The Postman Always Rings Twice is a 1946 American film noir directed by Tay Garnett and starring Lana Turner , John Garfield , and Cecil Kellaway . It is based on the 1934 novel of the same name by James M. Cain . This adaptation of the novel also features Hume Cronyn , Leon Ames and Audrey Totter . The musical score was written by George Bassman and Erich Zeisl (the latter uncredited). This version was the third filming of The Postman Always Rings Twice, but the first under the novel's original title and the first in English. Previously, the novel had been filmed as Le Dernier Tournant (The Last Turning) in France in 1939 and as Ossessione (Obsession) in Italy in 1943.