired martial arts world champion Alex Faulkner has settled into a simple life, when the disappearance of two of his students leads to an unthinkable discovery close to home. Just when all hope of finding the children is lost, he locates the imprisoned girls and unsurfaces an international child trafficking operation, which draws him back into the fight of his life against those behind it.
Run Time: 2hr 6` . MMPA: . Release: 07 Jun 2024
Director: Bren Foster
Producer: Chelsea Jean Foster , Bren Foster , Navid Bahadori
Stars: Bren Foster , Cassie Howarth , Luke Ford , Annabelle Stephenson , Anthony Nassif , Arielle Jean Foster
Sinners (2025)
0 /10
Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.
Run Time: 2hr 18` . MMPA: R . Release: 16 Apr 2025
Director: Marvin Williams , Amir R. Khan , Ryan Coogler
Producer: Zinzi Coogler , Andrew Lary , Will Greenfield
Stars: Michael B. Jordan , Jack O'Connell , Delroy Lindo , Jayme Lawson , Wunmi Mosaku , Hailee Steinfeld
28 Years Later (2025)
0 /10
Twenty-eight years since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one member departs on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.
Run Time: 1hr 55` . MMPA: R . Release: 18 Jun 2025
Director: Sarah Mulberge , Lucy Hatherley , Danny Boyle
Producer: Cillian Murphy , Alex Garland , Bernard Bellew
Stars: Cillian Murphy , Aaron Taylor-Johnson , Jodie Comer , Charlie Hunnam , Jack O'Connell , Ralph Fiennes
Crypto Legacy (2020)
2.5 /10
Troy Morgan doesn't like his family's farm. The place creeps him out. After spotting some strange lights one evening, Troy and his little sister Carrie go to investigate the creepy barn.
Run Time: 1hr 11` . MMPA: . Release: 01 Oct 2020
Director: Charles Townsend
Producer: Charles Townsend
Stars: Sheri Gill Dixon , Brian Kunz , Brandon Young , Nathaniel Barton , Linzi Gray , Thalia Reynolds
Clown in a Cornfield (2025)
0 /10
Quinn and her father have just moved to the quiet town of Kettle Springs hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she discovers a fractured community that has fallen on hard times after the treasured Baypen Corn Syrup Factory burned down. As the locals bicker amongst themselves and tensions boil over, a sinister, grinning figure emerges from the cornfields to cleanse the town of its burdens, one bloody victim at a time.
Run Time: 1hr 36` . MMPA: R . Release: 08 May 2025
Director: Puneet Chawla , Eli Craig , Douglas Mitchell
Producer: Petersen Harris , Marty Bowen , Carrie Wilkins
Stars: Aaron Abrams , Katie Douglas , Carson MacCormac , Cassandra Potenza , Verity Marks , Bradley Sawatzky
Remnant (2024)
0 /10
Grace is a young woman whose life has been turned upside down by tragedy. When she returns home to the family farm to rebuild her shattered life, her world begins to unravel as a series of strange events haunt her, pushing Grace to the edge of madness. A mysterious figure lurks in the shadows and a ghostly woman appears in the darkness of night. Is Grace imagining these apparitions, or are they a warning of a nightmare still to come?
Run Time: 1hr 52` . MMPA: . Release: 30 Jun 2024
Director: Mike Horan
Producer:
Stars: Nicole Pritchard , Shaun Robert Foley , Tsu Shan Chambers , Remi Webster , Megan Bell , Martin Ashley Jones
Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025)
0 /10
Ethan Hunt and team continue their search for the terrifying AI known as the Entity — which has infiltrated intelligence networks all over the globe — with the world's governments and a mysterious ghost from Hunt's past on their trail. Joined by new allies and armed with the means to shut the Entity down for good, Hunt is in a race against time to prevent the world as we know it from changing forever.
Run Time: 2hr 50` . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 17 May 2025
Director: Wade Eastwood , Christopher McQuarrie , Tommy Gormley
Producer: Dave Caplan , Susan E. Novick , Don Granger
Stars: Tom Cruise , Hayley Atwell , Ving Rhames , Simon Pegg , Vanessa Kirby , Henry Czerny