Down These Mean Streets A Man Must Go - The Film Noir Thread

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Inspector Abberline

Has anyone seen Rififi ? also any other French noir movies you could recommend

Attachment 172013

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

I got it last week. I'll be watching it on Sunday night.

Rififi is fantastic.

It has one of the tensest heist scenes from any Noir that I can recall.

As for other French Noir, I'd highly recommend Le Cercle Rouge if you haven't seen it. Les Diaboliques is sometimes cited as a French Noir... a fantastic film whatever you classify it as. Also, The Murder Lives at No. 21 is kind of Noir in tone and is a really enjoyable watch.

If you like a bit of Sci-Fi blended with your Noir then I'd also recommend Alphaville. It's my favourite Godard film and one of my favourite films of all time too.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

No Noir for me tonight.

Hot chicks, alcohol, bars, maybe even fireworks beckon...although not necessarily in that order.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

No Noir for me tonight.

Hot chicks, alcohol, bars, maybe even fireworks beckon...although not necessarily in that order.

Enjoy!

I have all that coming my way tomorrow.

[Inspector Abberline]

Originally Posted by bizarre_eye@Cult Labs

Rififi is fantastic.

It has one of the tensest heist scenes from any Noir that I can recall.

As for other French Noir, I'd highly recommend Le Cercle Rouge if you haven't seen it. Les Diaboliques is sometimes cited as a French Noir... a fantastic film whatever you classify it as. Also, The Murder Lives at No. 21 is kind of Noir in tone and is a really enjoyable watch.

If you like a bit of Sci-Fi blended with your Noir then I'd also recommend Alphaville. It's my favourite Godard film and one of my favourite films of all time too.

Cheers BE ive ordered it,and ta for the recommends.

[MacBlayne]

Nico Garcos (Richard Conte, Don Barzini in The Godfather) has just returned home to his family after serving in World War 2. He comes laden with gifts for all, money for the future and plans to settle down with his girlfriend. However, when he discovers that his truck driver father was crippled by shady produce dealer Mike Figlia (Lee J. Cobb, Do you really need me to tell you what films Lee J. Cobb was in? What’s the matter with you? Have you never seen a film made before 1980?), he puts his dreams on hold and gambles his future. Nico goes into business with another driver called Ed (Millard Mitchell, Singin’ in the Rain), in order to track down Figlia and get his father’s money.

Thieves Highway (based on screenwriter A. I. Bezzerides own novel, Thieves’ Market) is a lean, mean noir. There are no major stakes at play, nor is there an overriding threat to the world (the villain is an unscrupulous twat who doesn’t want to pay his bills). Instead, director Jules Dassin (Rififi) is more interested in how his characters handle their small crises. When Nico is first introduced arriving to his idyllic suburban home and his pretty blonde girlfriend, he walks with a spring in his step and carries a smile to brighten any night. He’s the sort of man that Eisenhower envisioned being the perfect, all-American man. Yet, towards the end of the film, he’s ready to chop people’s fingers off.

Desperation is what drives the characters of Thieves’ Highway. When a bruised Nico tries to strangle a streetwalker (Valentina Cortese, Day for Night), it’s not out of misogyny, but a futile attempt at recovering his lost money. At one point, Nico’s partner, Ed, tries to swindle a farmer out of his true earnings but it’s not greed that drives him. It’s the sad fact that Ed is in serious financial trouble and needs the money. Even Figlia is introduced haggling with customers and struggling to beat his competitors’ prices. Dassin and Bezzerides never attempt to manipulate our feelings towards their players. They simply show their actions and allow us to form our own opinions.

The film’s moral ambiguities are matched by its black and white visuals. Norbit Brodin’s (Kiss of Death) cinematography captures a world covered in either frightening darkness, or blinding lights. Sweat and grease cake this world, while steam escapes every manhole. You can almost smell the stench.

Barring a bolted-on happy ending (complete with a Barney Says segment), Thieves’ Highway is a gritty treat. The real locations are complimented by Dassin’s punchy direction, while the cast do an excellent job at conveying Bezzeride’s hard-boiled dialogue and conflicts.

Highly recommended.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by bizarre_eye@Cult Labs

Enjoy!

I have all that coming my way tomorrow.

Don't do it!

You'll end up getting home at half 7 in the morning and feeling like death warmed up for the rest of the day...or is that just me?

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

I meant to do a Noir-vember at the end of October, but completely forgot, so I'll have to beginning next week and play catch up. I have quite a few ones which I haven't seen in years, so this is a great opportunity to rewatch the consensus classics and little-known ones which are long overdue another viewing.

Some of the reviews over the past half-dozen pages have given me some great ideas.

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Don't do it!

You'll end up getting home at half 7 in the morning and feeling like death warmed up for the rest of the day...or is that just me?

I was partly in charge of the bonfire and also responsible for the fireworks so couldn't drink too much.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by bizarre_eye@Cult Labs

I was partly in charge of the bonfire and also responsible for the fireworks so couldn't drink too much.

I stopped drinking around two. Then went on to coffee, even whilst in a bar.

Tonight's film will be Rififi.

Very much looking forward to it. I hope i'll be able to give my thoughts on it around ten this evening.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

Tonight's film will be Rififi.

Very much looking forward to it. I hope i'll be able to give my thoughts on it around ten this evening.

I look forward to reading them – it's a film I like and appreciate very much.