Soap opera with lavish production design
“Back Street,” based on the 1931 novel by Fannie Hurst, has been filmed three times—in 1932 with Irene Dunne, in 1941 with Margaret Sullavan, and in 1961 with Susan Hayward, by far the most lavish version. Hayward had recently won the Best Actress Academy Award for her wrenching performance as Barbara Graham in “I Want to Live!” and was a logical choice for the lead.<br /><br />Young dress shop owner Rae Smith (Hayward) accidentally meets department store heir Paul Saxon (John Gavin) in Lincoln, Nebraska, as he is returning from military service in World War II. They have a romantic fling but she breaks it off when he confesses that he is married. Ambitious to become a fashion designer and eager for a new environment, Rae moves to New York. She starts as an assistant to top designer Dalian, works her way up to partner, and moves to Rome to open a salon.<br /><br />Paul continues to woo Rae, explaining that his wife, Liz (Vera Miles), is an unstable alcoholic and won’t grant him a divorce. Ultimately accepting this and willing to become Paul’s “other woman,” Rae vacations with Paul whenever they can at a Mediterranean villa outside Rome or a rebuilt farmhouse in the country near Paris. The affair continues until Paul’s young son gets wind of his father’s affair and confronts Rae.<br /><br />The potboiler aspects of the screenplay are balanced with rich production design and spectacular locations, art direction by Alexander Golitzen, gowns by Jean Louis, jewels by David Webb, furs by Alixandre, and several Harper’s Bazaar models. Shot in color, the film virtually drips with eye candy.<br /><br />Hayward does her best with the melodramatic story and cliche-ridden dialogue, but she was 44 at the time and too old for the part. She looks great as photographed by Stanley Cortez, but never convinces as a woman in her mid-twenties and early thirties. Gavin, a handsome leading man in the style of a human Ken doll, is so stiff in his delivery that he might as well be a telephone pole. The script calls for him to express deep feelings for Rae, but Gavin’s Paul seems more like an awkward clod than a passionate lover. His performance is further undermined by the cringe-worthy dialogue in Eleanore Griffin’s and William Lustig’s screenplay.<br /><br />Despite a large budget and luxurious visuals, this big-screen soap opera is emotionally empty. We watch Rae and Paul go through the motions of their illicit affair but never feel the heat. Director David Miller is curiously stand-offish in a film that depends so heavily on the irrepressible attraction between two souls. Yes, the film was restricted from being too graphic by the Production Code, but the actors’ chemistry should fill in the blanks of what isn’t shown. Hayward and Gavin come off as good friends, not lovers.<br /><br />Vera Miles has a field day as Liz, chewing up the scenery with her drunken rants, vicious jealousy, and cold vengefulness. The character is an utterly contemptible, vindictive shrew. Miles steals every scene she’s in.<br /><br />Ross Hunter (“Imitation of Life”) produced “Back Street” in his customary lush visual style, but it seems more attention was paid to costumes, sets, and locations than to the leads' performances. Gavin seems barely alive. Hayward is never given a really big scene, just many little scenes that portray her as a woman content to live in the shadows and accept her lot. With her angelic, long suffering expression, she comes off more as a deluded romantic than an independent woman selflessly sacrificing for the man she loves.<br /><br />Bonus materials on the Kino-Lorber Studio Classics release include an audio commentary and several theatrical trailers.<br /><br />“Back Street” harks back to an era in Hollywood when women’s pictures were a staple. Made at a transitional period when the studios still had actors under contract but were looking more to epics and wide-screen extravaganzas to attract audiences, “Back Street” is a quaint anachronism.
The movie title "Back Street," available on Movies & TV, has received an average rating of 4.8 from 1107 reviewers. 
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This title falls under the categories of Movies & TV, Featured Categories, Blu-ray and Drama. 
The additional details include the following in key-value format :
 {"Genre": "Drama", "Format": "Blu-ray", "Contributor": "Robert Eyer, Charles Drake, Tammy Marihugh, Joe Cronin, Susan Hayward, David Miller, Vera Miles, Virginia Grey, Reginald Gardiner, John Gavin, Natalie SchaferRobert Eyer, Charles Drake, Tammy Marihugh, Joe Cronin, Susan Hayward, David Miller, Vera Miles, Virginia Grey, Reginald Gardiner, John Gavin, Natalie Schafer   See more", "Language": "English", "Runtime": "1 hour and 47 minutes", "MPAA rating": "NR (Not Rated)", "Package Dimensions": "6.69 x 5.31 x 0.55 inches; 2.47 Ounces", "Director": "David Miller", "Media Format": "Blu-ray", "Run time": "1 hour and 47 minutes", "Release date": "August 10, 2021", "Actors": "Susan Hayward, John Gavin, Vera Miles, Charles Drake, Virginia Grey", "Subtitles": "English", "Studio": "Kl Studio Classics", "Country of Origin": "USA", "Number of discs": "1"}

Here is a brief synopsis of the title : NYC fashion designer Rae Smith (Susan Hayward) thought she'd never again encounter the one true love of her life-a returning Marine (John Gavin) who passed through her home town. Years later, he's burdened with the family business empire and a shrewish, alcoholic wife (Vera Miles)-and Rae risks all to resume their affair in the shadows. Producer Ross Hunter's glossy read on the Fannie Hurst sudser co-stars Virginia Grey, Reginald Gardiner. 107 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English; Subtitles: English; audio commentary; theatrical trailer..