I will make this short and sweet; please view this commentary of one of my all-time favorite film noirs, Detour (1945) presented by A.O. Scott of The New York Times:
My father recommended this film to me several years ago, just as I was cutting my teeth in the genre. As with any B-movie, the production values (or lack thereof) may deter some people who are not used to the genre’s conventions. But in my mind’s eye that makes it even more of an exciting cinematic venture.
Note that this film is in the public domain and can easily be found online.
Let me know what you think.
Jack Deth says
Hi, iluv and company:
Superb choice!
Thanks so much for selecting this off the beaten path gem. One of the earliest and most groundbreaking of the good guy/sap, femme fatale, Noir genre. That it is so effective when shot on a next to nothing budget raises it higher in the firmament.
Great dialogue and atmosphere take the place of gun fights and explosions. With a nowhere else to go hero completely at the mercy and whim of wickedly tempting Anne Savage.
iluvcinema says
Narrative cinema at its best, Jack! Proving you can make something out of nothing 🙂
Ja says
I checked out the IMDB summary (below). This looks intriguing but I doubt I’ll find the time to watch it. 🙂
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037638/plotsummary
iluvcinema says
Ja – it is a pretty quick watch. Most noirs are in the neighborhood of 75-90 minutes in length. They were primarily B-pictures after all and had limited budgets. In addition they were often screened before the main feature.