The Asphalt Jungle (1950) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 18, 2013 by 4 Star Films

* May contain spoilers
Directed by John Huston and starring an ensemble cast headed by Sam Jaffe and Sterling Hayden, this was the first great noir heist film. Jaffe has just recently been released from prison and he has contrived an intricate jewel robbery. He teams with a multi-talented safe cracker, a small time thug with dreams of owning a farm, and an invalid driver. The whole operation is to be backed by an attorney who is in a difficult situation. Initially the procedure begins well enough but soon things go haywire with alarms, misfired guns, and then police. Now Jaffe is wanted again, Hayden is slowly dying, a bookie loses his nerve, and the attorney tries to pull a fast one. The perfect conception turns out to be far from it in the end. This film reminded me strikingly of The Killing which I saw earlier. Both are heist films starring Hayden and they end disastrously. For her part Marilyn Monroe steals the screen in her first prominent role which was a foretaste of what was to come.

4/5 Stars

Titanic (1953)

Posted on July 16, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb with a solid cast of others, the film follows different people before and during the sinking of the infamous ocean liner. Stanwyck has taken her son and daughter away from their wealthy father. He gets on board however and the relationship gets strained. Meanwhile a young man falls for their daughter trying to win her affection. The viewer also sees the captain who seems to be a good man and we come to known a priest turned drunk who is in disarray. When the ship strikes the iceberg everything changes instantly and the estranged pair show their love while others show their courage. This film is not historically accurate and some people will find it unspectacular compared to the modern blockbuster. However, it is all about the characters and they make this a very moving if not underrated film. It seems fitting that I first watched this film exactly 100 years after the fact.

3.5/5 Stars

Night and the City (1950) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 9, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Set in London, this film directed by Jules Dassin stars Richard Widmark as a small time swindler and Gene Tierney as the girl he has his eye on. Harry Fabian always has big ideas but they never pan out. However, through a chance encounter he meets the father of the wrestling promoter in the area. He uses their strained relationship to his advantage in order to fight his way into the picture. At the same time a portly club owner and his unhappy wife are at odds partly because of Fabian. The con man’s luck takes a turn for the worst when the old man he met suddenly dies after a wrestling match. His son then puts a price on Fabian’s head and he becomes a wanted fugitive. One last time he sees his love and he has one last fool proof scheme. Fittingly that too falls through and he meets his demise. This is a very entertaining film and Widmark does a fine job.

4/5 Stars

Kiss Me Deadly (1955) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 8, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Set in L.A., the film stars Ralph Meeker as the callous and often corrupt PI Mike Hammer, adapted from the Mickey Spillane novels. One night while driving, Hammer picks up a frightened woman who begs him to remember her. They are forced off the road by thugs and the girl is eventually killed. Hammer wakes up in the hospital to his secretary girlfriend Velda. He makes it his priority to find out what the mysterious woman was talking about. He meets up with opposition and a femme fatale, but Hammer keeps on going using strong-armed tactics. He finally tracks down a mysterious whats-it but then discovers that Velda was kidnapped. In the final confrontation he finally learns who he was looking for and he finds out the consequences of the Pandora’s box and a deadly female. This film was unique film-noir with interesting cinematography and a rather bizarre conclusion.

3.5/5 Stars

Ace in the Hole (1951) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 6, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Kirk Douglas with director Billy Wilder, the film follows a hard-nosed and manipulative reporter who finds himself stuck in New Mexico without any money. He takes a small job and soon happens upon a cave where a man has gotten trapped. Soon he spins it as a great human interest story and people flock from far and wide to witness the event. The buried man’s unhappy wife capitalizes on the foot traffic and the local sheriff tries to get some free publicity for the upcoming election. Meanwhile Tatum tires to draw out the events so he can get a better story and his old job back. All the while the man gets weaker and weaker until he eventually dies. Just like that everything clears out and the big carnival is over. Tatum brought the demise of another man just to get a story and he ultimately fell himself losing the story and the job he had fought so fiercely to acquire. Although not Wilder’s most well-known film, this is certainly a biting critique of journalism and humanity in general.

4/5 Stars

The Big Heat (1953) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 2, 2013 by 4 Star Films

*Contains Spoilers

Starring Glen Ford, Gloria Grahame, and Lee Marvin, with direction by Fritz Lang, the film follows an everyday cop named Dave Bannion (Ford). This film-noir begins with a mysterious suicide of a cop. Soon Bannion is on the case trying to put the facts together and then everything heats up. First, a young woman he talked with is found beaten to death, then his wife is brutally killed by a car bomb. Enraged by the death of his loved one, Bannion obsessively seeks justice. Everything becomes clear when he comes to the realization that one man controls the town through his influence and strong-armed tactics. With his badge taken away, Bannion meets Grahame’s character and she falls for him. However, her thug boyfriend (Marvin) scalds her face and so she becomes determined to help Bannion and she even commits murder. Fatally wounded by the thug, she dies but her actions close the case and bring along justice. Fittingly Bannion is promoted to sergeant by the end of the film and starts on a new case.

4.5/5 Stars

The Sweet Smell of Success (1957) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 2, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis, this film has memorable dialogue and chilling performances. Curtis is Sydney Falco, a greedy and conniving press agent who is constantly trying to get on the good side of influential people. His main target is the renowned if not ruthless gossip columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Lancaster). Falco bargains for publicity he desperately needs in exchange fro breaking up the romance of Hunsecker’s kid sister. The plan seems to work just as Falco foresaw, however a heated confrontation leads to Hunsecker seeking revenge on his sister’s boyfriend. Ruthlessly he has the man framed with the help of a reluctant Falco. Finally, Falco has had enough but Hunsecker turns on him too in order to protect his image and his sister. As the film closes, Hunsecker’s almost suicidal sister leaves to go back to her boyfriend and he is all alone. Lancaster and Curtis both give performances that brim with corruption and sleaze. The score and the New York atmosphere also help to bring the film alive.

4.5/5 Stars

The Killing (1956) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 2, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Sterling Hayden, the film follows a group of crooks and everyday race track workers who carry out an intricate robbery. In the planning stages they have everything figured out completely with one small disturbance. When the day arrives, the plan begins as expected. Each man takes his place in order to do his part. Perfectly coordinated with a disruption in the race and a planned riot. Hayden grabs all the money he can and drops it to an accomplice with hardly a snag. While waiting to split the heist there is finally a wrench in the plans that turns fatal. Hayden catches wind of it and splits as was decided beforehand. With his money and his girl he gets ready to leave the trouble behind him. In a final cruel twist of fate his plan is accidentally uncovered. The shock takes all the fight out of him. This film is wonderfully constructed with its different point of views all hinging on race #7 and the subsequent “killing.”

4.5/5 Stars

Sunset Boulevard (1950) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 1, 2013 by 4 Star Films

This is a great film-noir but more importantly it serves as a biting picture of the Hollywood lifestyle . Billy Wilder created a very interesting film that is well worth watching. It puts a very contrasting pair together and delivers the tale with a exceptional style of storytelling.

*May Contain Spoilers

In this film starring William Holden and Gloria Swanson (real-life silent film star) a down-on-his-luck writer, strictly by chance, finds himself living with a forgotten film actress. From the very beginning he finds her eccentric and her mansion chilling. All the same he agrees to live there in order to edit her movie script and earn some much needed money. Soon she grows accustomed and dependent on him since her only other companion is a butler. Hoping to make a comeback she goes to director Cecil B. Demille but it becomes evident to those around her that things will not work out. At the same time the young writer begins to distance himself as he begins to fall for a young woman writer he has been working for. In a chilling ending someone dies and another goes seemingly mad because the tension has grown too great. This film is very well done from the flashback and narration at the beginning to its critique of Hollywood and the parallelism with real events.

5/5 Stars

Touch of Evil (1958) – Film-Noir

Posted on July 1, 2013 by 4 Star Films

Starring Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, and Orson Welles, this film is one of the last examples of what is considered true film-noir. In a small, dangerous, run down, border town, a mysterious car bombing murder takes place. A Mexican investigator who is a newlywed (Heston) and a hardened American policeman (Welles) join forces on the case. However, soon the case becomes complicated with corruption, kidnapping, and plotting. With his wife in danger, Heston must save her while trying to crack the mystery. Only after some time does he realize the man with the touch of evil. The protagonist wins but that does not mean there is not tragedy as well. Orson Welles does it again with this intriguing film. The opening shot alone shows the brilliance of Welles. This film is one worth seeing, showcasing director Welles and good acting by the entire cast.