As a moviegoer for more than 70 years, I’ve seen some great movies, some not so great, some really bad ones, some trying but failing to be deep and meaningful, some reveling in their shallowness. I was born the year The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind were released. My mother started taking me to the movies shortly after that. I saw some movies that were definitely not PG rated. I can still remember being afraid of The Thing and delighting in An American in Paris.
Many times I disagree with the critics. I don’t call them and tell him what I think of their reviews, so now that there is an internet for anyone to babble on, I add my voice.
It’s night and the only light comes from a flickering hotel sign. Rain has slicked the streets. A shot is heard. Cut to a dim, shabby room. The body of a man lies bleeding on the worn carpet. Standing over him is a beautiful blonde with a gun in her hand and a smile on her face. The director yells, “Cut, print.” Another film noir classic has been born.
What is film noir? The definitive answer is still being discussed. Strictly speaking, it is a dark film. Dark in the way it is photographed and dark in the story it presents. The term was coined by French critic Nino Frank in 1946. Hollywood was unaware that its stylish dark films had been dubbed as film noir by him until much later. For purposes of this blog, I will limit myself to a narrow definition: a film that is shot in black and white; a story that has as its hero (or anti-hero) a tough, flawed, cynical yet vulnerable cop, private eye, drifter, or insurance salesman; a heroine who is just as tough with not a sentimental bone in her beautiful body. Add some shady-looking villains and some money (or a black bird) to die over and you have the makings of a film noir.
Some examples of my favorite films noir:
The Maltese Falcon (1941): Probably the perfect noir. John Huston directs the Hammett story. Bogart stars as Sam Spade. Mary Astor, Sidney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre fill out the cast. Truly “the stuff that dreams are made of.”
Double Indemnity ((1944): Fred McMurray plays an insurance salesman who falls for the bad and beautiful Barbara Stanwyck. The problem is how to get rid of the lady’s husband.
Out of the Past (1947): Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer and Kirk Douglas are the trio in my favorite noir. Be prepared for the unexpected.
Touch of Evil (1958): Charlton Heston plays (of all things) a Mexican detective on a honeymoon with Janet Leigh. But soon she is abandoned in a sleazy motel room while Heston and Orson Wells do their thing. Watch for Marlene Dietrich in a cameo role.
The Big Sleep (1946): Aah. Bogart and Bacall star in Raymond Chandler’s story of blackmail. The dialogue is the best thing.
Pickup on South Street (1953): Richard Widmark and Jean Peters in a political noir. There are secrets being passed. Who will they end up with? Richard Kiley costars.
Murder, My Sweet (1944): Adapted from Raymond Chandler’s novel, Farewell, My Lovely, this noir stars Dick Powell and Claire Trevor. Powell as Phillip Marlowe is hired to find Velma, who hasn’t been seen for way too long. Why do they want her?
Kiss Me Deadly (1955): Things get steamier in Mickey Spillane’s novels. This noir, starring Ralph Meeker as Mike Hammer, has our hero delving into matters he probably shouldn’t. Cloris Leachman plays a pivotal role as a hitchhiker who ends up dead.
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946): Oh, those pesky husbands. This time it’s Lana Turner who needs to lose hers so she can keep hunky John Garfield. Even Hollywood was shocked by this noir from a story by James Cain.
Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950): Dana Andrews as an insecure cop, Gary Merrill as a gangster, and Gene Tierney as the love interest in a complicated tale of murder. Andrews and Tierney are together again after starring in the terrific Laura (Otto Preminger won the Oscar for Best Director).
Gilda (1946): Glenn Ford, Rita Hayworth and George Macready star in this noir set in South America. Beautiful Hayworth vamps her way into a dangerous trio with Ford and Macready. Her song numbers set the tone.
Human Desire (1954): Sultry Gloria Grahame falls for Korean War vet Glenn Ford. Oops, she already has a husband she’ll need to get rid of. But he knows a thing or two about murder.
There are literally hundreds of films noir available. Go hunt them down. You’ll find English ones, French ones and Spanish ones. These are but a few of my favorites
But beware, there are a lot of fakes out there, such as Arson, Inc. and Loan Shark. If it has a happy ending, it’s not film noir.
