OK folks. Let's hear your top Film Noir movies. Feel free to come back and update your list if you need to. It will help us see what other members like and maybe even give us ideas of what to check out next! Here we go:

Laura

Notorious

Out of the Past - My #1

Pickup on South Street

Sunset Boulevard

Scarlet Street

The Maltese Falcon

Laura

L.A. Confidential

Chinatown

Also, is Night of the Hunter really noir?  I always thought noirs were more urban, crime-centered films with morally ambiguous heroes & heroines.  Night of the Hunter seems more like a tnon-noir hriller IMO, although it is a fine distinction.

Out of the Past

Scarlett Street

Blade Runner

The Big Sleep

Romeo is Bleeding

Also, is Night of the Hunter really noir?  I always thought noirs were more urban, crime-centered films with morally ambiguous heroes & heroines.  Night of the Hunter seems more like a tnon-noir hriller IMO, although it is a fine distinction.

The boundaries of noir have always been vague. Some say noir is a genre, some say it's a style. My minority view is that a tone of fatalism, cynicism, or urban paranoia/despair is an essential component, which is why I have a hard time thinking of movies like Laura or Mildred Pierce as "real" noir.

Anyway, my favorite noir by far is The Big Sleep. I never get tired of that one, and I watch it at least once a year. Other favorites: Sunset Boulevard, The Maltese Falcon, Touch of Evil, Gilda, Nightmare Alley.

Some good neo-noirs: The Last Seduction, Bound, Romeo Is Bleeding, The Grifters, Brick.

Blade Runner

Dark City

Brick

The Man Who Wasn't there

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

I recently watched Out of the Past. Wow, I loved it. "Build my gallows high, baby." I also just watched The Third Man. Joseph Cotten, I like. One of my favorite movies is Shadow of a Doubt, but not sure about noir status there. Also, what about Gaslight? Does it qualify? I just noticed the last three all include Joseph Cotten...told ya I liked him. I need to watch more with Mitchum. Maybe Angel Face?

I got to agree with Vanessa on CHINATOWN and L.A. CONFIDENTIAL.

I wasn't really thinking about BRICK until Dan put it up there. That is a very cool movie.

Also, SIN CITY, at least the first time you watch it is a good noir-like film.

My favorite though would have to be SE7EN. I know some people don't qualifiy it as noir, but it always has been to me.

The Big Sleep

Kiss Me Deadly

Ace in the Hole aka The Big Carnival

Night and the City

Angel Face

i can't believe the edmond obrien classic D.O.A. is not mentioned in this thread - one of the best film noir films ever made and you can pick it up easy here on the site.  it's a 'must see'  :)  patrick   bossajake

Julinda,

Glad you liked "Out of the Past". That and "The Third Man" are two of my all-time favorite movies. For me "The Third Man" is one of those movies that I liked the first time I saw it, and with subsequent viewings keeps getting better and better. By the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th time through it you are already used to the strange zither music, you start to pick up on the beautiful cinematography - striking use of light and shadows, and you pick up more and more of the brilliant dialogue. There are very, very few movies that I like more each time I watch them. But "The Third Man" is definitely in that category.

I have not gotten to "Shadow of a Doubt" or "Gaslight" yet but I'm looking forward to both. Some very good suggestions from Kyle and John also. And Patrick, I've heard great things about D.O.A. as well. But unfortunately, it is now public domain so there are a lot of small companies putting out very bad transfers of that one. I am holding out for a good copy.

Thanks for all the input everyone.

The Set Up.

The list would change on any given day, though. Looking forward to checking out: Born to Kill, Crossfire, Gas Light, and many other film noirs I haven't gotten to yet. Gonna watch "Lady in the Lake" tonight. Phillip Marlowe POV! Woo Hoo!

Hey Guys and Gals,

Recently found a "local" theater that bills itself as "The Twin Cities Longest Continuously Operated Show House". It's specialty is classic and foreign movie presentations on the big screen. Restored to its original glory complete with motorized grande drape, crystal chandeliers with hand-painted bulbs, an orchestra pit that a huge Wurlitzer theater organ rises out of, a new screen with projection lamps in 70mm, 35mm, and 16mm formats, and a new sound system capable of producing multiple Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks.

They are in the middle of a 10 week Brit Noir series right now featuring 8 film noir classics all presented in rare 35mm archive prints including: Odd Man Out, The Third Man, Peeping Tom, Night and the City, The Fallen Idol, Rebecca, Gaslight, and Brighton Rock.

I've already seen two classics I had never gotten the chance to view before - Odd Man Out and just two days ago saw Peeping Tom, directed by Michael Powell who also directed several bonafide classics including The Thief of Bagdad, The Red Shoes, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and Black Narcissus. What a great film though definitely not for everyone. It's spooky, sympathetic portrayal of a very deviant personality in combination with a voyeurism theme effectively ended Powell's career even though now it is recognized as a classic. Well worth checking out if you are not averse to this type of subject matter.

Have a feeling I may be spending a lot of time there watching some of my favorite classic movies and discovering others on the big screen!

Woohoo!

Darwin D. Hauser

• image: http://media2.startribune.com/obit_images/1/14/0000161510-01-1.jpg

  image: http://media2.startribune.com/obit_images/1/14/0000161510-01-1.jpg

  

Hauser, Darwin D. Age 55 of Bloomington. Preceded in death by mother Lois; brother Danny. Survived by wife Nancy; step-son Colin; step-daughter Darby; father Vern; brothers Terry (Jan Norman) and Brent; nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Employee of the Bloomington Public Schools Transportation Department. Memorials to Superior Hiking Trail Association. Memorial service Saturday, October 22 at 1:00 PM at Oak Grove Presbyterian Church, 2200 W Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington. Visitation one hour prior to service at the church.

Published on October 18, 2016