Category: film noir
-
When Noir Got Into the True Crime Game — Docudramas: How True Were They?
Maybe it was the rigors of World War II that whet the public’s appetite for true crime stories in the 1940s. Returning soldiers, who saw real blood and guts on the battlefield, were less than inspired by movies based on fictional stories, or so the legend goes. They wanted a realistic view of life that…
-
Noir Must Be Shot in Black and White, Right? Guess Again
I can already hear the howls of protest over the idea that film noir can be in color, so those who insist that color is verboten in noir will probably want to sit this one out. We all know that noir is usually shot on black and white film, but the luscious hues of those…
-
Feverish Dreams, Paranoia? It Must be a Cornell Woolrich Story
Kevin McCarthy, Gage Clarke, “Nightmare” (1956). When it comes to crafting stories of dread and entrapment, Cornell Woolrich stands out among his peers. His darkest work seethes with feverish, paranoid fantasies. Wrongly accused men, caged on death row or free and living under a stifling cloud of suspicion, are driven to prove their innocence. Visions…
-
Peter Lorre’s First Starring Role Was a Hit — That Was the Problem
Renowned character actor Peter Lorre created many indelible roles in groundbreaking noirs, thrillers and films of other genres while achieving greatness in Hollywood. Since June 26th marks the 120th anniversary of his birth, this is a good time to look back at some of his remarkable performances from the 1930s onward. Born László Löwenstein in…
-
‘Sunset Blvd.’: A Stranger Original Opening Sequence Was Scrapped
Erich von Stroheim, William Holden, Gloria Swanson,“Sunset Boulevard” (1950). Preview audiences were left stunned, oddly amused and utterly confused At the start of “Sunset Boulevard,” hapless screenwriter Joe Gillis (William Holden) floats face-down in a swimming pool with several bullet holes punched into his torso. He’d been the long-term houseguest of deranged former silent screen…
-
In Noir, Shutter Bugs Fight, and Sometimes Commit, Crimes
Lighting and photographic style play an outsized role in crime dramas of all kinds, including film noir. But then there are the noirs and thrillers that put a camera in front of the camera — or to be more precise, they’re films in which a photographer and his or her pictures play a key role…
-
Kings of the Road: Noir’s Alienated, Disenchanted Drifters
Film noir is full of cheap hotel rooms, train stations, roadside diners, filling stations, bus depots — places that transients inhabit while on their way somewhere, or perhaps rambling toward nowhere in particular. A compulsive desire to take to the highways is part of the American psyche, frequently rhapsodized in popular culture as the restless…
-
Is It or Isn’t It? Does “Clash by Night” Make the Cut as Noir?
“Clash by Night” has the look and feel of noir, but not everyone thinks of it that way. It stars Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Ryan, two giants of the shadowy crime dramas of the 1940s and ‘50s that define those dark films. Some might say they make the perfect brooding noir couple. If that’s not…
-
‘The Night of the Hunter’: Babes in the Woods Face Evil
I first saw “The Night of the Hunter” (1955) 20-plus years ago and walked away impressed but not particularly in love with the movie, and having said that I know what many of you are thinking: Heresy! I have no real excuse for my initial reaction. The Charles Laughton directed drama, the only film he…
-
Why Watching ‘Lady in the Lake’ Requires Mind Over Matter Skills
I have a confession to make: For as long as I’ve watched film noir (and I don’t care to go into exactly how long that is) I’d never sat down and watched “Lady in the Lake” (1947) until very recently. That’s not really a stunner, I guess. It’s not widely regarded as a top-shelf Raymond…