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Three Films that Set a Noir Mood: How John Alton Helped Define the Light and Shadows of Film Noir
Lynn Bari, Cathy O’Donnell, “The Spiritualist” (1948). ‘It’s not what you light, it’s what you don’t light.’ — John Alton As legend has it, in the summer of 1923…
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Poverty Row Noir II: Scheming Communists Walk Among Us … and So Does a Future Sitcom Dad
Hugh Beaumont, Frances Rafferty, “Money Madness” (1948). Ward Cleaver as a psychotic killer? Say it ain’t so! Like many up and coming Hollywood actors, Hugh Beaumont appeared in noir B-pictures before he became better known as an all-American TV dad, and he played some pretty despicable characters, too. But more about that later. From the…
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It Came from Poverty Row: Hollywood’s B-Movie Factories Mined Noir Gold
Ann Savage, Tom Neal, “Detour” (1945). Hitchhiking on the road to hell. So many westerns were filmed at the small, independently owned studios near the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and Gower St. in Hollywood that people began calling it Gower Gulch. From the 1930s to the ’50s it was the epicenter of low-rent film production and the gaggle of…
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Lovesick Wanderer Returns … to a Double Cross
Burt Lancaster, Yvonne DeCarlo, “Criss Cross” (1949). This article contains spoilers. By Paul Parcellin The magnetic attraction between Steve Thompson (Burt Lancaster) and Anna (Yvonne DeCarlo) is the stuff that drives “Criss Cross” toward its dramatic and deadly conclusion. Steve returns to town after two year’s absence and the first thing on his mind is…
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More Than a Gunsel: Elisha Cook Jr. Played Wobbly Tough Guys, Inept Would-Be Heroes and Dyed in the Wool Victims Often Displaying Raw Emotion and Unexpected Vulnerabilities
Humphrey Bogart, Elisha Cook Jr., “The Maltese Falcon” (1941).Just a cheap gunman hanging around hotel lobbies. When he died in 1995 at the age of 91, Elisha Cook Jr. was the last surviving cast member of John Huston’s 1941 film noir classic “The Maltese Falcon,” whose players included Humphrey Bogart, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and…
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How a Real-Life Prison Sentence Added Another Dimension to Mitchum’s Performance as a Woozy Doctor on the Run in a Nightmarish Flight From Justice
Robert Mitchum, “Where Danger Lives” (1950). By Paul Parcellin This article contains spoilers A lot of red flags should go up when Dr. Jeff Cameron (Robert Mitchum) meets Margo Lannington (Faith Domergue). But she’s a real dish and this is noir, so naturally he ignores the many warning signposts screaming at him that he’s about…
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The Big Caper: Burning Desire For a Life of Luxury Drives Career Criminal to Score a Cool Million Bucks
Roxanne Arlen, Paul Picerni, Corey Allen, “The Big Caper” (1957). Heist films must always be centered around a carefully thought-out plan — and no matter how artfully arranged, the scheme will sooner or later go horribly wrong. Lots of stuff can cause a heist to crash and burn: a flaw in the plan; unforeseen circumstances;…
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‘Hollering Hank,’ A Director of Noble Lineage, Turned Out Landmark Semi-Documentary Crime Dramas That Capture the Unease of Post-World War II America
Lucille Ball, Mark Stevens, “The Dark Corner” (1946). Director Henry Hathaway is probably best known for the westerns he made with legendary stars, including John Wayne, Gary Cooper, Randolph Scott, Richard Widmark and Henry Fonda, among others. But his semi-documentary, noir-tinged crime films of the 1940s-‘50s should have earned him a more prominent place among…
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Riding an Express Train to Hell: In Noir and Thrillers, Passengers Embark on Dark Journeys Aboard Shadowy Railroad Cars Hurtling Toward Uncertain Destinations
Charles McGraw, Don Haggerty, Marie Windsor, Don Beddoe, “The Narrow Margin” (1952). This article contains spoilers By Paul Parcellin Rail travel is a throwback to the days of neckties, breast pocket handkerchiefs and fedoras, so naturally it pops up often in films noir. It’s safe to say that if you’re watching a black and white…
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Noir After World War II: Damaged Vets Strain to Re-enter Civilian Life as America Stares Down Fascist Conspiracies and a Seething Nuclear Nightmare
Gaby Rodgers, “Kiss Me Deadly” (1955). This Post Contains Spoilers By Paul Parcellin American films noir changed a lot after the end of World War II. The standard setups — a guy, a girl, a gun, a pile of cash, gave way to new storylines and different kinds of characters. We began to see G.I.s…