Leave Her to Heaven
-
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 17, 2025 11:24 PM)
James M. Cain's book was better than both. Same is true of
Mildred Pierce
(that book is Cain's magnum opus and, while a brilliant little noir film, the adaptation butchered it).
Double Indemnity
I'm not so sure about, though.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 17, 2025 11:28 PM)
(I'm just copying and pasting what I already said elsewhere lol)
Some great classic noir there!
The Postman Always Rings Twice
is amazing, but the book is even better. In fact, I'd say that for all of the James M. Cain books that became movies, except perhaps
Double Indemnity
.
I'm not sure I've seen
Criss Cross
, but I recognize Siodmak's name from
The Killers
, which was an amazing film. And I'm not sure I'd rate
Key Largo
10/10, but it's definitely in the top echelon of John Huston films. It's been too long since I've seen
Leave Her to Heaven
or
The Lady from Shanghai
to say much about them at all (but Welles'
The Stranger
stands out a bit more in my mind).
I don't believe I've seen the others, but the mention of the Klan in
Storm Warning
brought to mind 1962's
The Intruder
. Have you seen that one? It's easily Roger Corman's most serious-minded film and William Shatner's career-best performance.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 01:37 AM)
Yes, especially Edward G. Robinson, the first actor who comes to mind for me when I think of noir. Primarily because
Double Indemnity
is one of my top ten of all time and because his early starring roles were a major forerunner of noir, but also
Key Largo
,
The Stranger
,
The Woman in the Window
,
The Red House
,
Scarlet Street
… The dude was ****ing phenomenal.
As for Welles, his best noir film was probably one he didn't direct,
The Third Man
.
Touch of Evil
is brilliantly executed and everything. I just don't buy Charlton Heston as a Mexican.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
Sophienoire — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 07:14 AM)
EGR is great, one of my fav performers and actors of all time. i would always watch a film if it has him in it, noir or not noir, and i've seen him in 37 at this point.
Edward G. Robinson, the first actor who comes to mind for me when I think of noir.
not Bogie tho? i think he'd be my first noir actor tbh
i'm not the biggest fan of
The Third Man
. it's just too on the nose for me with with all its noir showcase effects, which just leaves me really cold. idk, i'm allergic to its "goat noir" hype and not buying its status, i guess lol Carol Reed's other noir,
Odd Man Out
, is miles better.
the sound of your racing heart -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 12:40 PM)
and i've seen him in 37 at this point.
Holy **** lmao I don't think I've seen quite that many, but, yes, I'll definitely watch anything with him in it if I come across it.
not Bogie tho? i think he'd be my first noir actor tbh
Well, yeah, but he's not in
Double Indemnity
Favorite noir actors:
Male-
Edward G. Robinson
Bogie
Richard Widmark
Robert Mitchum
Alan Ladd
Female-
Gene Tierney
Veronica Lake
Joan Bennett
Ann Savage
Rita Hayworth
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
Sophienoire — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 01:44 PM)
Favorite noir actors:
Male-
Edward G. Robinson
Bogie
Richard Widmark
Robert Mitchum
Alan Ladd
Female-
Gene Tierney
Veronica Lake
Joan Bennett
Ann Savage
Rita Hayworth
Double Indemnity is your fav noir and you didn't even list MacMurray or Stanwyck in your top 5 actors?
bc at least Stanwyck would make my top 5.
also:
GLORIA GRAHAME
absolute fav of them all she's da QUEEN!!
Ida Lupino
Joan Bennett
Audrey Totter
for the men, i would exchange Richard Conte & Brian Donlevy for Ladd & Widmark easily.
the sound of your racing heart -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 03:07 PM)
Double Indemnity is your fav noir and you didn't even list MacMurray or Stanwyck in your top 5 actors?
bc at least Stanwyck would make my top 5.
Yeah, not including Stanwyck was a brain fart. MacMurray is actually a major reason why
Double Indemnity
works so well for me, but I'd never think to include him in my top noir actors. I'm not sure how much of this made it across the Atlantic, but in the U.S. he's basically associated with a long-running family sitcom and everyman type roles in Disney movies. All of this came after
Double Indemnity
, of course, but his part in that one was sort of revelatory to me the first time I saw it as a result.
for the men, i would exchange Richard Conte & Brian Donlevy for Ladd & Widmark easily.
Ladd, fair enough. Widmark, though? He'd make my list even if he'd retired after his very first film.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
HollyJollyHanukka — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 01:08 PM)
The Third Man was excellent.
Scarlett Street isn’t a widely known movie of Robinson, and he’s so good and sad in it. Joan Bennett is so conniving along with Dan Duryea as her slimy boyfriend.
The Red House is also a lesser known film of his, and one I really like.
Never could like A Touch of Evil. A lot of bad casting, and in particular, like you mention, Heston.
If you can’t say something nice, say something clever but devastating. -
Sophienoire — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 06:48 PM)
Double Indemnity is one of my top ten of all time
while we're at it, what's your top 5 noirs?
mine would look like this:
1.
They Live by Night
(Nick Ray, 1948)
2.
The Night of the Hunter
(Charles Laughton, 1955)
3.
Double Indemnity
(Billy Wilder, 1944)
4.
The Killers
(Robert Siodmak, 1946)
5.
Outrage
(Ida Lupino, 1950)
HMs:
Force of Evil (1948) - Key Largo (1948)
The Letter (1940) - Angels Over Broadway (1940) - Ladies in Retirement (1941) - The Shanghai Gesture (1941) - Strange Alibi (1941) - Blues in the Night (1941) - The Glass Key (1942) - Moontide (1942) - Street of Chance (1942) - The Seventh Victim (1943) - Phantom Lady (1944) - The Suspect (1944) - The Woman in the Window (1944) - Leave Her to Heaven (1945) - Hangover Square (1945) - The Lost Weekend (1945) - Scarlet Street (1945) - Detour (1945) - Mildred Pierce (1945) - The Stranger (1946) - The Big Sleep (1946) - The Blue Dahlia (1946) - Out of the Past (1947) - Odd Man Out (1947) - Nightmare Alley (1947) - Body and Soul (1947) - Born to Kill (1947) - Act of Violence (1948) - Raw Deal (1948) - Cry of the City (1948) - All My Sons (1948) - Moonrise (1948) - House of Strangers (1949) - Side Street (1949) - Tension (1949) - Impact (1949) - The Asphalt Jungle (1950) - In a Lonely Place (1950) - Whirlpool (1950) - Sunset Blvd. (1950) - Gun Crazy (1950) - Night and the City (1950) - Undercover Girl (1950) - On Dangerous Ground (1951) - Detective Story (1951) - Fourteen Hours (1951) - Strangers on a Train (1951) - Don't Bother to Knock (1952) - The Bigamist (1953) - Niagara (1953) - Girl on the Run (1953) - Human Desire (1954) - Killer's Kiss (1955) - The Killing (1956) - The Wrong Man (1956) - Teenage Doll (1957) - Touch of Evil (1958) - The Bonnie Parker Story (1958) - Odds Against Tomorrow (1959)
the sound of your racing heart -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 07:03 PM)
So a top five would really be mostly a "best of Billy Wilder" lmao So I'll do a top ten
Double Indemnity
(Billy Wilder, 1944)
The Lost Weekend
(Billy Wilder, 1945)
The Big Sleep
(Howard Hawks, 1946)
Detour
(Edgar G. Ulmer, 1945)
Sunset Boulevard
(Billy Wider, 1950)
The Night of the Hunter
(Charles Laughton, 1955)
Raw Deal
(Anthony Mann, 1948)
Laura
(Otto Preminger, 1944)
No Way Out
(Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1950)
The Big Heat
(Fritz Lang, 1953)
Any guesses who my favorite director of the era is?
I still need to watch Ida Lupino's directorial efforts though.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
Sophienoire — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 07:06 PM)
i'm finished editing my HMs lol
yes i see your fav haha…
No Way Out
is an impressive effort given the stuff it covers and deals with at that time imo but i'm sad to say that
Laura
left me cold. aaaand i'm gonna rewatch
The Big Heat
soon, my memory needs a refresh on that! the rest i love as well.
I still need to watch Ida Lupino's directorial efforts though.
fyi her noirs are:
Outrage
The Bigamist
The Hitchhiker
and she co-directed
On Dangerous Ground
the sound of your racing heart -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 07:11 PM)
Speaking of Lang, though, if we're doing a best movies that led to the creation of noir,
M
tops the list for sure. And
The Petrified Forest
. Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, and a secluded diner… Too bad it wasn't made like a half decade later.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026 -
sheetsadam1 — 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 07:26 PM)
I haven't watched that one. I mostly just know Fonda from his (decidedly un-noir) work with John Ford, plus
Once Upon a Time in the West
obviously. I did watch all of the early Robinson, Cagney, and Muni crime films I could get my hands on several years ago and
The Roaring Twenties
, directed by the great Raoul Walsh, was my favorite of all of them.
"Praise be to Allah." - President Donald J. Trump, Easter Sunday 04/05/2026
— 7 months ago(August 18, 2025 06:01 PM)
he's a good actor, but i just can't warm up to him.