Tag: Raymond Burr
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The American Dream … According to Film Noir
The “American Dream,” the 1940s-’50s utopian ideal of family life, is the spark plug that sets many a film noir in motion. The term “American Dream” has come to mean an attractive family, an upscale suburban home, a two-car garage and a manicured lawn — trophies required of those who wish to be at one…
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Live it up! 11 essential nightclubs of noir
Karen Morley, ‘Scarface’ (1932) In noir, nightclubs are smokey hideaways where criminality thrives under moody lighting. Ritzier than typical barrooms, they are havens for hedonists and the racketeer elite. Crucial to these nightspots are floorshows. A chanteuse may whisper a torch song designed to torment an ex-lover sitting ringside. Her words spell out jagged details…
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When bargain basement noir thrived in Hollywood
I’m on a Poverty Row tear these days. As you probably know, many of the films made there aren’t quite as polished as the gems turned out by Paramount, Warner Brothers or 20th Century Fox. But they have a certain something that the big budget movies lack: a rag-tag, rough around the edges quality that…