Noir traditionally thrives on moral instability. Criminals, police, politicians and ordinary citizens occupy the same compromised terrain, where motives blur and institutions rarely deserve trust.But a parallel strain of postwar crime films moved in the opposite direction. Documentary-style procedurals borrowed noir’s visual tension while stripping away its skepticism, replacing ambiguity with institutional certainty and turning…

In the often disjointed world of film noir, a mirror is seldom just a mirror. Those silvery reflective surfaces can suggest a lot of things: paranoia, dual personalities and narcissism, to name just a few. They also distort reality. Facing mirrors may reflect the image of a figure into infinity, suggesting a splintered, dissociated personality.…

Heist movies all have the same story at heart. A gang goes after a big score and the crooks use teamwork to get the loot. But tensions mount and plans of a clean getaway implode. The four heist movies below all have the same cash-grab backbone, but the details of each range from the simple…

You couldn’t call “Gun Crazy” a romance, exactly, although it’s the story of a young couple who meet cute, fall in love — and share a passion for firearms. We meet Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins), a carnival sharpshooter dressed in a cowgirl outfit, performing in a sideshow. In the audience is Bart Tare (John…

By Paul Parcellin Contains spoilers “Ivy” (1947) Even before the action begins we sense that something is rotten in Edwardian London. During the opening credits the orchestral music turns dark and a vase morphs into the faint image of a human skull. Clearly, this is going to be a horror show. Ivy Lexton (Joan Fontaine)…

Turner (Mick Jagger), left, keeps watch over Chas (James Fox) in ‘Performance’ (1970). Just another a drug-induced,decadent, rock ’n’ roll-tinged noir  “Performance” isn’t on many “best neo-noirs” lists — absolutely zero that I could find, honestly. Some might say it shouldn’t be mentioned in the same breath as the 1960s crime films that pay homage…

Mark Rylance as Leonard Burling in ‘The Outfit.’ Set in 1956, “The Outfit” (2022) is a smart-looking Chicago-based drama starring Mark Rylance as meek British cutter Leonard Burling, who has dedicated his life to crafting bespoke men’s suits. After a long tenure on London’s Savile Row, he’s set up shop in the midwestern city famous…

Ben Gazzara, Timothy Carey, Robert Phillips, Seymour Cassel and Morgan Woodward. Sometimes, your favorite films play tricks on you. You carry around a memory of the plot, atmosphere and pacing, but later you find that your recollection was all wrong. That happened to me recently when I saw John Cassavete’s 1976 film,”The Killing of a…

Celebrated L.A. crime novelist James Ellroy will be talking about his new book, “Perfidia,” at the main branch of the L.A. Public Library on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Wait list tickets are all that are left, and admission is free. He’ll be signing “Perfidia,” but only copies you buy from the library — proceeds help support…

The James “Whitey” Bulger saga continues, and here’s an interesting interview with reporter Shelley Murphy about the incarcerated 83 year old Boston mob boss. Check out Shelley’s accent — sounds like she’s right out of Southie. Shelley Murphy on Whitey Bulger – RadioBDC blog – Boston.com You may remember that Whitey was on the lam…