Category: classic films
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Pure noir exposes crime films’ darkest, most pessimistic core
Noir comes in a number of hybrid varieties, including gangster films, heists, police procedurals and private detective stories. But some noirs don’t use standard crime film types as their foundation. Pure noirs, told from the point of view of characters who are neither career criminals nor law enforcers, plainly reveal the genre’s darkest tenets: that…
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The Wild Man of Hollywood Played Raucous, Rage-Filled Human Steamrollers Onscreen, and His Offscreen Life Was Nearly as Outrageous
Lawrence Tierney, “The Devil Thumbs a Ride” (1947). By Paul Parcellin In a career that spanned over 50 years, Lawrence Tierney played mobsters, tough guys and cold blooded killers, among an assortment of other roles. His on-screen persona communicated a sense of unrestrained intimidation behind a dead-eyed stare. The characters he portrayed were capable of…