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August 4, 2015 By iluvcinema Leave a Comment

Summer of Darkness Recap.

I hope that everyone (well, at least some of you) had the opportunity to enjoy the special programming block shown on TCM during the months of June and July known as TCM’s Summer of Darkness. Every Friday during this period, the TCM schedule was jam-packed with key noir pieces (eg. Detour), as well as films that were great “influencers” – essential viewing that established the mood and essence of what would come to engender this film movement/genre (eg., Fritz Lang’s M). And not to be left out, there were a even a few contemporary pieces that had clearly had a noir DNA imprinted on them.

If, however, you did not have the privilege of catching any of these gems, here is a list of a few that whether I saw them for the 1st or 50th time, I feel are well worth seeing:

Double Indemnity05_01_front_image-compressed_2e668f

D.O.A.

The Letter

Detour

Gun Crazy

The Set-Up

Too Late for Tears

The Narrow Margin

L.A. Confidential

The Asphalt Jungle

The Hitch-hiker

(Image Credit: TCM)

As you read this you may be saying, “Well, it’s August so the moment is gone iluvcinema.” To that I say – you are in luck. You may have missed them on their initial TCM run, but have no fear, you can catch many of these (as well as other) titles using the Watch TCM application/website.

Gun Crazy (1949) aka Deadly is the Female Directed by Joseph H. Lewis Shown: Peggy Cummins (as Annie Laurie Starr), John Dall (as Bart Tare)
Gun Crazy (1949) aka Deadly is the Female
Directed by Joseph H. Lewis
Shown: Peggy Cummins (as Annie Laurie Starr), John Dall (as Bart Tare)

Side Note: My initial vigor for participating in the FREE companion course (TCM Presents Into the Darkness: Investigating Film Noir) offered in conjunction with Ball State University, was unfortunately dampened by life’s happenstance. So while an abrupt change in schedule meant I unable to engage in real time with my community of fellow cineastes, thanks to early enrollment, I have an archive and invaluable resource to call upon when discussing and referencing film noir. Here’s hoping that in the future TCM forms similar partnerships.

TOO LATE FOR TEARS, Lizabeth Scott, Dan Duryea, 1949
TOO LATE FOR TEARS, Lizabeth Scott, Dan Duryea, 1949

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: film noir, recap, TCM, tcm summer of darkness

November 25, 2014 By iluvcinema Leave a Comment

NOIRvember: The Whistler

For my next installment in the NOIRvember series, I would like to discuss the (mainly) William Castle directed film noir series of the 1940’s entitled The Whistler. Based on the popular radio serial that ran from 1942-1955, the film noir/crime/mystery series totaled 8 films; 7 starred veteran actor Richard Dix (who played a different character in each role):

  • The Whistler – 1944
  • The Mark of the Whistler – 1944
  • The Power of the Whistler – 1945
  • Voice of the Whistler – 1945
  • Mysterious Intruder – 1946
  • The Secret of the Whistler – 1946
  • The Thirteenth Hour – 1947
  • The Return of the Whistler – 1948

mark_of_the_whistler_xlg

The “Whistler” we refer to is an omniscient narrator (Otto Forrest, with a voice that sound awfully similar to Vincent Price) who sets the stage for the crime story which usually involves some plot twist or wrinkle in the criminal scheme, thus leading to things not going as initially planned.

I have only seen a few of the films in the series, but I must admit I have enjoyed what I saw; granted, the enjoyment is by no means the result of watching some form of high cinematic art. With running times of approximately 60 minutes, there really isn’t enough time to do much but spin a tale where you find yourself chuckling at criminals engaging in some dubious acts that due to either oversight or just plain hubris don’t go exactly the way they intended.

 

Sources: Wikipedia, Turner Classic Movies (TCM)

Filed Under: Fun Stuff Tagged With: film noir, noirvember, richard dix, the whistler, william castle, william castle the whistler film noir

November 19, 2014 By iluvcinema Leave a Comment

NOIRvember: Born to Be Bad (1950)

Oh, darling Christabel. Such a lovely, innocent name – but as the title of this Nicholas Ray film suggests, you were Born to Be Bad.

Born-to-be-Bad

Sure, this one borders more on the melodramatic (very familiar territory for lead actress Joan Fontaine), but that is what makes it so fun to watch. It is definitely a lighter fare in the film noir canon, seeing there is no real peril present and death by misadventure or unnatural causes is non-existent. Here we just have a scheming femme fatale willing to go to any lengths to get what she wants – be it money, men, you name it.

In addition to Fontaine, the cast includes stalwart actors Robert Ryan, Zachary Scott, Joan Leslie and Mel Ferrer. Definitely one to stay in for, just check out the poster …

Born_to_Be_Bad_(1950)_cinema_poster

Filed Under: Fun Stuff Tagged With: born to be bad, film noir, nicholas ray, noirvember, noirvember film noir

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