Miller's Crossing is an early (1990) film noir example of the work of Joel and Ethan Coen in which the filmic qualities of cross and double-cross are ruthlessly exploited in one of their more convoluted thrillers. Most of the action in "Miller's Crossing" takes place in 1929 in an unnamed American city; most of the exteriors were shot in New Orleans, taking advantage of that city's vintage architecture and streetcar line. The film is somewhat based on a Dashiell Hammett story titled "The Glass Key" and depicts a bloody gang-war in which corruption is rife, from the perspective of an amoral smooth-talker who may or may not be doing more than just chasing his hat and playing the odds.
Trey Wilson, the actor who played Nathan Arizona, Sr., in the Coens' previous Raising Arizona, was originally cast to play mob boss Leo but died before filming. The role then went to Finney.
