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Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs  Interesting you mention noir and a clouding of genres / countries.
Hammer in the fifties set up a deal with American producer Robert Lippert to make noir thrillers in Britain but using an American star or household name of his choosing backed up with dependable actors in Hammers roster, thus enabling them a decent US theatrical release. Meaning we had people like Dane Clark, Richard Conte, George Brent and Lizabeth Scott alongside British faces like the upcoming Diana Dors and Sidney James.
The Hammer Noir sets are excellent and i highly recommend them. |
That reinforces my point about American nature of noir – even if the films aren't themselves American, the presence of a lead actor with an American accent is almost essential. You can have foreign actors, but they would normally (like Peter Lorre in The Maltese Falcon) play a villain.
I'll have a look for those Hammer films, thanks.