'The Scar'Originally Posted by David
Hard-to-believe plot pushes the edge… but who cares when you have Joan Bennett and Paul Henreid in the lead roles and John Alton behind the camera. The flick’s fatalism puts it in the same drawer as Detour and D.O.A. Nice and dark.
A film that gets better with each viewing, imo.
Last up for me: Lupino's The Hitch-Hiker, another solid b-noir that I hadn't seen for about 10 years but which held up rather nicely.
I watched The Hitch-Hiker recently myself. Another great desert noir highlighted by great performances by William Talman, Edmond O'Brien, and Frank Lovejoy.
After seeing the recent posting of The Bribe trailer, I dug out an old VHS copy I taped off of TNT years ago. It's an absorbing noir featuring a good voice-over narration and plenty of shadows and swirling fans.
Yes, its from the M Squad DVD set. I'm enjoying the set very much. The video quality varies because of the different sources used but generally it's pleasant viewing. I have about 20 episodes to go (out of 117) and the series gets better as it goes along. I bought mine at Sam's Club for $49.
phil
Watched The Killer That Stalked New York last night and liked it very much. Definitely the best film in the Bad Girls sets. What was interesting was the trailer has part of a scene not in the film. In the trailer, Evelyn is on the ledge and tells the doctor to stay away. In the film, she's in a daze and doesn't say anything.
Phil, thank you for your feedback on the M Squad set. And thanks also for the tip about buying it at Sam's Club. That price is alot less than the Borders store price.
Clouzot's Le Corbeau (1943), which is a mostly satisfying mystery film with some excellent directorial flourishes. Not as good as some of his later films, but for an early effort from a great director I really like this film.
The Thief (Rouse, 1952), took me a bit by surprise; wasn't expecting a wordless movie and got a bit restless after 20 minutes or so. But when the concept sunk in I really enjoyed this film and enjoyed the fact that a golden age hollywood noir was bereft of cliches and formula (except for the ending). Had to admire the performances, too; like a good silent movie, the actor's mannerisms and facial expressions had to convincingly take the place of the dialogue. I think they all subtly pulled it off. Besides that, the direction was absolutely compelling and creative; really loved the sequence atop the Empire State Building.
The Crooked Way (Florey, 1949), is obviously similar to Somewhere in the Night released in 1946 but nowhere near as good on almost all levels, sans the scenes of L.A. and cinematography. (Alton always wins in noir!) John Payne doesn't fit his role as an amnesiac Italian gangster and he's not surrounded by as superlative a group of supporting actors, 'tho Percy Helton's performance cannot be faulted. Still, when watching this flick I kept thinking that a few more viewings may cause me to appreciate it more.
The Crooked Way (1949)
John Payne, Ellen Drew, and Sonny Tufts. Plus, John Alton’s camera noir-work.
Available for online viewing:
http://www.archive.org/details/TheCrookedWay
Tonight's double feature;
I'll Get You
Fingerprints Don't lie
..and I'm looking forward to 'em.
Tonight finds me revisiting Crack-Up from '46 and the all too brief Hunt the Man Down from '50. Nice "B" fare...
The Crooked Way (Florey, 1949), is obviously similar to Somewhere in the Night released in 1946 but nowhere near as good on almost all levels, sans the scenes of L.A. and cinematography. (Alton always wins in noir!) John Payne doesn't fit his role as an amnesiac Italian gangster and he's not surrounded by as superlative a group of supporting actors, 'tho Percy Helton's performance cannot be faulted. Still, when watching this flick I kept thinking that a few more viewings may cause me to appreciate it more.[/QUOTE]
You're right about the repeated viewings, Crooked Way has become one of my favorites and I watch it annually. Alton's portrayal of LA just knocks me out. Helton is great and I have come to appreciate Payne in this and others (Kansas City Confidential, 99 River Street, Hell's Island) I believe, he like Dick Powell, was transformed from crooner to tough guy.
Wow, pitiful. The only good part of either was seeing Tom Neal do one scene in 'Fingerprints' - and his was
the best performance..
Watched "Kiss of death" last night , my local store had a "buy one get one free" used dvd sale a few days ago & i was able to fill some holes in my collection ...... Really liked the Combo of Mature/Gray , great movie .
I think so too, David - and I never really understood why it has so many detractors (or at least, folks who find it fair).
Solid noir, imo.
I definitely agree with you all on this one. Kiss of Death has great performances and some brilliant cinematography. The scenes in the reefer den and Tito Vuolo's restaurant are particlularly noteworthy.
Last night I watched Siodmak's Christmas Holiday for the first time. A quirky psychological noir with Gene Kelly playing well against type. It bears re-watching.
Mmm, I love Christmas Holiday, JC. It was one of the handful of noirs I made a pilgrimage into Manhattan to see
back in the mid-90s. I heard that it was being shown at a small arthouse on 2nd ave, and when we got there
the person introducing it (to an audience of about 10) told us that it was the only existing print in the Western
hemisphere. As a relatively new noirhead I was thrilled to add this rarity to my list of noirs seen...
We watched "House on telegraph hill" last night , what a Downright crazy film , everyone in that houes is nuts ! My girl even watched it with me & really enjoyed it , maybe she'll become a fan of these films yet
Good flick though ....
I found a DVD copy (from a company called Hollywood's Attic) in a small DVD store on 7th Ave. in the Village. I never heard of this company but the print was a good one.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I like Richard Basehart in every noir I've seen him in. This one was no exception. He's also great in He Walked By Night, Fourteen Hours, and Tension.We watched "House on telegraph hill" last night , what a Downright crazy film , everyone in that houes is nuts ! My girl even watched it with me & really enjoyed it , maybe she'll become a fan of these films yet
Good flick though ....
Yeh , i'll watch this one again for sure , I really liked it a lot & as mentioned the cinematography is nice & the characters work ....
This "Christmas Holiday" i have seen it floating around on dvd , Guessing it's out of print as it runs $30 , is it worth the $30 ??
Last night i watched "Black angel" , I really loved this film , well worth owning in your collection for sure , got a new copy off an ebay seller for $5 , well worth it .... I was hoping it has a commentary on it , but none on this one .
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