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Classic Film Noir

Here be those darkly vexing offerings one should include in their diet periodically. Film Noir (literally 'black film or cinema') was coined by French film critics (first by Frank Nino in 1946) who noticed the trend of how 'dark' and black the looks and themes were of many American crime and detective films released in France following the war. It was a style of black and white American films that first evolved in the 1940s, became prominent in the post-war era, and lasted in a classic "Golden Age" period until about 1965. With the list below Alice has included many "Contempory Noirs", making browsing that much more "coloured"..... Right: Orson Wells stars and directs "A Touch Of Evil".

The Big Night (1951)

6.5/10
Director: Joseph Losey
Starring: John Drew Barrymore, Philip Bourneuf, Joan Lorring, Howard St John

John Drew Barrymore takes the lead in this coming-of-age noir drama in which a teenager comes of age while seeking revenge on the man who beat up his... Read more

The Big Sleep (1946)

8/10
Director: Howard Hawks
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Dorothy Malone, Martha Vickers

Raymond Chandler's witty and convoluted whodunit comes to life under director Howard Hawks. Humphrey Bogart is tough private eye Philip Marlowe, Laure... Read more

The Blue Dahlia (1946)

7.2/10
Director: George Marshall
Starring: Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, William Bendix

A stylish noir that teams Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. When Johnny returns from the war, he finds his wife kissing another man outside the Blue Dahli... Read more

The Chase (1946)

6.7/10
Director: Arthur Ripley
Starring: Jack Holt, Peter Lorre, Robert Cummings, Steve Cochran, Michele Morgan

Tormented ex-GI Chuck Scott (Robert Cummings) takes a job with gangster Eddie Roman (Steve Cochran) as an innocent chauffeur but soon becomes embroile... Read more

The Conformist (1970)

8.1/10
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
Starring: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Stefania Sandrelli, Dominique Sanda, Pierre Clementi

Derived from the novel by Alberto Moravia, acclaimed director Bernardo Bertolucci's visually electrifying masterpiece about sex, politics, repression... Read more

The Crimson Kimono (Blu-ray) (1959)

6.9/10
Director: Samuel Fuller
Starring: Victoria Shaw, James Shigeta, Glenn Corbett, Anna Lee

Classic, hard-to-find Sam Fuller pic is intriguing noir about two detective partners, one caucasian and one Japanese, who try to solve a complicated m... Read more

The Damned Don't Cry (1950)

7.2/10
Director: Vincent Sherman
Starring: Joan Crawford, Kent Smith, Steve Cochran, Selena Royle, David Brian

Joan Crawford stars in this riveting character study about a woman who will stop at nothing to escape her impoverished lifestyle. Told in flashback, t... Read more

The Dark Corner (1946)

7.2/10
Director: Henry Hathaway
Starring: Lucille Ball, Mark Stevens, William Bendix, Clifton Webb

When a suave detective is framed for murder for the second time, it's up to his loyal secretary (Lucille Ball) to help untangle the mystery. His best... Read more

The Desperate Hours (1955)

7.6/10
Director: William Wyler
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Fredric March, Martha Scott, Dewey Martin

Director William Wyler's suspense classic stars Bogart as an escaped con who has nothing to lose. March is a suburban family man who has everything to... Read more

The Face Behind The Mask (Blu-ray) (1941)

7.2/10
Director: Robert Florey
Starring: Peter Lorre, Evelyn Keyes

Janos Szabo is a kind, innocent immigrant to America. Just after he arrives though, he is caught in a fire and his face is horribly burned and disfigu... Read more