Tuesday, August 27, 2024

What does a Dancer, an Actor, a Magician and a Disenchanted Cop Have in Common? They All Meet in a “City that Never Sleeps”

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Marie Windsor, Gig Young, Chill Wills, "City That Never Sleeps" (1953). A cloud of failure hangs over a handful of Chicagoans who...
Saturday, August 10, 2024

When Noir Got Into the True Crime Game — Docudramas: How True Were They?

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Ted de Corsia, "The Naked City" (1948) — just one of the 8 million stories. By Paul Parcellin Maybe it was the rigors of World War...
Wednesday, July 17, 2024

Noir Must Be Shot in Black and White, Right? Guess Again

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Marilyn Monroe, "Niagara" (1953). Raw Emotions Sizzle When Noir is in Color By Paul Parcellin I can already hear the howls of prot...
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Friday, June 28, 2024

Feverish Dreams, Persecution Fantasies, Tormented Anti-Heroes: There’s Something About Cornell Woolrich’s Stories that Pulls Us in Like a Magnet — You’d Think it Would Do Just the Opposite

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Kevin McCarthy, Gage Clarke, "Nightmare" (1956). He Murders as He Sleeps! Contains spoilers By Paul Parcellin When it comes to cra...
Saturday, June 8, 2024

Peter Lorre: His first starring role was a massive hit and one of the most influential works of art in the history of film — and that was the problem

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Peter Lorre, "M" (1931). An unforgettable psychological portrait. By Paul Parcellin Renowned character actor Peter Lorre created ...
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Tuesday, May 14, 2024

Scrapped: The Original Opening Sequence of “Sunset Boulevard” was Even Stranger than the Final Cut, and Audiences had a Peculiar Reaction to It

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Erich von Stroheim, William Holden, Gloria Swanson, "Sunset Boulevard" (1950). Test Audiences Were Stunned, Amused and Confused Jo...
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Sunday, April 21, 2024

Pop! Goes the Flashbulb: In Noir, Photographers Did It the Old Fashioned Way, and their Pictures Usually Turned the Town, and Crime Investigations, Upside Down

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Howard Duff snaps a candid shot in "Shakedown" (1950). Contains Spoilers By Paul Parcellin Lighting and photographic style play a...
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