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Film Noir

Our Dispatch From Noir City’s Opening Night

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At the Egyptian Theatre on March 29th, the Film Noir Foundation put Noir City: Hollywood – The 21st Annual Los Angeles Festival of film Noir. Opening night was a sight to behold. With the theatre sold out, audiences watched two great films noir that pinpoint when noir started to go in a different direction. The theme for Noir City this year is noir in the 1950s, with films showcasing what a turbulent and paranoid time it was. There was an old time cop car out front for pictures, an intermission reception, and plenty of fedoras. Let’s get into the two films shown on opening night.

Trapped stars Lloyd Bridges as Tris Stewart, a counterfeiter that is offered a chance to get out of jail in order to help bring down a ring of counterfeiters and smugglers. He’s tapped by the feds to help out, but ultimately escapes and double-crosses them.  He connects with an old flame of his named Meg Dixon (played by the beautiful and tragic Barbara Payton), as well as some old acquaintances to get back in the game. Little does he know that the U.S. Treasury Office plans to stay one step ahead of him once they learn just what he’s up to. What ensues is a gritty little B-picture with crackling dialogue and a few twists.

If this sounds familiar, then you may have seen the 1947 film T-Men, an A-noir picture about counterfeiting. Apparently there was a lot of concern about fake money in the middle of the century? Trapped was made in cooperation with the Treasury Department, as shown in the beginning of the movie with a voice over of what it is that their agents actually do, initially giving the film a docudrama feel.

Payton is a knockout in her first lead role. Her sultry performance as Meg leaves little room to wonder why Tris looks her up the second he is out of the big house. The chemistry is definitely there between them. In a rather slick performance as Treasury agent John Downey, John Hoyt uses his suave side to slide into Tris’ circle. The back-and-forth, the terse lines, and even some of the action make Trapped an essential viewing for B-noir completionists. The Film Noir Foundation has a wonderful restoration; it looks fantastic on the big screen.

Richard Fleischer, the director, gives the film a good sense of place and pacing. The actors are given enough space to convincingly deliver their lines and betray one another. At this point in his early career, Fleischer was cutting his teeth on noir. He had already made Bodyguard and would go on to make Armored Car Robbery and The Narrow Margin  before he would diversify his portfolio. Trapped is a public domain film and can be found on Amazon, among other sites.

Classes could (and should) be taught on what Barbara Stanwyck did with her eyes (and the men who fell for it). The File on Thelma Jordan gives Stanwyck a lot of screen time to seduce whomever she wants–and that includes the audience!

Thelma Jordan shows up to the office of Cleve Marshall, an assistant district attorney. Amidst his drunken state, the two share a fun evening together. Cleve (Wendell Corey), a married man, continues to entertain what life with her might be like. She initially shows up to complain about burglars and prowlers, but Cleve wants to to uncover the mystery of who she is. Around this time, Thelma’s aunt is murdered. Cleve is called upon to help her. Without revealing too much, things get complicated with Thelma’s other relationship, the DA’s office, and of course, Cleve’s infatuation with Thelma. But it goes two ways. We get the sense Thelma is conflicted in her feelings and suffers emotionally at different points in the narrative.

Cleve is willing to go without his spine for a bit, willfully doing a Thelma’s bidding as he keeps his eye on the prize, which may or may not actually be there. The real star of the show, however, is Stanwyck. She is mysterious and alluring. Both Cleve and the audience want to know what’s really going on in her brain. This might not be a defining role for her, but it’s certainly not one to miss. She commits an act of violence in the final act that I won’t soon forget. Let’s just say it involves a cigarette lighter and someone’s eyeball.

Noir veteran Robert Siodomak helmed this one, cloaking it in enough shadows and doubts to give it the genuine noir feel. The File on Thelma Jordan is available to rent digitally on Amazon.

Noir City is a true gem. It brings noir to audiences around the world, shepherding lost films, restoring damaged pictures, all while showcasing one of the great art forms in cinema. If you’d like to donate to their efforts, you can do so here. Here’s a list of upcoming film noir film festivals. And here is some writing on film noir. Eddie Muller and his crew are doing some great work over at the Film Noir Foundation. I shudder to think what it would be like if we didn’t have them around.

If you’d like to learn more about Barbara Payton, check out You Must Remember This‘ podcast episode on her. It’s excellent (and quite sad).

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Thank You, FilmStruck!

in Essays by

Streaming services are a dime a dozen these days. From Netflix, to Amazon Prime, to Hulu, it seemed like every movie buff out there could find what they want. No generation in history has had as much access to films at the click of a button than we do today. But just when I thought I had seen it all and all of my movie needs were met, FilmStruck came along. 

FilmStruck was a unique streaming service that gave movie lovers access to classic cinema from around the world, including select films from the Criterion Collection. With the ability to watch the special features, commentary, and interviews with most of the movies, it truly offered a unique and thoughtful experience.

Unfortunately, FilmStruck has been shut down. With only around 100,000 subscribers, that wasn’t enough to impress the new management of the AT&T/Time Warner merger. There are talks of a Warner Brothers and Criterion Collection streaming service to launch within the next year and hopefully those will turn out to be solid substitutes. But as a movie lover, this news hurts.

  • The Fallen Idol (1948)
  • Body Heat (1981)
  • The Third Man (1949)

I never had much exposure to films that came out prior to the ’60s. It’s no surprise that Netflix or Amazon isn’t using their home page to promote a black and white film noir from 1948. Or that Walmart and Best Buy aren’t stocking their shelves with Blu Rays and DVDs of remastered works of a foreign director from the 50s. It seems that the big streaming services care about pumping out original content and acquiring the license to stream all of the latest and most popular content. While that isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, it also simultaneously creates a gap for an entire generation of people. We are constantly exposed to new content and this makes it difficult to discover an entire history of film that has helped to shape the movies we love today.  FilmStruck filled a void that I believe most people (including myself) don’t think about often, if at all. 

It was because of FilmStruck that I discovered my love of film noir. The Big Sleep, The Fallen Idol, Touch of Evil, The Third Man, Body Heat, Night Moves, the list goes on. FilmStruck offered something that the other streaming services don’t – a gateway to an entire genre of classic movies that enhance your appreciation of film in ways that most modern day movies can’t. FilmStruck ultimately helped me to gain an appreciation for a different era of film and as a result, has deepened and refined my love for movies. So for that I thank you, FilmStruck. You will be missed. 

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We Few, We Happy Few

FilmStruck was perfect; we are saddened to see it go. Regardless of what the future brings, we will look back

“Chinatown” Neo-Noir Sequel Is A Mixed Bag

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Chinatown is one of the greatest films of all time. But you know this already. When I discovered there was a sequel with Robert Towne directing his screenplay and Jack Nicholson reprising his role, I was all in. The film went into production roughly ten years after Chinatown. Unfortunately, it would see years of development hell. Production ceased when Towne had a falling out with the producer. Nicholson, eager to see this story through, took over as director and even personally funded some of the project. Despite its flaws and its rough production, The Two Jakes still has a lot to offer to those who hold its predecessor close to their heart.

The year is 1948 in postwar Los Angeles, and private investigator (and now, celebrated war veteran) Jake Gittes is settling in. He has a fiánce, he’s working on his golf game, and business is good. He’s even gained a few pounds. For 11 years, Gittes seems to be moving on from his past after the events that took place in Chinatown. The film opens with him in the middle of a new case helping out a new client of his, Jake Berman (Harvey Keitel). Gittes discovers that Berman’s wife is cheating on him with his real estate business partner, so they set up a sting operation at a motel to catch them in the act. Things go awry when Berman, unbeknownst to Gittes, has a gun and shoots his business partner in cold blood. With no witnesses in the room except for an audio recording of the event, both the L.A. police and Berman are hassling Gittes for the tape recording, all while Gittes suspects there is more to Berman’s case than meets the eye. He discovers a conspiracy involving oil, one which evokes memories from 11 years earlier. Gittes must face his past once again in order to get to the bottom of the truth.

The best part of this film is its premise. The story is all there. It’s complicated, even if a tad convoluted, but plays well off the events of Chinatown. It reiterates the fact that Gittes is always forced to revisit a past that he is constantly trying to forget. The bar was high for a sequel and I think this was the story to tell to hit that bar. I love the idea of Gittes “settling in” so to speak. He’s trying to live a normal life and go about his business, even trying to start a family. Only the resurgence of a case from his past could disrupt this new lifestyle, and it does. Nicholson’s narration throughout the film is a nice touch, adding some insight to the way he is thinking and going about the case. Some people fault the film for its messy narrative, but I actually like having a story with so many moving pieces. It’s smart, and in the end it all comes together.

As for its faults, the film does tend to drag at times. Nicholson might not have been the right choice to direct, but if not for him this film may have never been made. Some scenes just felt like they would linger for no real reason. Seconds would feel like minutes as we observe Gittes going through old files and going about the case. With almost a two and a half hour run time, the pacing should be better. I found myself checking my watch throughout the movie. There is also an uncomfortable love scene of sorts involving Gittes and another main character. It felt out of place, weirdly staged, and didn’t really add anything to the story or to its characters. This movie doesn’t stand on its own, nor does it appeal to a broad audience. And maybe it doesn’t have to. But a key plot point in the movie doesn’t really work unless you’ve seen Chinatown. It’s ending definitely strays away from a typical noir ending, but the mood and story elements certainly make it a neo-noir. But hey, it’s just good to see Gittes back on the screen. 

Overall, I liked the movie. I recognize its flaws; admittedly, I want to like this movie more than I actually liked it. I love that I can follow up with one of my favorite movie characters. It has a great premise and has some great elements to it that do add to the character of Jake Gittes. Unfortunately, it falls short in its execution. We could have seen a much more refined final product had there not been any production issues and if Towne (or even Polanski) had directed it. In the end Jake Gittes is, and forever will be one of the coolest characters to hit the screen, and this movie doesn’t change that. 

 

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“What kind of dames thumb rides? Sunday School teachers?”

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Sir Anthony Hopkins left an indelible mark in the pantheon of film’s most memorable characters, particularly evil ones. Impressively, he is only on screen for 24 minutes and 52 seconds of the films 118-minute runtime. The cadence in his voice, the menace in his eyes, and acute dialogue make audiences remember Hannibal Lecter as a living, breathing villain, not Hopkins merely playing one. 46 years prior to the release of The Silence of the Lambs, a B movie titled Detour was made. Its runtime is 67 minutes, and the villain, the femme fatale of this fatal film noir is on screen for about 31 of those minutes. Ann Savage, playing the role of Vera, delivers a deliciously devilish turn as a psychotic hitchhiker, one that is on par with some of the best villains in American film history.

The film opens up in a small diner; a man named Al Roberts is slumping with a five o’clock shadow and enough sadness in his eyes to fill an ocean. In flashbacks, Al tells the story of his hitchhiking from New York to California. He once had a job as a jazz pianist where he was in love with a singer at the club where he played. She moves to Los Angeles and he soon follows. In his travels, he is picked up by a man named Haskell. In the course of their trek, Al accidentally kills Haskell (although, can we believe this unreliable narrator?) But before Haskell dies, he shows the pink puffy scars left on his hand by a harpy of a woman, a woman he picked up hitchhiking before he met Al. In true noir fashion, Al Roberts drives the car West and picks up none other than the evil woman he gave the scars: Vera.

Vera’s no dummy and instantly recognizes Al is driving Haskell’s car. For the rest of the film, Al and Vera plot what to do with the car and Al’s new assumed identity. Tom Neal as Al is great in this role. His demeanor and narration show he is begging for a sympathetic ear. The way he tells it, he’s just a guy who tripped on a foot fate stuck out. But as mentioned before, Ann Savage as Vera is the real star. Her acidic delivery of dastardly dialogue cuts deep. She is straight from Hell and bares no humanity (watch the trailer for a taste of what I am talking about). The somewhat off-kilter look of the film (a result from its financial limitations, as well as director Edgar G. Ulmer’s dark vision) play perfectly with the tenacity of Vera and the pitiful Al.

There is nothing like film noir when it is done right. Odds were against Detour, and sure, you can nit pick some of the technical aspects. But a lot of its kinks and quirks work in its favor. Limitations, whether they are financial or with censorship, often make creators think outside of the box and get inventive. This film is a fine example of such a feat.

The exact history of Detour has been inconsistently reported. Some reports say it was made for $25,000, while others suggest $100,000. The director has said the movie was shot in one week, while other reports cite the schedule as being 28 days long. Regardless of how quickly or cheaply Detour came into being, it is a film worthy of your time. The nightmarish journey of Al is one not easily forgotten by viewers. In fact, Detour was the first “B” movie chosen by the Library of Congress for its National Film Registry. It’s available on multiple streaming services due to the fact that this film fell into the Public Domain (of course it did). Do yourself a favor and check it out. And be wary of hitchhiking!

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