Behind Green Lights (US, 1946)

Noir take on political intrigue and vulture journalism and there's a cool "stiff escapes on way to morgue" episode in there as well. Short and good fun, has this quality noir been neglected by the aficionados..?

Looper (2012)

Being by nature slow, I didn't 'get' this; a read of the wiki article didn't make it much easier to understand either. But, in a good way; the film is enjoyable, and young Joe's line "Your face is backwards" is memorable. The dark, dystopian, in places futuristic look-and-feel is convincing. It's a thought-provoking and well made thriller. Could do with seeing it again.

I Love Trouble (US, 1948)

Go the the archive.org Film Noir section. Look up 'em all up on IMDB. Note the ones that get a rating of 7 or more. Watch the movie. Repeat. That's the formula. It works for me, now you try it.

I Love Trouble is one of these. The plot is incidental, all the noir qualities are here, and it's just another good, enjoyable genre piece. The gold-jacketed Janis Carter is bewitchingly stunning as...whoever she is.

Barbara (DE, 2012)

Unlaboured, well-stated portrayal of the quotidian travails faced by a young woman doctor, transferred from Berlin to a small village during the GDR dictatorship.

The ending may seem somewhat hopeful. It's not a monumental earth-shattering masterpiece a la Das Leben der Anderen, but it is a good film.

Point Blank (US, 1967)

Mentalist crime drama with a twist at the end; it's a good film, but just a tiny tad less good than its retrospective critical stature would suggest. The conspirational tone/atmospherics comparable with The Parallax View, The Conversation both of which it predates by appprox 7 years.

This showing in a Boorman retrospective as part of the Queen's Festival, Belfast.

Liberal Arts (US, 2012)

Went to this on the basis of Elizabeth Olsen's top notch performance in Martha Marcy May Marlene, one of my top 2 films of 2012 so far, and also on the strength of the trailer. It's subtly soppy and striving for 'meaningfulness' in places, but not a bad show; Olsen's character is embarrassingly over-earnest by times, perhaps deliberately - she carries it off very well and it's further proof of her ability as an actress.

Just a little short of 7/10.

O'Horten (NO, 2007)

Decent, nicely produced 'slice of life' from Norway; the eponymous railway employee's last day of work before his retirement brings some slightly unexpected diversions. A simple, human and likeable film in vaguely similar territory to Bombon El Perro and unkindly underrated by IMDB users.

Woman on the Run (US, 1950)

An excellent, delicious noir, with sharp, no-nonsense, funny dialogue, strong performances all round, nicely framed photography and some quality cityscapes. Short and thoroughly enjoyable, the archive.org 'transfer' isn't the best quality, but don't let that put you off.

Holy Motors (FR, 2012)

Leos Carax has been a minor favourite for some years (minor in the sense that he's not been prolific, understandable given the nature and quality of his work), since having the privilege of seeing retrospective of his work at Cork's annual French Film Festival. The year was (I think) 2000, the venue the now sadly defunct Kino, where many a gem was aired; truly the jewel of the Real Capital's cinematic alternatives. It was the only fully independent arthouse cinema in Ireland.

His excellent earlier works (Boy Meets Girl, Mauvais Sang and Pola X) have in common some of the finest lyrical and atmospheric cinematography of modern times, and a credible, yet comparatively conventional preoccupation with young love. Holy Motors represents a departure for the director; fractured, in places richly colouful (recalling Terence Malick's The Tree of Life) and lacking a discernable plot, which of course, is no bad thing.

Denis Lavant alternates as a beggar, agent of industrial espionage, savage, assassin, modern father, moribund parent and other things in this rather inexplicable (in a good way) film. It's remarkable for its sheer variety, colourfulness and nonsensicalness. As one would expect, the cinematography and photography are top-rate stuff.

Time Table (US, 1956)

A steady 'inside-job' noir, with a "there's no such thing as a perfect crime" strapline. The closing scenes among its strongest. A good quality version is legally viewable at archive.org.

Rien ne vas plus (FR, 1997)

Isabelle Huppert leads as the a con-artist preying upon wealthy men at business conferences etc. The film starts off well, but the main set-piece is somewhat lacking. Not bad, but not among 90's Chabrol's best.