Category: gloria swanson
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New Year’s Noir: 8 Crime Films Bring You Dark Tidings
Allen Baron, “Blast of Silence” (1961). Noir for the year’s last day. Was that a popping cork or the report of a firearm? By Paul Parcellin Why is it that a lot of noirs take place around Christmas, but not so many focus on New Year’s Eve? Granted, New Year’s doesn’t carry the same weight…
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Scrapped: The Original Opening Sequence of “Sunset Boulevard” was Even Stranger than the Final Cut, and Audiences had a Peculiar Reaction to It
Erich von Stroheim, William Holden, Gloria Swanson,“Sunset Boulevard” (1950). Preview audiences were left stunned, oddly amused and utterly confused Joe Gillis (Holden), a life cut short. By Paul Parcellin 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…
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An American Story: Murder In the Living Room
Left: Gloria Swanson, William Holden, “Sunset Blvd. (1950)Center: Gene Nelson, Phyllis Kirk, Sterling Hayden, “Crime Wave” (1953)Right: David Janssen, “The Fugitive” (1963). By Paul Parcellin The first time I saw a film noir I didn’t know what I was watching. Sure, I could tell that it was a crime film, a detective story, a mystery,…