Nebraska (US 2103)

What is it about the run-up to Christmas that seems to bring some truly excellent movies and greatly reduced audiences to QFT?

Blue is the Warmest Colour/La vie d'Adèle (FR, 2013)

Arrived at QFT to discover my membership had lapsed over 3 months ago.

Crashout (US, 1955)

Good prison breakout drama from the noir era, with some noir photography, but not a noir in its own right. Dependable noir regular William Bendix shows his mug again.

The Dark Corner (US, 1946)

A noir with Lucille Ball in it? Yes indeed, and not a bad one either, with some very good photography, especially at the beginning, and not the first happily-ever-after noir with an investigator and his hard-to-get secretary.

Strangers on a Train (US, 1951)

I'm going to utter a heresy: Hitchcock was good, but a bit overrated (IMHO).

Le Grand Amour (FR, 1969)

It's slightly pompous and boring filmmaking, but the saturated colouring of the era, and the featured locales make it passably watchable (à la Jacques Tati).

Somewhere in the Night (US, 1946)

The YT copy is of good quality, and while the film isn't bad, it's not the most convincing of noirs. The quality of the supporting cast (Richard Conte et al) has been commented upon.

Night Moves (US, 1975)

Another from the golden age of gritty and sometimes gloomily conspirational mid-1970's American cinema (of which there are a few reviewed elsewhere on this blog - Chinatown, Point Blank (1967), The Parallax View).

Baby Face Nelson (US, 1956)

Mickey Rourke in the title role as an aggressive, trigger happy mobster.

Phantom Lady (US, 1944)

One of many notable noirs directed by Robert Siodmak, and one of a few noirs to feature the daintily beautiful Ella Raines.

La Grande Bellezza (IT/FR, 2013)

An Italo-Franco coproduction, visually striking, inventive and colourful.

Dark Mirror (US, 1946)

A psychological film from the noir period, with a few instances of noir-inflected background photography, but not a real noir.

Black Angel (US, 1946)

Another lunchtime noir with Peter Lorre in it. How bad.

99 River Street (US, 1953)

A fairly representative noir, with its slightly imperfect plotting, and some notable nocturnal dockside photography.

Night and the City (UK, 1950)

A wiseguy American hustler muscles in on the wrestling underworld of London, but is soon out of his depth.

This Gun for Hire (US, 1942)

One of many Graham Greene cinema adaptations, this thriller is notable for its pristine noir photogrpahy and the performance of the lovely Veronica Lake - particularly the nightclub MC/chanteuse scenes.

The Locket (US, 1946)

Moderately interesting/curious psychological melodrama, original in choppy kind of way; only some camera angles faintly hint at noir.

Where the Sidewalk Ends (US, 1950)

This is another good noir, of the 'tough cop' variety this time.

Armored Car Robbery (US, 1950)

This is a marvellous, compelling, realistic compact little gem of a crime noir.

Billy Budd (UK, 1962)

It was during the Summer of 1997 while working in the westernmost hotel in Ireland (and, by extension, Europe) that I read Herman Melville's classic Billy Budd, Sailor.

The Man with the Golden Arm (US, 1955)

Unlikely looking star Frank Sinatra stars in one of the first ever movies to deal sensitively with the topic of drug addiction.

Frances Ha (US, 2012)

Articulates very well the confusion, delusion, aimlessness and humility of being an impoverished, lower middle-class, mid-late twentysomething out-of-towner struggling to find a place in the big city.

Only God Forgives (US/TH, 2013)

A circle of sometimes grizzly revenge slayings, not lacking in visual lavishness; difficult to know what to make of it, but in a more positive than negative way.

The Big Clock (US, 1948)

Decent enough thriller with some interesting, stylish NY interiors, and a plot that nods towards noir tendencies, but it is not a noir film in itself.

The Enforcer (1951)

Fairly solid noirish piece in which Bogey tries to nail the boss of a contract hire firm.

The Stranger (US, 1946)

Noirish piece in which a holocaust architect living under an assumed identity in Massachussetts is pursued by the Allied War Crimes Tribunal.

The Set-Up (US, 1949)

Somewhat overrated boxing drama with some incidental noir photography towards the end.

Loft (NL, 2010)

Semi-stylish, semi-interesting thriller, but it's a bit too busy/clever, with too many twists, personnel and subplots, and overemphasis on what initially seems like incidental dialogue.

Inspecteur Lavardin (FR, 1986)

An unexceptional piece from Chabrol's sometimes sketchy mid period.

The East (US, 2013)

A twenty something PI infiltrates a radical ecologist group, with some unexpected results.

Before Midnight (US, 2013)

The latest installment in what's now Linklater's Jesse/Celine trilogy.

The Big Steal (US, 1949)

Light and enjoyable, there's little by way of noir photography in it, but the slightly madcap plot and witty dialogue are noir.

Bedlam (US, 1946)

It's included in Michael F. Keaney's Film Noir Guide. At a stretch, some shots carry a noir feel, but it's a period drama, not a noir. Noir was strictly there-and-then, and any attempt to portray the past or future just is not noir.

Stoker/Kochegar (RU, 2010) / Aleksey Balabanov RIP

There's a strong strand of historical recompense at play here, but it doesn't get in the way of some good, matter-of-fact and occasionally quite funny action. A link is made between modern-day gangsters and the latter-day soviet apparatchiks and their common exploitation of the Yakuts.

Byzantium (IE/UK, 2012)

Visually above average (there is Ms Arterton in black leather at a beheading) but it's not entirely convincing and there are better vampire yarns out there. An upper six-out-of-ten.

Scarecrow (US, 1973)

Gene Hackman and a young Al Pacino in an overrated buddy/road movie. Moderately interesting as "of its time".

Populaire (FR, 2012)

French rom-com, colourful and well produced. One for the girls.

The Great Gatsby (US/AU, 2013)

It's a watchable film, but not as good as everyone says it is. Much preferred the underrated 1974 version with Robert Redford.

The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

A rather exasperating but extremely good-looking and artistic film, featuring a lithe, well-dusted pre-Berlin Bowie.

All the King's Men (US, 1949)

The corrupt politician tale is nothing new, but done here in a manner that still seems fresh even today. Quite original in tone, well produced, and with strong performances all round.

Beat the Devil (UK/US/IT, 1953)

Not a film noir, but rather a caper comedy of manners - seems John Houston was sending everyone up here.

The Big Knife (US, 1955)

A somewhat dated and overacted melodrama; the only hints of noir are some occasional camera angles.

Crossfire (US, 1947)

A Noir-ish to noir film noir with a very clear message.

The Place Beyond the Pines (US, 2012)

Echoes of Drive here; when the action 'suite' ends however, a serious, lengthy rumination on law and order, justice and privilege begins.

The Naked City (US, 1948)

Excellent noir crime thriller with many interesting street scenes in and around Manhattan.

His Kind of Woman (US, 1951)

Interesting film which mixes some very noir parts and other rather un-noir elements, particularly Vincent Price's extended theatrical histrionics towards the end.

Purge (EE/FI, 2012)

A reasonably good and probably quite rare depiction of the occupation/genocide in Estonia, entirely devoid of light relief.

The Fifth Season/La Cinquième Saison (BE/NL/FR, 2012)

Visually very strong and convincingly bizarre but unremittingly and sometimes screechily depressing.

Winter Go Away/Zima, Otkhodi! (RU, 2012)

Vaguely interesting early Spring documentary from the entrenched oligarchy that is modern RU.

The Iceman (US, 2012)

A reasonably good thriller about real-life killer and hitman Richard Kuklinski whose operations continued for close on 40 years.

Una Noche/One Night(CU/US/UK, 2012)

3 young Cubans embark on a journey fraught with considerable danger.

Narrow Margin (US, 1952)

Good noir thriller, set aboard a train, with some unforeseen swerves. Marie Windsor is fabulous as the original protectee.

Good Vibrations (IE/UK, 2012)

A very difficult film to get right. Thankfully, the script avoids 'deep' or academic/sociological statement-making in respect of the troubles/sectarianism or the 'meaningfulness' of punk in favour of the spontaneity of punk and indeed of Belfast and its people. Richard Dormer is excellent as Good Vibes mogul Terri Hooley whose huge-hearted 'caution to the wind' was beset by personal and financial difficulties.

Dans la Maison (FR, 2012)

Too easy to wholly dismiss as pretentious, boring, intellectual and arty, but it's certainly in that vein. Expected more but was ultimately glad when this ended.

The kind of film which would confirm the suspicions of anyone skeptical about arthouse or 'foreign' cinema.

Betty (FR, 1992)

First Chabrol in over 2 months. Based on the novel by Georges Simenon, it relates the story of the unfortunate eponymous lost soul and other characters frequenting an intriguingly bizarre and slightly seedy nighttime locale Le Trou.

Marie Trintignant is solid as the beautiful, fragile, alcoholic Betty. Notable also for the re-appearance of the still eminently presentable former sex symbol (and by this stage long time divorcee of the director), Stéphane Audran. The very ending is a tad confusing, but this film remains a slightly underrated piece from Chabrol's later period.

End of Watch (US, 2012)

2 rookie cop buddies (one Caucasian the other Latino) on the beat in gritty LA. It's not a bad film but there are lots more like it.

Silver Linings Playbook (US, 2012)

If as a twenty-something last decade you enjoyed Garden State, then this one's for the thirty-something you.

A conventional romance, sure, but it's got at in an orignal, offbeat and heartwarmingly articulate way, and it's a beter movie than its 00's counterpart.

Hard to see how anything's gonna top this this year.

No (CL/FR/US 2012)

This naturalistic documentary-like feature traces the effective popular opposition to Pinochet's regime.

The film succeeds is in looking like it was from 1988, both it terms of props, costumes and visual effects.

Deservedly talked-up, this is one of the year's better films.

Stephen Dwoskin - Various Shorts - Anthology Film Archive NYC Retrospective

ALONE (US, 1963)
ASLEEP (US, 1961)
CHINESE CHECKERS (1964)
NAISSANT (US/UK)
SOLILOQUY (UK, 1964)
ME MYSELF AND I (US/UK, 1967)
DIRTY (UK, 1967)

Art for art's sake and....zzzzzz....

If you really could be bothered, have a look here.

Worth it though for a visit to the austere red-bricked AFA building, which was once a courthouse, and fields an otherwise excellent programme.

Dupa Dealuri/Beyond the Hills (RO/FR/BE, 2012)

Long, bleak and grim tale of orphaned friends, largely taking place in a monastery of orthodox nuns outside of smalltown RO.

Proof though that the fall of the iron curtain has not signalled the end of very good-looking films from Eastern Europe.

Leviathan (FR/UK/US, 2012)

Vivid nocturnal tones and a unique 'there' angle punctuate this almost wordless documentary about the grimly unglamorous world of sea trawler fishing.

Man of Iron/Czlowiek z Zelaza (PL, 1981)

A 'there and then' account of the rise of Solidarity, focussing one of its leaders, an ordinary and unassuming young man of the people, and a disposable Party investigator who's put on the case.

A valuable document of the dictatorship period and winner of 1981's Palme d'Or.

The Basketball Fix (US, 1951)

Available in the film noir section of the archive.org website, it's not a bad little film, but more of a sports crime drama than a noir.

Blonde Ice (US, 1948)

This is a reasonably good little noir, undeservedly dismissed by both IMDB voters and in Michael Keaney's Film Noir Guide.

A noir it is, Lelie Brooks is excellent as the ruthless, perversely alluring socially climbing sexpot.

The archive.org version is of good quality.

Angel Face (US, 1952)

An OK crime drama with some incidental noir photography.

My Beautiful Laundrette (UK, 1985)

Contrived, overrated and undeservedly lauded as an early in-yer-face gay liberation film.

That said, there's a clear directorial 'something' here; the nightclub scenes in particular offer an interesting glimpse of mid-80's London.

Of its time, difficult to see how some aspects of this movie would be acceptable in today's PC dictatorship.

Inner Sanctum (US, 1948)

A flimsy enough noir-ish piece, perked up somewhat by the presence of Lee Patrick, who also appears in The Maltese Falcon. The opening scene of the movie is its 'noirest' and there's an interesting variation on it later on.

A public domain film, legally viewable online.

Bullhead (BE/NL, 2011)

Rising star Matthias Schoenaerts puts in another intense toughguy performance (cf Rust and Bone) in what is again an original, complex and interesting and by times brutal movie. There is, despite the subject matter and general downbeat tone, some notably poetic quotidian visuals.

Leave her to Heaven (US, 1945)

An overrated and slightly boring film, sometimes classified as a noir. It's in bright techicolor.

Zero Dark Thirty (US, 2012)

As expected, it's a patriotic pro-American film, and also good drama.

Unpleasant aspects of the op aren't shied away from, but there's no mistaking the message here.

The Chase (US, 1946)

Another reasonable noir - and definitely a noir, with some interesting plot manipulation going on.

Yes, it's on archive.org.

Peter Lorre, one of the faces of noir, is once again magnificent as the Boss's henchman.

The Lady from Shanghai (US, 1947)

An examplary film noir, and surely one of the most aesthetic.

Gangster Squad (US, 2012)

A reasonable action movie with some bits in it which seem unlikely, and it's a tad formulaic. The movie recounts a hitsquad of handpicked policemen recruited to dish out some of the 'ol extrajudiciary killings in crime-ridden 1950's LA.

The costumes and sets/props are good and the Gosling/Penn pairing works pretty well, as one would expect.

The Amazing Mr X (US, 1948)

A noir-ish drama in which a manipulative conman spiritualist preys upon local rich woman including one whose husband is recently deceased. But is he really dead?

It's not a bad, short little noir; picture quality on archive.org isn't the greatest, which is a shame as it's almost entirely filmed by night, at locations near the sea.

Special mention to Lynn Bari as lead female Christine, whose beautiful voice alone is worth watching the movie for.

Ice Cold in Alex (UK, 1958)

North Africa, 1942. A British medical/transport crew must traverse the mine-laden desert as well as contending with a rickety ambulance, the boiling heat and an extra passenger who may or may not be a German spy.

An excellent, humane, believable and well produced war drama, and the source of the famous, long-playing Carlsberg TV advert.

Django Unchained (US, 2012)

Certainly some similarities here with Inglorious Basterds, transplanted to pre civil war America.

Again, it's unrealistic and slighly long; I've been inclined to think that Tarantino ran out of steam from Kill Bill onwards, but his films are still entertaining romps.

Chinatown (US, 1974)

An evocative neo-noir masterpiece, difficult to stop the tears at the film's conclusion.

All the better of being viewed on the silver screen, where the conspirational atmospherics can shine through. A classic.

The Story of Women / Une Affaire de Femmes (FR, 1988)

One of a few of Chabrol's both set during the occupation and starring Isabelle Huppert; this time concerning an abortionist and her cuckold husband.

Another from late period Chabrol, and undeniably among his better work.

The Impossible (ES, 2012)

Funded by Spanish government and regional authorities (the survivors on whose story the film is based are Spanish) with Anglophone actors and English dialogue, it's a reasonably good thriller, even if some of the events seem a little convenient. The excellent special FX are very realistic however; it's this aspect of it which 'makes' the movie, especially if seen on the silver screen.

The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (US, 1959)

Interesting, serious heist B-movie starring a pre-fame Steve McQueen; based on real events, with some of the same police officers who were called to the scene of the real heist. Only weakness is the subplot; visually however, the film could not be faulted; The external (street) footage and the bar scenes in particular very effectively convey "an atmopshere".

Is it a noir? The eternal question...some of the tropes are present but it has more of a slight post-noir feel.

Legally available for viewing gratis in the film noir section of the archive.org website. The video quality is good. Certainly worth a watch and should have a higher rating on IMDB.

The Colour of Pomegranates (AM/RU, 1968)

Short, loosely-structured anecdotal/episodic illustration of Armenian poet Sayat Nova's life and times. Visually rich, with a Pasolini-esque look and feel, and a similar focus on rural language, dress, customs, and utilising local non-actors. Not much of a story going on here, but it's colourful and very good-looking.

Soviet censor's restructuring of the film accounts for the jittery editing in places. This Soviet version is the one contained on DVD.

Suddenly (US, 1954)

Frank Sinatra as as ugly, nasty would-be assassin. Sterling Hayden as the big smalltown cop; it is a good pairing.

Is it a noir? It takes place entirely by day, in a small town...what makes it noir~ish is the conspirational atmosphere, and the manner in which things go awry.

It's worth a watch, sure, and guess what? It's available for viewing legally and for free at archive.org.

Top 5 Films of 2012

As before, the only rule here is that they been seen on the silver screen.

5. She Monkeys (SE, 2011)
4. Polisse (FR, 2011)
3. Goodbye First Love/Un Amour de Jeunesse (FR, 2011)
2. Martha Marcy May Marlene (US, 2011)
1. Santa Sangre (MX/IT, 1989)

Highway Dragnet (US, 1954)

Noir~ish crime drama in which a Korean vet somehow becomes the fall guy for a murder he did not commit. The story takes a number of swerves which are difficult to swallow; while the film isn't brilliant it's not unendearing either. The great Richard Conte is cool and serious as always.

Being There (US, 1979)

The butler/gardener without a past (an on-form Peter Sellers) through happenstance becomes a close confidante of powerful advisors and the prez himself. Despite knowing nothing of the world - he has never ventured out of the brownstone where he lived and worked all his life - his simplistic utterances are profoundly resonant in the corridors of power and the media.

A parallel might be drawn here between yesteryear's Hal Ashby and today's Alexander Payne: inherently decent, high quality, upper-level entertainment.