Film noir

[Martin]

Rebecca (1940) - Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, written by Robert E. Sherwood and Joan Harrison (screenplay), Philip MacDonald and Michael Hogan (adaptation), Daphne Du Maurier (novel)

“It wouldn’t make for sanity, would it? Living with the devil…”

A rich woman’s traveling companion and servant (Joan Fontaine) meets and falls in love with the fabulously wealthy, recent widower Maxim de Winter (Lawrence Olivier). She returns with him to his estate and finds herself constantly compared to his previous wife Rebecca, who lost her life in a seafaring accident a year before.

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Her new life is complicated by Mrs. Danvers, the head of the staff, who adored Rebecca and is constantly deploying small tortures against the new Mrs. de Winter out of spite. When a ship wrecks off the coast of the de Winter estate, the hull of Rebecca’s boat is examined and new evidence is revealed, causing the investigation into her death to reopen.

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This is a fantastic romantic story and has little to do with traditional noir, aside from the visual style, for the first hour and a half. But the story darkens and pressure increases on the young bride as she struggles to live up to Rebecca’s impeccable image. Suspicions deepen as it’s slowly revealed the previous Mrs. de Winter may not have been the angel everyone remembers.

Here in Hitchcock’s first American film, Lawrence Olivier delivers a stellar performance, but Joan Fontaine’s modest and sweetly stunning Mrs. de Winter is impossible to look away from, hitting you with a hammer of moonlight right between the eyes (and I think I’ve fallen madly in love with her).

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It is a bit of stretch including this as film noir, being romantically oriented and a little slower paced that most, but it’s darker elements are eventually revealed as well as an unlikely femme fatale, so it arguably does qualify.

The bottom line is this: Rebecca is a wonderful film, absolutely deserving of its 11 Oscar nominations and 2 wins, including a win for Best Picture, and I do believe I’ve now got to include it on my list of favorite movies of all time.

5 stars

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Glad you were able to see Rebecca. As I mentioned in my earlier post this film while not purely noir has enough elements that I think of it as such. In any case it is a tremendous film, I am glad you enjoyed it.

[bugen]

The Killing (1956) - Directed by Stanley Kubrick, written by Stanley Kubrick (screenplay), Jim Thompson (dialogue), Lionel White (novel)

Stanley Kubrick gave us the greatest science fiction film of all time with 2001: A Space Odyssey. He gave us the greatest war movie ever made with Full Metal Jacket and the unforgettable Gomer Pyle. He created the best apocalyptic movie on the planet with Dr. Strangelove, destroying said planet in the process. He also filmed the greatest horror movie in history with The Shining.

Now these things are arguable, of course, but the fact that they’re arguable is the achievement. Expectations for today’s viewing were quite high.

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The Killing is film noir all the way. Sterling Hayden leads the crew and he’s rock solid, as a complicated heist at a racetrack is executed step by step and parties are assigned to and perform their specific jobs like clockwork. But a femme fatale inserts herself into the situation and (scientifically speaking) jacks it all up, so a beautiful plan devolves into catastrophe.

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The score by Gerald Fried helps to heighten the tension right up to the point that by the end you’ll be either holding your breathe or sitting rigid like a stone, leaning forward. Or both.

Kubrick’s legendary, carefully crafted shots are evident, so much so that picking grabs to include here was a chore—not because they’re hard to find, but because they’re everywhere, even this early in his career. It’s gorgeous; anyone interested may want to go straight for the Criterion Blu-ray.

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Using both a dictionary and a thesaurus to properly express reaction to the movie, I have to say: It's awesome. Ridiculously awesome.

So Kubrick has also given us one of the best of the true film noirs.

“Waiting for you all those years and staying by myself it was like, not that you were locked in, but I was locked out.”

5- stars

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[Tommy]

Full Metal Jacket is the one Kubrick film I don't really care for (I know, I'm weird). Paths of Glory is amazing though and I consider it to be possible the greatest war film.

And how about that ending scene of The Killing? That made my jaw drop the first time I saw it. So good!

[bugen]

I was the same with that ending. Holy hell... the whole thing just built and built and when it finally ended like that... incredible. I haven't checked out any of the bonus on the disc (and actually usually stay away from that stuff), but this is one I'll likely go all the way through. Or maybe just spend that same time watching the film again.

While I was nervously procrastinating on The Killing I re-watched Full Metal Jacket and again just couldn't tear myself away from it. Here's where I'm weird with Kubrick: I thought A Clockwork Orange was just OK. I liked it, but most people seem to use that film as a first association with the director and I thought many of his other films were so much better.

Paths of Glory should be here in another day or two and I'm looking forward to it. I'm now realizing it was a mistake to focus only on his career after Spartacus, so expectations are pretty high for that one, too. It was you who convinced me it needs to be seen, so thanks in advance!

[Theli]

I have some catching up to do here! I watched Rebecca for the first time earlier this year. I quite enjoyed it, but found little in common with film noir itself. It very much came across as Gothic romance to me. The Killing was great, though I do need to watch it again, my memory is a bit hazy. But just the fact that it's the coming together of two of my favourite auteurs, Kubrick and Thompson elevates to high plateau for expectation.

On the subject of Hitchcock though, I watched the first of his movies I would call a definitive film noir yesterday; Shadow of a Doubt. I mean even the name screams noir. The shots are so well framed and executed with amazing chiaroscuro lighting. The unease throughout is tangible as we know more than most of the characters within. The plot itself is just insidious, small town USA penetrated by evil, more pointedly big city evil. The characters come across as introspective and contemplative, and the facial movements (Joeseph Cotten's especially), small or more pronounced, seem to say just as much about the character and their states of mind as the words that come from their mouths. Loved it. Possibly my favourite Hitchcock yet.

Earlier in the day I watched In A Lonely Place, a film I have wanted to see for a while. Bogey, as usual, is tops in this classic film noir. It does draw some parallel's between it and Sunset Boulevard, the Hollywood setting, and cast of characters as actors and writers... yet it also comes across more realistic, down to earth, but less cynical. I guess most people have an idea about the inner turmoil happening during the shooting of this movie, and that tension is added to the screen. The whole movie you are guessing, and second guessing with Bogey is a psychopathic killer or not, and it's not because of flip flopping evidence, but rather simply the character's mental state. And damn does he play it well, the look on his face during the murder reenactment scene is downright frightful. Grahame is in top form too, rebutting and quipping on even ground as Bogey's cynical character Dix Steele. The movie is explosive, violent and tense. A finale that is in equal parts, cynical and hopeful, crushingly depressing and yet... a happy ending.

I also finally watched Ministry of Fear, Fritz Lang's WWII movie of suspense and intrigue, penned by Graham Greene. I've owned the Criterion blu-ray for a while, but had never actually watched it, like your apprehension towards The Killing, Andrew. Lang is one of my favourite directors (if not my favourite) and I love the film noir genre, Greene even penned one of my all time favourites of the genre, The Third Man, but... I'm not huge on spy/espionage type films.I don't hate them, I just often find them outlandish. But god damn was I wrong about this one. This was an amazing movie.

The opening scenes are nightmarish, following what seems like dream logic, but are obviously something more, and as the story develops more twists and turns are revealed, and we learn that there is no one that you can trust in war time England. The shooting is top notch, very much in the film noir style, chiaroscuro lighting, dark shadowy alleyways and subways. I found it more reminiscent of M than Lang's later US flicks. Lang, Hitchcock and Kubrick are arguably the best directors when it comes to framing a shot just right, and all three were perfectionists when it came to film making, and it is evident in their catalog of works.

This one straddles genre lines, on one hand it is clearly WWII propaganda and an espionage thriller, on the other the shots, the dark atmosphere, and the paranoia screams of film noir. Again this is a case of "Does it really matter?". Just watch it and enjoy it. It took me a long time to do just that, but I am glad I did.

An interesting thought, what would film noir be without WWII? Arguably starting as the war began, around 1941 with The Maltese Falcon, or before by Lang who himself was more than fully aware of what was occurring in Germany fled the country. The paranoia of the looming war, especially after the attack on Pearl Harbour, and the disillusionment after. Men who returned from war, led battalions, used heavy machinery, killed men... can't even hold down a job.

Well, on tap for the day is Rope. I've never seen it before and am quite looking forward to another new Hitchcock flick.

[bugen]

Rope is amazing! Based on true events, as well. And In a Lonely Place is now one of my favorite films of all time, as is The Third Man. I can't get over the ending of The Third Man--especially that final shot of her approaching the camera. I think it might be may favorite ending of any movie I've ever seen, and I recently threw the film in just to marvel at that one shot.

We're agreed on Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt. That thing's pure noir, all the way. I haven't yet seen Notorious (damn you, Netflix), but the understanding is that it's noir as well. Ministry of Fear is on my shelf now, so its turn is coming up.

As far as the war, it's possible we wouldn't have the genre at all without it. Film noir is so cynical and usually quite depressed, but realistic, too. This wasn't surrealistic fantasy trying to make a point, it was just a bleak world that trod all over nearly everyone who lived in it.

[bugen]

No Man's Woman (1955) - Directed by Franklin Adreon, written by Don Martin (story), John K. Butler (screenplay)

“I ought to give you your diamond ring back.”
“Good. I’ll turn it in on a new anchor.”
“It is your new anchor.”

A successful businessman (John Archer) has been separated from his wife (Marie Windsor) for 2 years and wants to move on with his life, but she won’t allow a divorce without a huge settlement consisting of 50% of future income plus a cash lump sum equal to roughly half the current value of his business. She’s also manipulating an art critic into plugging her business by sleeping with him and chasing after her young employee’s fiancé, threatening to blackmail him if he doesn’t go out with her.

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The woman is a piece of work like nothing you’ve ever seen (or maybe you have). She’s a horrific beauty, using her sexuality and intelligence to steamroll those who know her into doing whatever she wants. When she’s murdered, the police investigation into her death is hindered by the fact that almost everyone in her life had motive to kill her.

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The idea that she spreads this motive so strongly to everyone who associates with her makes her one of the great femme fatales of the genre.

The film is short, about 70 minutes. It’s an excellent movie, and the picture quality of the Blu-ray is good, though not up to the level of other restorations given to some of these classics. Still, it's possible this is the best the film will ever look. It’s recommended for the movie itself, but if you’re interested in femme fatales, you might be hard pressed finding a better specimen.

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“Don’t do it, Mr. Grant. No woman is worth a man going to the gas chamber for.”
“I’m not so sure about that. This one might be worth it.”

4 stars

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[Theli]

You're starting to get into some of the more obscure works. I haven't seen this one, but the aspects of the premise reminds me of Scarlet Street in some aspects.

One thing I'd come to realize with film noir is that even the dime a dozen flicks tend to have redeeming values to them. There's a few I might give a 3 or 3.5 (if we want to give a numbered rating), but very few and far between, most we 4 and 5s.

So I just finished Rope. Not what I would call film noir, but it is a great crime story. It reminds me of a later Hitchcock flick, Dial M for Murder. Both of which we know the plot before it happens (like the aforementioned Shadow of a Doubt as well) and both are set in one room. The atmosphere is tense in this one, more so than Dial M, and I think it's a bit more serious too. Also the long shots allow the actors to play off each other very naturally and the characters to feel more well rounded. Just like almost every other Hitch flick this has one tense scene that just stands out. In this one I think it's the scene of the caretaker cleaning off the chest while the other characters talk of screen, and just nearly is the chest opened revealing to all the secret within. Great scene.

[Tommy]

I rewatched Shadow of a Doubt last night during TCM's marathon. Possibly my eight or ninth time watching it all the way through. Hitchcock often said, out of all his films, it was his favorite. Uncle Charlie is possibly his first fully formed psychopath but certainly not his last. The use of light and shadow is remarkable. I love the relationship between the two Charlies and especially

Spoiler!

the fact that the younger Charlie is willing to kill to protect herself, possibly reiterating what Uncle Charlie says earlier about the same blood flowing through their veins. Notice how the younger Charlie messes with her Uncle at dinner when she knows what's up with him. She is also extremely bright and restless and possibly, by the end of the film, understands more about the world then any other character. In the end, if I had to go up against either one of them, I'd pick Uncle Charlie because with the younger Charlie, you might not see danger coming! I've always thought it was weird/slightly alarming that the younger detective is flirting with Charlie pretty hardcore.

Fantastic screenplay on this one as well. He brought in some heavy hitters to help get that small American town feel. So good!

[bugen]

Interesting point about younger Charlie. I loved Shadow of a Doubt, and it was one of the early, heavy influences in committing to going through so much noir in the first place.

[Tommy]

Yeah and just to clarify,

Spoiler!

I don't think the younger Charlie is bad like her uncle but she is definitely a survivor. She survives three murder attempts from a very dangerous serial killer and lives to tell the tale.

I find myself wondering just exactly how she might turn out later on in her life giving what she's learned/experienced by the end of the film.

[Theli]

Good points Tommy! I kind of had that same feeling about younger Charlie. I think it's interesting that early on in the film she refers to them (both Charlies) as twins, and in many ways they are, one the archetypal good and other evil. Another way of looking at it would be that they are mirror images, the same yet reversed. Adding to that effect is the first time we meet either Charlie they are both in bed brooding. Throughout the film both characters tend to show elements of bi-polar disorder too, flipping from mania to melancholy.

Another note on Rope that I noticed and forgot to mention was the link to Crime and Punishment. The main premise of both stories is of a character (or characters) who commits murder, but has a philosophical belief that murder can be acceptable for the chosen few. Also the book is even mentioned when Rupert is grilling Phillip, with seemingly pointless yet probing questions, like the inspector in the novel.

[bugen]

Scarlet Street (1945) - Directed by Fritz Lang, Dudley Nichols (screenplay), Georges De La Fouchardiere (novel)

“You got him softened up. Now push him around a bit.”

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Bank cashier and amateur painter Christopher Cross (Edward G. Robinson) is celebrating 25 years with the bank when he interrupts a mugging and meets the gorgeous Kitty (Joan Bennet). With a wife who hates him and a relatively boring life he quickly becomes infatuated with the young girl, who begins working with her fiancé to take Mr. Cross for as much money as possible. When the scandalous young couple passes Mr. Cross’s paintings off as Kitty’s they begin to sell very well, garnering attention and increasingly risking exposure for everyone.

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There’s more working here than just that skeleton of a story. Bennet’s excellent portrayal of the wicked Kitty, who’s taken up with the wrong man and wouldn’t have it any other way, sells the story, but Robinson’s performance as the hopeless, lovestruck Mr. Cross brings home the bacon. Even the smug, scheming boyfriend/fiance (Dan Duryea) has a strong pull, giving you someone to dislike and displacing some of the heat in just the right way.

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The story starts off quite sad as the viewer is shown a good man being abused by almost everyone except those at his relatively thankless job. But when he finally realizes the extent to which he’s been pushed and lashes out, he loses control so completely he essentially ends anything in his life that gave any meaning to it at all.

The characters prey on your sympathy, forcing you to draw your line in the sand and take a stand with the hapless victim, then turn the whole situation on its head. In the end, the film adds up to one of the most lusciously dark stories in the medium.

“Nobody gets away with murder.”

5 stars

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[Tommy]

I need to watch that one again. It's been a long time.

[bugen]

The Woman in the Window arrived today from Amazon, but this version has actually been colorized despite the packaging calling it out as black and white.

Which made me feel like this:

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Then this:

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May have to watch this one on youtube.