Underworld (1927)
Directed by Josef von Sternberg · Cinematography by Bert Glennon
80 min64 frames
DramaCrimeRomance
'Nobody helps me -- I help them!'
Stills, screencaps & shots from Underworld
16 of 64 frames — the full set is searchable by lighting, lens, shot size, color and mood with a free account.
What is Underworld about?
Boisterous gangster kingpin Bull Weed rehabilitates his former lawyer from his alcoholic haze, but complications arise when he falls for Weed's girlfriend.
Underworld is a 1927 American silent gangster film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Clive Brook, Evelyn Brent and George Bancroft. It is considered one of the earliest examples of the film noir genre. The film launched Sternberg's eight-year collaboration with Paramount Pictures, with whom he would produce his seven films with actress Marlene Dietrich. Journalist and screenwriter Ben Hecht won an Academy Award for Best Original Story.
Second paragraph from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where can you watch Underworld?
US availability for Underworld (1927). Data by JustWatch, listings on TMDB. Availability changes — check the provider for current listings.
Who stars in Underworld?
Who made Underworld?
What does the cinematography of Underworld look like?
Across 64 sampled frames, Underworld builds its coverage from medium shots (42% of the sample), with close-ups (31%) carrying much of the rest. Cinematographer Bert Glennon keeps 64% of it in soft, low-key light. 58% of the frames play at night or in the failing light of dusk. Vintage glass shapes the frame. Focus stays shallow in 58% of the frames, isolating subjects from their surroundings.
What is the color palette of Underworld?
The dominant colors across the sampled frames of Underworld (1927) are #050505, #8e8e8e, #2e2e2e, #4a4a4a, #cdcdcc, #6b6b6b — measured from the per-frame color data FrameThrower extracts for every film.
#050505#8e8e8e#2e2e2e#4a4a4a#cdcdcc#6b6b6b
See the full Underworld colour palette — every hex with its share, plus warmth, saturation and luminance.
A reference database for filmmakers
FrameThrower is a fully machine-searchable film database and visual reference library — all 64 frames of Underworld (1927), and 5,000+ films besides, indexed frame by frame and readable by AI. Search it in plain language, from a reference image, or by colour; call it from an API, an MCP server or an SDK. It's the reference layer for making the next movie.
Techniques in this film
More films by Josef von Sternberg
More Drama films
Cast, trailer and streaming data from TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.