Official Film Noir on Blu-ray Thread

[Harakiri41]

Just had Into The Dark: The Hidden World of Film Noir 1941-1950 (by Mark A. Vieira) arrive on my doorstep today. I have considered watching the films listed in chronological order. Should be a good journey into perhaps the greatest film genre of all time.

[The Great Owl]

In the Movies Forum, someone started a thread asking people to list their Top 50 films noir.

Here is the link to the thread.

My Top 50 list was a fun way for me to spend 30 minutes or so this afternoon. I know that I'm leaving out a great many classics.

[Harakiri41]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

In the Movies Forum, someone started a thread asking people to list their Top 50 films noir.

Here is the link to the thread.

My Top 50 list was a fun way for me to spend 30 minutes or so this afternoon. I know that I'm leaving out a great many classics.

I will enjoy browsing both, thank you sir!

[MifuneFan]

Criterion has offically announced a release for They Live By Night (1948)! Release date is set for June 13th.

https://www.criterion.com/films/2871...-live-by-night

Disc Features

New 2K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
Audio commentary featuring film historian Eddie Muller and actor Farley Granger
New video interview with film critic Imogen Sara Smith
Short piece from 2007 with film critic Molly Haskell, filmmakers Christopher Coppola and Oliver Stone, and film noir specialists Alain Silver and James Ursini
Illustrated audio interview excerpts from 1956 with producer John Houseman
PLUS: A new essay by film scholar Bernard Eisenschitz

New cover by Mark Chiarello

[MeMynonsense]

^ When this was initially speculated in the newsletter clue I confused this with the Bogie, Lupino, Raft starrer They Drive by Night (Which IMO is a far better movie than this). Anyway looks like a rewatch beckons.

[rocknblues81]

I was just discussing it in the official thread, but shouldn't Dick Tracy be listed? What about Killer Joe?

[The Great Owl]

Last night, I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to ignore my growing stack of still-unwatched Blu-rays so that I could shake the dust off of an old film noir favorite, Sweet Smell of Success.

I believe that this is still perhaps the best Criterion Blu-ray transfer of a black-and-white film. James Wong Howe's cinematography really places us front and center in the "dirty town."

Here's my User Review from a few years back (2013, in fact. I cannot believe that four years have passed since I last watched this Blu-ray.)...



Burt Lancaster's J.J. Hunsecker walks through Manhattan's club district and states, "I love this dirty town." As I watched the Criterion Blu-ray of Alexander Mackendrick's Sweet Smell of Success last night, I also could not help falling in love with the bustling visage of the seedy 1950s Manhattan club district, with all its bright lights shining through a gauzy haze of vehicle exhaust and cigarette smoke. The beauty of Blu-ray lies in the fact that old movies no longer look like "old movies" when they are lovingly restored for the high definition presentation, and this 1957 masterpiece of dialogue-driven film noir excels in the format so that these flashy streets and shadowy dive bar interiors pop out of the screen.

Sweet Smell of Success moves at an electrifying pace that belies its age, and it quickly drags the bewildered viewer through its realm, just as one might be led through a densely crowded corner bar by an intoxicated acquaintance. A lesser film would have presented us with a slower exposition explaining how the shady high-powered newspaper columnist, J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster), has tasked a bottom-feeding press agent, Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis), with breaking up a relationship between Hunsecker's sister, Susan, and her jazz musician boyfriend by pulling strings within the gossip column inner circles, but Sweet Smell of Success simply pulls us off the streets and thrusts us into the fray of busy interactions and multi-layered jargon without any preliminary setup. The movie wastes no time placing us into the rat race firsthand so that we, like the beleaguered Sidney Falco, are constantly grasping for footholds to elevate us above the crowd.

The interesting thing about the rat race is that even the ones who win are still rats. With its story of desperate characters driven to corruption, prostitution, and desolate loneliness in the "manufactured necessity" world of media gossip culture, Sweet Smell of Success places us in the front row to watch the fall of the American dream up close. Like The Great Gatsby before it, and like Wall Street and Glengarry Glen Ross after it, Sweet Smell of Success relishes in the darker side of wealth and consumerism where hyenas seek fresh carcasses at any cost after the lions make the kills. Despite its bleak plot framework, however, Sweet Smell of Success still somehow proves to be an irresistibly rewarding cinematic venture. Traces of hope are still salvaged even in the smoky corners of crowded clubs and high rise apartments while the frenzied tempos of the jazz soundtrack keep us excited in the light and shadows.

[MassiveMovieBuff]

Originally Posted by rocknblues81

I was just discussing it in the official thread, but shouldn't Dick Tracy be listed? What about Killer Joe?

Yeah Dick Tracy should IMO 100%. It's a film noir and a great one at that. I wanted to put that on my list really bad but just couldn't fit it in unfortunately.

Killer Joe I'm not sure on. I didn't see it as a traditional film noir but it might have elements. I don't remember much of that one. Didn't really like that much.

[noirjunkie]

The review for Another Man's Poison (1951) just went up, and given that it's ClassicFlix's inaugural blu-ray release, a lot of us have been waiting to see how it would fare--especially since they have a lot of noir releases in the pipeline.

Thankfully, the picture quality looks outstanding. The review gives it a 4.5/5, so this hopefully bodes well for the Anthony Mann noirs as well as the company's other upcoming releases.

[drb124]

The ClassicFlix movies would seem to be good candidates from BN's 40% off sale unless we get some price drops before then. I want to support them, but I don't know that I really want to pay Criterion prices if I can help it.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by drb124

The ClassicFlix movies would seem to be good candidates from BN's 40% off sale unless we get some price drops before then. I want to support them, but I don't know that I really want to pay Criterion prices if I can help it.

I pre-ordered Another Man's Poison for $22 and change from Amazon yesterday, and the price is down to $20 and change right now. That's not bad for an indie label release for a niche audience.

[drb124]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I pre-ordered Another Man's Poison for $22 and change from Amazon yesterday, and the price is down to $20 and change right now. That's not bad for an indie label release for a niche audience.

That's a fair point. I am very glad that these are coming, and I do hope that they prove to be successful.

[NoirFan]

Another Man's Poison will be $18.64 from DD during their next sale (with no sales tax, and another .74 back from topcashback).

[noirjunkie]

Originally Posted by drb124

The ClassicFlix movies would seem to be good candidates from BN's 40% off sale unless we get some price drops before then. I want to support them, but I don't know that I really want to pay Criterion prices if I can help it.

That's when I'm planning to buy this one.

[Blueherring]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

By popular demand, we now have a thread dedicated to Film Noir on Blu-ray. Film noir is a rather broad category, so it shouldn't surprise anyone one that it isn't easily defined

Just wanted to say that I love this thread! Great to read all about all the Noir films in one place. Discovered some time ago that it was my favourite category of movie when my collection database said I had an over representation of that film category in my collection



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Keymaster]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

My Top 50 list was a fun way for me to spend 30 minutes or so this afternoon. I know that I'm leaving out a great many classics.

Owl, I looked over your top 50 list, and I'm missing the following titles on blu-ray:

OWNED ON DVD:
34. D.O.A. (1950)
42. Pickup on South Street (1953)

NOT OWNED IN EITHER FORMAT:
5. Detour (1945)
6. Criss Cross (1949)
12. Private Hell 36 (1954)
13. On Dangerous Ground (1951)
14. Act of Violence (1948)
17. Nightmare Alley (1947)
18. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
22. Murder, My Sweet (1944)
23. Pitfall (1948)
26. The Prowler (1950)
28. Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950)
30. Too Late for Tears (1949)
31. Scarlet Street (1945)
32. Raw Deal (1948)
33. Gun Crazy (1950)
36. The Big Combo (1955)
37. City That Never Sleeps (1953)
40. Decoy (1946)
41. The Narrow Margin (1952)
43. The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
44. The Scar (Hollow Triumph) (1948)
45. Crashout (1955)
46. Hell's Half Acre (1954)
47. The Woman in the Window (1944)
49. The Set-Up (1949)
50. Crossfire (1947)

I own 22 on blu-ray and 24 total. What surprises me is that I only have two on DVD. It looks like I've got some heavy lifting to do, because I love noirs...

Owl, from this list, what are the "next five" noirs I should purchase on blu, provided they've gotten the upgrade already, of course?

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Blueherring

Just wanted to say that I love this thread! Great to read all about all the Noir films in one place. Discovered some time ago that it was my favourite category of movie when my collection database said I had an over representation of that film category in my collection

Thanks, and glad to have you here It's really such a great place to learn about noir, and discuss it with fellow fans.

[MifuneFan]

Just want to give everyone the heads-up, that Indicator's upcoming release of The Big Heat dropped to £14.99 at Amazon UK. With shipping added, and VAT removed, it's about $20 USD. It probably won't get any cheaper. This is a completely region free release.


https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Bi...lu-ray/170647/

INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION SPECIAL FEATURES:

Audio commentary by film historians Lem Dobbs, Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman
New filmed appreciation by film historian Tony Rayns
Martin Scorsese on The Big Heat
Michael Mann on The Big Heat
Isolated score
Original theatrical trailer
Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography
New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by critic Glenn Kenny
Limited Dual Format Edition of 3,000 copies
UK Blu-ray premiere

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Keymaster

Owl, I looked over your top 50 list, and I'm missing the following titles on blu-ray:

[Show spoiler]OWNED ON DVD:
34. D.O.A. (1950)
42. Pickup on South Street (1953)

NOT OWNED IN EITHER FORMAT:
5. Detour (1945)
6. Criss Cross (1949)
12. Private Hell 36 (1954)
13. On Dangerous Ground (1951)
14. Act of Violence (1948)
17. Nightmare Alley (1947)
18. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
22. Murder, My Sweet (1944)
23. Pitfall (1948)
26. The Prowler (1950)
28. Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950)
30. Too Late for Tears (1949)
31. Scarlet Street (1945)
32. Raw Deal (1948)
33. Gun Crazy (1950)
36. The Big Combo (1955)
37. City That Never Sleeps (1953)
40. Decoy (1946)
41. The Narrow Margin (1952)
43. The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
44. The Scar (Hollow Triumph) (1948)
45. Crashout (1955)
46. Hell's Half Acre (1954)
47. The Woman in the Window (1944)
49. The Set-Up (1949)
50. Crossfire (1947)

Owl, from this list, what are the "next five" noirs I should purchase on blu, provided they've gotten the upgrade already, of course?

Since I've ranked the films on my Top 50 list by preference, I would recommend the first five that you see on the list.

[lemonski]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

Detour is perhaps THE film noir. Nothing else really needs said.

I thought I'd seen Detour before, but no....watched it last night, and it's pretty great. I'll have to push something off my top 50 list to make way for it.

Does anyone else have the same problem as me remembering which noirs they've seen, with so many of them having very generic names?