It's not in the Criterion Collection, but there's a film noir film I WISH they would put in there: Out of the Past (1947), with Robert Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Geer. It's just a phenomenal movie.
Kudos for including Fuller's Pickup on South Street. Thelma Ritter was devastating as a police informer who goes around selling neckties to men as though she were offering them nooses to hang themselves. Her death scene is best thing she ever did - from the darkest pits of noir.
My 95 year old Mom died recently. We tried to get her to watch these old movies with us, her reply was I seen em all when they were in the theater, I don't need to see em again. My wife and I watched them many times, stopping and going back to catch a phrase, look up a minor character actor, etc. We wrung all we could out of them.
I love all your choices. Film noir is one of my favourite genres. I also enjoy Double Indemnity, The Big Sleep, Night and the City, Touch of Evil, The Maltese Falcon, The Asphalt Jungle, The Killers, Key Largo, Brute Force, Out of the Past, Sunset Boulevard, The Lady from Shanghai, The Third Man, The Killing, Call Northside 777, Laura, Gun Crazy etc...
I too love your list - what is noir is so subjective. Never thought of Laura as one but it is a favorite so we can keep it there...:) If forced to choose one I'll go with Double Indemnity. Oh and the Third Man...
DARK PASSAGE with Bogie & Bacall is a good one....Agnes Moorehead is in there, too. Great character actors in the periphery, too. written by David Goodis, if the name means anything to you - I love his stuff.
My favourite is Nightmare Alley starring Tyrone Power, a strange film, I first saw it on Channel 4 in the 1980s late at night, I’ve always remembered it.
@@Jimmy1982Playlists The Killing is a good one too. I never really know which films I can include in the film noir category, but some of my favorites from this time period include The Sweet Smell of Success and The Breaking Point.
Yep, a great one. Can’t think of another film, noir or otherwise that has such a beautiful narrative flow. Saw a double bill with it and the Killing years back which I also love. But but I enjoy AJ more.
The only thing that I would add would be Double Indemnity which I was elated came to the collection. That and Mildred Pierce are in my top 30 favorite films. I have steadily added more Criterion noir to my collection (next will hopefully be Kiss Me Deadly!) and a handful are blind buys. I just picked up Gilda in October and watched it today for the first time and was blown away by Hayworth and Mate's cinematography. Pickup was also a blind buy and I agree that Widmark knocks it out of the park.
Detour is tied with Double Indemnity for #1 film noir. I’m so glad you also love Detour - such a classic. Some of my other faves are… The Postman Always Rings Twice The Face Behind the Mask The Mask of Dimitrios Three Strangers Murder, My Sweet
Who couldn't love Ann Savage and Tom Neal in "DETOUR". The opening scene of the California desert will remain in your memory. An amazing film sadly not known by many people.
The are many interviews with Ann Savage in her later years on TH-cam. She is a most interesting woman. Tom Neal led a very troubled life dying much too soon.@@kennethhodges3187
Other great noirs: Double Indemnity, Postman Always Rings Twice,The Blue Dahlia, This Gun for Hire, The Glass Key, The Maltese Falcon, The Third Man, Touch of Evil, Kiss of Death, Tension, Odd Man Out, The Killers ( with Burt Lancaster), Night and the City, The Big Heat, The Killing, Laura, Where the Sidewalk Ends, The Big Sleep, and the Woman in the Window. These are from the Classic noir period of 1940s and 50s.
You should have been born 80 years ago when most of these films were in Cinemas but always great to see the younger generation appreciate these classic films not like most of the run of the mill tripe they turn out today! Im afraid all the great Directors and Stars are no longer with us but thankfully have been captured on celluloid for future generations like yourself to discover and enjoy, and they will be watching all these films in 100 years time but on a different format im sure! lol - by the way what happened to one of the greatest film noirs of all time - "Double Indemnity" - ONE OF THE BEST EVER! - Enjoy
Tough, tough choice! _In A Lonely Place, High & Low, The Killing, Double Indemnity, Detour, Kiss Me Deadly, Blast Of Silence, Stray Dogs, Pickup On South Street, Naked City..._ there are many more I'm forgetting. Criterion is a buffet of incredible film noir! Edit: _Blast Of Silence_ is an *unbelievable* little gem that many more need to see! CC needs to put it out on Blu-Ray. I can't forget _Ace In The Hole,_ either... one of Wilder's best. Absolutely incredible performances. _Down By Law_ should be mentioned, as well - a "neo-beat-noir-comedy" as the director put it lol... my favorite Jarmusch. Pure perfection.
Blast of Silence was the Noir that got me hooked on B&W movies. It's still my favorite. With Max the housekeeper from Hart to Hart as the narrator. The first half hour of the Killers is incredible. The rest of the film is pretty average.
Can't believe you didn't mention my absolute favorite film noir on Criterion...THE ASPHALT JUNGLE, which I've probably watched more times than any of the ones you mentioned, all of which I have in my collection.
It’s probably Citizen Kane, at least that’s my favourite. But more interestingly the best noir not in criterion I think is Chahine’s Cairo Station! Noir is one of my favourite sub genres.
One that I learned about reading a book on noir that I absolutely love, and is available from Criterion, is Ride the Pink Horse. If you haven't seen it, can't recommend it enough.
Yes!!! I love that movie. Had it, gave it to someone to watch and now lost contact with them. Wanda Hendrix played a fourteen year old girl that "sees things", and becomes (mutually) attached to Robert Montgomery.
Great noir recommendations and I've seen and have them all. However, although commendable choices, none are in my personal favourites list. Here is my top 10 (in interchangeable order and with a few 'reserves'): • DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944) • SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS (1957) • THE MALTESE FALCON (1941) • LAURA (1944) • CASABLANCA (1942) • ACE IN THE HOLE (1950) • BUILD MY GALLOWS HIGH [AKA 'OUT OF THE PAST'] (1947) • THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1946) • I WAKE UP SCREAMING (1941) • WHITE HEAT (1949) 'Reserve' favourites list: • MURDER, MY SWEET (1944) • THE BIG SLEEP (1946) • SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950) • DETECTIVE STORY (1951)
Though not Criterion and technically not classic 'film noir" I consider 1981's Body Heat as on of my neo noir faves. I recommend watching it with color turned off and you get that vibe of one of the greats, such as Double Indemnity, to which it's similarly structured.
The radio version from SUSPENSE is also a good representative of "In A Lonely Place" and without visuals, you will use your mind as radio was once called "The Theater of the Mind", sadly overlooked these days.
Yes people have commented about 2 great classic, probably the best 2 “Out of the Past” and “Criss Cross” that Criterion should do, I personally think one day they will, even though we have excellent blu ray versions
I agree completely with your choice of film noir! Your comments are right on!!! Criterion needs to get into some of the other film noirs out there. There are so many out there. Another great noir star is Victor Mature.
Detour! Great movie. Thanks for acknowledging it. Another noir movie, unfortunately not in the Criterion Collection, that deserves more respect is "The Chase".
I have to shout out Devil in a Blue Dress. It's an old-school throw back to noirs and it has such charisma and cool to it. I watched it last night and definitely recommend it for Noirvember.
I hadn't seen it since it came out, when I was a kid, until a couple months back. It stands up well... as does _Deep Cover,_ a modern-set noir from the '90s.
@Richard King there’s a bunch of classic noir such as odds against tmrw and high and low that are after 1958. I think the cut off of Touch of Evil isn’t really used much now.
Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Sweet smell of success and Double indemnity are very good. But the top prize in my view goes to The third man! The movie has a spark of genius and the zither music leitmotif is other worldly!
Every film that you selected is great . I would also add : The Maltese Falcon ( the king of noirs in my opinion ) Out of the Past ( my second favourite noir ) Elevator to the Gallows ( soundtrack by Miles Davis ) And , not a Criterion , but the very underrated : Where Danger Lives . It stars Mitchum and the fabulous Faith Domergue . Thanks !
Great list. When I saw you had The Naked City on the list, I thought of the great set "Tales From the Urban Jungle: Brute Force & The Naked City" from Arrow. What a great double bill. If the list could go on forever I would add Out of the Past, Double Indemnity, Rififi, Touch of Evil, Key Largo, The Big Sleep, Force of Evil, Sweet Smell of Success, Gun Crazy, Criss Cross, The Set-Up, The Big Heat, The Killers, They Live By Night, Night of the Hunter, The Maltese Falcon and The Third Man.
Detour is a great little brisk noir. I really enjoyed that one. The atmosphere and characters are great. Some of the events in the very end and how that plays out are probably a little silly and contrived but it doesn't really detract and still a fantastic watch and a great example for newbies to be introduced to the film noir genre with IMHO.
Melville films are great, e.g. Le Cercle Rouge for a late noir. Rififi, of course, which you mentioned I think, and Bob le Flambert (i..e. Bob the Gambler). A good neo-Noir is Thief with James Caan. Classics include Ace in the Hole (dir. Wilder) with Kurt Douglas, which is most excellent. The Third Man is best ever arguably. Out of the Fog is hilarious and well done. A Colt is My Passport. High Sierra. The 39 Steps. Strangers on a Train. Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
The Big Sleep with Bogart would get my choice, although it has a lot of competition. Almost perfect. Touch of Evil was also outstanding, with and by Orson Wells. Very quirky and sinister that one.
“Detour” inspired a good many filmmakers. Guy Maddin, for instance, had a stroke of genius when he cast Detour’s unforgettable, and unbreakable, Ann Savage in the iconic role of The Mother in his masterpiece “My Winnipeg” (2009).
Some of my favourites are: Laura, In A Lonely Place, Where The Sidewalk Ends, Out of the Past, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Black Friday, Fallen Angel - and smaller films like Split Second and Detour.
K, you left out some really truly great ones, I own as well the ones you have, They live by night, the killers, The killing, the asphalt jungle, thieves highway, leave her to Heaven, ride the pink horse, you cannot be forgiven of Double indemnity, Night in the city, and my favorite, Nightmare Alley
A favorite which missed your list, Welles' A Touch of Evil. Dietrich called her role as the gypsy fortune teller her greatest film performance. (And it's said her dark wig was Elizabeth Taylor 's.l).
Favourite Criterion Noir... Detour - Ulmer In a Lonely Place - Ray Killing - Kubrick Kiss Me Deadly (top pick) - Aldrich Night and the City - Dassin Pickup on South Street - Fuller Rififi - Dassin Sweet Smell of Success - MacKendrick Touchez pas au Grisbi - Becker
One movie that never seems to get mentioned or is ever on anybody’s list for conservation (because it seems to be in public domain) is the movie IMPACT 1949. Many plot twists and turns and wonderful shots of San Francisco and Sausalito in the late 40s. A few small things in the plot are a bit much to except as reality but other than that MPACT is very enjoyable. I would love to be able to see it clean, clear print of this movie.
A Genre, I still have to watch a lot. My two favourite Films till now are Out of the Past and Sunset Boulevard. But I also loved Angel Face, for example (one of Godard's Favourite American Films btw. 😉) Thx for all the great Recommendations 😍
I have Criterion's Kiss me Deadly and Detour (Detour looks and sounds amazing after it's restoration). I have a regular DVD of Gilda and would love to have Criterion's In a Lonely Place at some point.
My favorite noir is the one that got me hooked on them. Blast of Silence. It's on Criterion and pretty cheap. It's late noir in 1961. $20,000 Independent movie, shot illegally on the streets of NYC. The writer is also the director and star.
Yeeeeeessss! Didn’t check ahead to see what would be mentioned and so happy to see Pickup on South Street get some love. Sam Fuller is truly an all-time director!
I don’t know if u have seen Out of the Past. Or Laura or Leave her to Heaven. I’ve been collecting classic films since 1990s. I tend to like my film noir with a touch of glamour
DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID isn't one, but it did include the courtesy of citing all the wonderful films they clipped from. Also, THE KILLERS (both 1946 and 1964 versions) are worthwhile
Long after I saw "In a Lonely Place" I read the novel by Dorothy B. Hughes on which it was based, and was startled to find that in the book, Dixon Steele (the character played by Bogart in the movie) is really a serial killer. Oh, how I wish someone today would remake it and return to Hughes' original vision! And I would also recommend two films from the early 1930's I would describe as "proto-noir," William Wellman's "Safe in Hell" and "Gilda" director Charles Vidor's "Sensation Hunters."
Detour occupies a unique place in the pantheon of Noir: a B movie made for peanuts with unknown actors, using the sparest of scenery and effects - and so well-written and executed that you never notice these handicaps. The All-Time Rankings: 1. The Maltese Falcon; 2. Sunset Boulevard; 3. The Big Sleep; 4 and on - all the others.
Nice selections. So many wonderful films mentioned in the comments. I'll toss in one perhaps not as well know as these called 'Dark City (1950) starring Charlton Heston with Lizabeth Scott, Harry Morgan, Ed Begley and Jack Webb.
Wow, this vid and the recommendations in the comments have brought back some great viewing memories. I wanted to mention another great noir film, Scandal Sheet with Briaderick Crawford and Donna Reed. Don't know if it's in the Criterion Collection, though. Two more of my personal favorites are Where the Sidewalk Ends and While the City Sleeps with Dana Andrews.
Blast of Silence (1961). And even though it hasn't had a Criterion release, The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) is noteworthy. Haven't seen the original Italian version, Obsession (1943). Laura (1944) and Detective Story (1951), neither released by Criterion but, worth a watch.
Elliot, I am surprised that you did not mention Night and the City, which is on Criterion. It is one of the great Noirs, with wonderful performances by Richard Widmark and a British cast.
One of my favourites that doesn’t get talked about much is This Gun For Hire (1942), the first onscreen pairing of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. Adapted from the book A Gun For Sale by a young up and coming novelist and film critic called Graham Greene, it’s tense, funny and very cynical. It also features a song and dance number by Veronica Lake and her pet monkey (beat that, Billy Wilder). Ladd”s performance, as the world-weary and vengeance-seeking hitman Raven, was so striking that his name was quickly moved from fifth billing to above the title. Includes a sensational turn by the great Laird Cregar as an oily villain. Other faves are Double Indemnity, The Killers, Out of the Past, Sunset Boulevard and several neo-noirs from subsequent decades: Chinatown, The Grifters, Miller’s Crossing and, of course, LA Confidential. Not sure if it counts as a noir but it’s much in the same vein: Odd Man Out, directed by Carol Reed (The Third Man). One of the movies that made a star of James Mason, who plays a wounded IRA man on the run in an unnamed city (probably Belfast, where it was filmed) in the 1940s.
Out of The Past, no doubt the greatest of all film noirs. Perhaps, one of the greatest movies ever made! Also, Elliot, hold the DVD steady. You move around so much it is distracting. Otherwise, the entire concept of best film noirs is a daunting task, but, no doubt, fun.
Pickup on South Street has to be one of the most underrated films ever. Detour is a shocking one-of-a-kind film that should be studied by ANY young film director. Mildred Pierce is noir melodrama at its best. Ray's In a Lonely Place is just terrific. Adore Gloria Grahame. I would put Out of the Past up there with any of these. Directed by Jacques Tourneur. James M. Cain as co-screenwriter The quintessential noir film. It's got everything. The sense of fate and inevitability. Mitchum and Douglas. Tough guys. Good girl, bad girl. The classic tragic ending. Even a touch of homosexual attraction thrown in for fun. Why Criterion doesn't have it is a mystery. One of the best films ever, let alone one of the best noir films. And, of course, Double Indemnity has to be a contender for the "if you're only ever going to see ONE noir film, see this one" award.
"Kiss Me Deadly" started the "light coming form the suitcase when you open it" trope. That trope was used repeatedly by Quentin Tarantino in "Pulp Fiction". If you want to know where "Kiss me Deadly" got the idea from, just search for, "demon core" on TH-cam.
I'm a filmmaker myself and my first film was heavily influenced by noir. I've written about noir on noir sites. I'm not going to search the Criterion collection to see what they have but they do do an excellent job with their transfers. My seven favorite noirs in no order are Vertigo (yes, a color noir) Touch of Evil, Kiss Me Deadly, Out of the Past, White Heat, The Lineup .and Shoot the Piano Player.
You've included Mildred Pierce, but I'd give a strong recommendation for Michael Curtiz's The Breaking Point, one of John Garfield's last films, a very different adaptation of Hemingway's To Have and Have Not than the Hawks film.
Definitely add blood simple, double indemnity, branded to kill, notorious, the killing, ace in the hole, and blow out to the list of criterion noirs that are must haves. My favorite noir of all time sadly isn’t in the collection though, sunset blvd!
There are about 500 movies made in the USA that meet the true criteria of Film Noir Most of them are included in my collection These are my favorites: Out of the Past Murder My Sweet Double Indemnity Detour Phantom Lady Laura The Big Heat Notorious D.O.A Touch Of Evil Pitfall Key Largo I Walk Alone The Big CLock
Want more FILM NOIR recommendations? Watch this video next - th-cam.com/video/mdRHNshLOvQ/w-d-xo.html
Never seen it or heard of it (and I love movies) but it came out the year I was born so it must be amazing!
It's not in the Criterion Collection, but there's a film noir film I WISH they would put in there: Out of the Past (1947), with Robert Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Geer. It's just a phenomenal movie.
That's quintessential noir together with Double Indemnity
Amen to this. Out of the Past is incredible!
Yessiree, couldn’t agree more. Far and away my two favorites here!
The Warner Archive release out already is a good one
@@THX1178 absolutely. I have the 4-Film Collection: Film Noir with The Set-Up, Out of the Past, Gun Crazy and Murder, My Sweet. Highly recommended.
My favourite quote from Kiss Me Deadly is: "A double bourbon! Is it 10:00 am already?'"
Kudos for including Fuller's Pickup on South Street. Thelma Ritter was devastating as a police informer who goes around selling neckties to men as though she were offering them nooses to hang themselves. Her death scene is best thing she ever did - from the darkest pits of noir.
My 95 year old Mom died recently. We tried to get her to watch these old movies with us, her reply was I seen em all when they were in the theater, I don't need to see em again. My wife and I watched them many times, stopping and going back to catch a phrase, look up a minor character actor, etc. We wrung all we could out of them.
Sorry to hear of your loss! That’s a lovely story though. Thanks for watching!
I love all your choices. Film noir is one of my favourite genres. I also enjoy Double Indemnity, The Big Sleep, Night and the City, Touch of Evil, The Maltese Falcon, The Asphalt Jungle, The Killers, Key Largo, Brute Force, Out of the Past, Sunset Boulevard, The Lady from Shanghai, The Third Man, The Killing, Call Northside 777, Laura, Gun Crazy etc...
Nice list man 😎
There's a couple in your list I need to check out. Check out "Phantom Lady".
Most of the films here are NOT "Noir" films, a black and white crime story does not a "Noir" film make!
I too love your list - what is noir is so subjective. Never thought of Laura as one but it is a favorite so we can keep it there...:) If forced to choose one I'll go with Double Indemnity. Oh and the Third Man...
@@christophercurdo4384 Laura ends with both Protagonist smiling! Like I said when it comes to "Noir" You people are lost.
D.O. A. (1950) It was so good it has been remade at least three times. Detour is also a great noir.
For me the best film noir on Criterion is THE BREAKING POINT (1950). It's John Garfield at his absolute best and the ending will gut you every time.
Great video. But youissed the hest Noir of all time "The Killing" Kubrick's most underated film in my opinion.
DARK PASSAGE with Bogie & Bacall is a good one....Agnes Moorehead is in there, too. Great character actors in the periphery, too. written by David Goodis, if the name means anything to you - I love his stuff.
Also, the director manages to present innovative cinematography and a suffocating atmosphere of paranoia worthy of Hitch . Great movie! Love Goodis.
Damn, no mention of Double Indemnity! Good list regardless!
Definitely needs a mention!
Yep, can’t believe I skipped over it given I watched the 4K very recently! Oh well, guess I have to do a part 2 😂
My favourite is Nightmare Alley starring Tyrone Power, a strange film, I first saw it on Channel 4 in the 1980s late at night, I’ve always remembered it.
To me The Asphalt Jungle has a real feeling of greatness when I watch it. Moviemaking does not get much better than that!
Its a great film, and I love John Huston, but I prefer _The Killing,_ as far as Sterling Hayden heist films go 😁
@@Jimmy1982Playlists The Killing is a good one too. I never really know which films I can include in the film noir category, but some of my favorites from this time period include The Sweet Smell of Success and The Breaking Point.
Yep, a great one. Can’t think of another film, noir or otherwise that has such a beautiful narrative flow. Saw a double bill with it and the Killing years back which I also love. But but I enjoy AJ more.
The only thing that I would add would be Double Indemnity which I was elated came to the collection. That and Mildred Pierce are in my top 30 favorite films. I have steadily added more Criterion noir to my collection (next will hopefully be Kiss Me Deadly!) and a handful are blind buys. I just picked up Gilda in October and watched it today for the first time and was blown away by Hayworth and Mate's cinematography. Pickup was also a blind buy and I agree that Widmark knocks it out of the park.
Tell me you've seen Laura. 👀
D.O.A.? 🍸
The Big Sleep? 💤
"Mildred Pierce" is not noir. It's a drama. Shadows and guns don't make film noir.
@@h.calvert3165 All except DOA. That one is on my list though.
Detour is tied with Double Indemnity for #1 film noir. I’m so glad you also love Detour - such a classic. Some of my other faves are…
The Postman Always Rings Twice
The Face Behind the Mask
The Mask of Dimitrios
Three Strangers
Murder, My Sweet
Who couldn't love Ann Savage and Tom Neal in "DETOUR". The opening scene of the California desert will remain in your memory. An amazing film sadly not known by many people.
Yes, one of the best "B" Films ever made!
The are many interviews with Ann Savage in her later years on TH-cam. She is a most interesting woman. Tom Neal led a very troubled life dying much too soon.@@kennethhodges3187
Other great noirs: Double Indemnity, Postman Always Rings Twice,The Blue Dahlia, This Gun for Hire, The Glass Key, The Maltese Falcon, The Third Man, Touch of Evil, Kiss of Death, Tension, Odd Man Out, The Killers ( with Burt Lancaster), Night and the City, The Big Heat, The Killing, Laura, Where the Sidewalk Ends, The Big Sleep, and the Woman in the Window. These are from the Classic noir period of 1940s and 50s.
Yes! This Gun for Hire. Alan Ladd never really gets any noir love.
Dead right to include 'In a Lonely Place' one of the very best films ever made, from any collection!!
You should have been born 80 years ago when most of these films were in Cinemas but always great to see the younger generation appreciate these classic films not like most of the run of the mill tripe they turn out today! Im afraid all the great Directors and Stars are no longer with us but thankfully have been captured on celluloid for future generations like yourself to discover and enjoy, and they will be watching all these films in 100 years time but on a different format im sure! lol - by the way what happened to one of the greatest film noirs of all time - "Double Indemnity" - ONE OF THE BEST EVER! - Enjoy
Double Indemnity, Nightmare Alley, The Asphalt Jungle, The Killing, Night of the Hunter.
wow....all terrific
Sunset Boulevard, Laura, Key Largo, The Asphalt Jungle, and He Walked By Night are my favorites.
No obnoxious background music, no shouting over the top narration...thank you!
My favorite noir movies have a Los Angeles or California setting.
Tough, tough choice! _In A Lonely Place, High & Low, The Killing, Double Indemnity, Detour, Kiss Me Deadly, Blast Of Silence, Stray Dogs, Pickup On South Street, Naked City..._ there are many more I'm forgetting. Criterion is a buffet of incredible film noir!
Edit: _Blast Of Silence_ is an *unbelievable* little gem that many more need to see! CC needs to put it out on Blu-Ray. I can't forget _Ace In The Hole,_ either... one of Wilder's best. Absolutely incredible performances.
_Down By Law_ should be mentioned, as well - a "neo-beat-noir-comedy" as the director put it lol... my favorite Jarmusch. Pure perfection.
Blast of Silence was the Noir that got me hooked on B&W movies. It's still my favorite. With Max the housekeeper from Hart to Hart as the narrator. The first half hour of the Killers is incredible. The rest of the film is pretty average.
In A Lonely Place is one of my favorites.
Can't believe you didn't mention my absolute favorite film noir on Criterion...THE ASPHALT JUNGLE, which I've probably watched more times than any of the ones you mentioned, all of which I have in my collection.
mine too. I love Sterling Hayden as Dix.
It’s probably Citizen Kane, at least that’s my favourite. But more interestingly the best noir not in criterion I think is Chahine’s Cairo Station! Noir is one of my favourite sub genres.
One that I learned about reading a book on noir that I absolutely love, and is available from Criterion, is Ride the Pink Horse. If you haven't seen it, can't recommend it enough.
Yes!!! I love that movie. Had it, gave it to someone to watch and now lost contact with them. Wanda Hendrix played a fourteen year old girl that "sees things", and becomes (mutually) attached to Robert Montgomery.
Great noir recommendations and I've seen and have them all.
However, although commendable choices, none are in my personal favourites list.
Here is my top 10 (in interchangeable order and with a few 'reserves'):
• DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944)
• SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS (1957)
• THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)
• LAURA (1944)
• CASABLANCA (1942)
• ACE IN THE HOLE (1950)
• BUILD MY GALLOWS HIGH [AKA 'OUT OF THE PAST'] (1947)
• THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1946)
• I WAKE UP SCREAMING (1941)
• WHITE HEAT (1949)
'Reserve' favourites list:
• MURDER, MY SWEET (1944)
• THE BIG SLEEP (1946)
• SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950)
• DETECTIVE STORY (1951)
Casablanca a noir??
For me it's Thieves' Highway. Long overdue for a blu ray release but a 4K would be a real treat.
Yes, that would be a treat indeed! For now, I have the Arrow disc of Thieves' Highway in my collection. Cheers, Marcus!
Though not Criterion and technically not classic 'film noir" I consider 1981's Body Heat as on of my neo noir faves. I recommend watching it with color turned off and you get that vibe of one of the greats, such as Double Indemnity, to which it's similarly structured.
I love Body Heat! Quite the steamy film
Body Heat is classic to me.
Detour is one of the greatest films I've ever seen.
Me too. Definitely somewhere on my list of greatest films. Cheers for watching!
Really good one. Have you seen Split Second? That’s a tight little hostage thriller noir with an atomic twist.
The radio version from SUSPENSE is also a good representative of "In A Lonely Place" and without visuals, you will use your mind as radio was once called "The Theater of the Mind", sadly overlooked these days.
Yes people have commented about 2 great classic, probably the best 2 “Out of the Past” and “Criss Cross” that Criterion should do, I personally think one day they will, even though we have excellent blu ray versions
I agree completely with your choice of film noir!
Your comments are right on!!!
Criterion needs to get into some of the other film noirs out there.
There are so many out there.
Another great noir star is Victor Mature.
Detour! Great movie. Thanks for acknowledging it. Another noir movie, unfortunately not in the Criterion Collection, that deserves more respect is "The Chase".
Ralph Meeker was great in Kiss Me Deadly. I don't get why he didn't become a big star. He had a good career, but mostly as a character actor.
Ralph Meeker is brilliant!
I think Meeker was the lead character in the first ever episode of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" on TV.
Totally AMAZING film, far ahead of its time. He is terrific in it as is the whole cast
I have to shout out Devil in a Blue Dress. It's an old-school throw back to noirs and it has such charisma and cool to it. I watched it last night and definitely recommend it for Noirvember.
I watched it for the first time a few months back and loved it! Looked great on the 4K disc too!
I hadn't seen it since it came out, when I was a kid, until a couple months back. It stands up well... as does _Deep Cover,_ a modern-set noir from the '90s.
@@Jimmy1982Playlists Deep Cover is damn good!
These are neo-Noir films, as they were made after Touch of Evil (1958), which is generally recognised as the last film of the classic Noir period.
@Richard King there’s a bunch of classic noir such as odds against tmrw and high and low that are after 1958. I think the cut off of Touch of Evil isn’t really used much now.
Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Sweet smell of success and Double indemnity are very good. But the top prize in my view goes to The third man! The movie has a spark of genius and the zither music leitmotif is other worldly!
Great black and white movies are tops....I'm a fan.
Every film that you selected is great .
I would also add :
The Maltese Falcon ( the king of noirs in my opinion )
Out of the Past ( my second favourite noir )
Elevator to the Gallows ( soundtrack by Miles Davis )
And , not a Criterion , but the very underrated : Where Danger Lives .
It stars Mitchum and the fabulous Faith Domergue .
Thanks !
L’ascenseur pour l’echafaud is a perfect film! Thank you for suggesting it
@@detroitfinedining You are most welcome .
Noir-adjacent? Johnny Apollo, Journey into Fear, Deadline at Dawn, and Mask of Dimitrios.
Great list. When I saw you had The Naked City on the list, I thought of the great set "Tales From the Urban Jungle: Brute Force & The Naked City" from Arrow. What a great double bill. If the list could go on forever I would add Out of the Past, Double Indemnity, Rififi, Touch of Evil, Key Largo, The Big Sleep, Force of Evil, Sweet Smell of Success, Gun Crazy, Criss Cross, The Set-Up, The Big Heat, The Killers, They Live By Night, Night of the Hunter, The Maltese Falcon and The Third Man.
Rififi! Yes!
Detour is a great little brisk noir. I really enjoyed that one. The atmosphere and characters are great. Some of the events in the very end and how that plays out are probably a little silly and contrived but it doesn't really detract and still a fantastic watch and a great example for newbies to be introduced to the film noir genre with IMHO.
Ann Savage WAS savage.
Love the black and white of your video. 😃
Thanks so much John!
Melville films are great, e.g. Le Cercle Rouge for a late noir. Rififi, of course, which you mentioned I think, and Bob le Flambert (i..e. Bob the Gambler). A good neo-Noir is Thief with James Caan. Classics include Ace in the Hole (dir. Wilder) with Kurt Douglas, which is most excellent. The Third Man is best ever arguably. Out of the Fog is hilarious and well done. A Colt is My Passport. High Sierra. The 39 Steps. Strangers on a Train. Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
Sunset Boulevard
If only it was in the Criterion Collection on 4K!
The cover art of Film Noirs in the Criterion Collection is truly beautiful 😍,really captures the essence of theses films through key moments!
DETOUR is great. It's often cited as the one (in retrospect) that kicks off the whole genre
The Big Sleep with Bogart would get my choice, although it has a lot of competition. Almost perfect. Touch of Evil was also outstanding, with and by Orson Wells. Very quirky and sinister that one.
“Detour” inspired a good many filmmakers. Guy Maddin, for instance, had a stroke of genius when he cast Detour’s unforgettable, and unbreakable, Ann Savage in the iconic role of The Mother in his masterpiece “My Winnipeg” (2009).
Some of my favourites are: Laura, In A Lonely Place, Where The Sidewalk Ends, Out of the Past, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Black Friday, Fallen Angel - and smaller films like Split Second and Detour.
K, you left out some really truly great ones, I own as well the ones you have, They live by night, the killers, The killing, the asphalt jungle, thieves highway, leave her to Heaven, ride the pink horse, you cannot be forgiven of Double indemnity, Night in the city, and my favorite, Nightmare Alley
Seen them all. Love theme all. Seen some multiple times. But for those who do not the genre, his recommendations are spot on. Enjoy the experience!
Thanks so much, Dennis!
A favorite which missed your list, Welles' A Touch of Evil. Dietrich called her role as the gypsy fortune teller her greatest film performance. (And it's said her dark wig was Elizabeth Taylor 's.l).
Favourite Criterion Noir...
Detour - Ulmer
In a Lonely Place - Ray
Killing - Kubrick
Kiss Me Deadly (top pick) - Aldrich
Night and the City - Dassin
Pickup on South Street - Fuller
Rififi - Dassin
Sweet Smell of Success - MacKendrick
Touchez pas au Grisbi - Becker
One movie that never seems to get mentioned or is ever on anybody’s list for conservation (because it seems to be in public domain) is the movie IMPACT 1949. Many plot twists and turns and wonderful shots of San Francisco and Sausalito in the late 40s. A few small things in the plot are a bit much to except as reality but other than that MPACT is very enjoyable. I would love to be able to see it clean, clear print of this movie.
Oh yeah, that's a good one. Guy's cheating wife tries to have him killed but he doesn't die. HeHeHe
Out of the Past? Is that film noir? One of my favorite movies ever. Love the cast.
most definitely and a very very great one
A Genre, I still have to watch a lot. My two favourite Films till now are Out of the Past and Sunset Boulevard. But I also loved Angel Face, for example (one of Godard's Favourite American Films btw. 😉) Thx for all the great Recommendations 😍
Dark Passage and Impact are two essentials.
Why isn't anyone mentioning 1947's Nightmare Alley in the comments except for one?
I don’t know but it’s a great film!
@@ElliotCoen You bet.
I own Kiss Me and Mildred . I have seen Detour and Lonely Place. I will have to check out the others. Thank-you Elliot! I appreciate your videos.
Richard Fleischer's Violent Saturday 1955 (20th Century Fox) would make A GREAT Criterion COLOR NOIR release.
I have Criterion's Kiss me Deadly and Detour (Detour looks and sounds amazing after it's restoration). I have a regular DVD of Gilda and would love to have Criterion's In a Lonely Place at some point.
Night of the Hunter is one of my absolute favorites, along with In a Lonely Place, which you mentioned.
Just watched The Hitchhiker (1953) and loved it.
My favorite noir is the one that got me hooked on them. Blast of Silence. It's on Criterion and pretty cheap. It's late noir in 1961. $20,000 Independent movie, shot illegally on the streets of NYC. The writer is also the director and star.
I loved the almost nihilistic ending to this film.
I subscribed right away. Eloquently spoken. Will help me with films I seek to watch.
Thanks so much!
"Pickup on South Street" is fantastic thrill ride and story. An amazingly acted film.
Yeeeeeessss! Didn’t check ahead to see what would be mentioned and so happy to see Pickup on South Street get some love. Sam Fuller is truly an all-time director!
Thanks for this. Long time film fanatic and knew only Mildred Pierce. Want to see the rest! Plan to add most of these to our film viewing sessions.
I don’t know if u have seen Out of the Past. Or Laura or Leave her to Heaven. I’ve been collecting classic films since 1990s. I tend to like my film noir with a touch of glamour
@@tracyotrhuiskamp1012 Yes, I know Laura and Out of the Past. Thanks.
Le Samourai
DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID isn't one, but it did include the courtesy of citing all the wonderful films they clipped from.
Also, THE KILLERS (both 1946 and 1964 versions) are worthwhile
Seen nearly all of bogart movies over and over Great haul
Long after I saw "In a Lonely Place" I read the novel by Dorothy B. Hughes on which it was based, and was startled to find that in the book, Dixon Steele (the character played by Bogart in the movie) is really a serial killer. Oh, how I wish someone today would remake it and return to Hughes' original vision! And I would also recommend two films from the early 1930's I would describe as "proto-noir," William Wellman's "Safe in Hell" and "Gilda" director Charles Vidor's "Sensation Hunters."
You can say one more thing about "Gilda": George MacReady. Loved his performance in this movie as well as "Paths of Glory."
Detour occupies a unique place in the pantheon of Noir: a B movie made for peanuts with unknown actors, using the sparest of scenery and effects - and so well-written and executed that you never notice these handicaps.
The All-Time Rankings: 1. The Maltese Falcon; 2. Sunset Boulevard; 3. The Big Sleep; 4 and on - all the others.
Nice selections. So many wonderful films mentioned in the comments. I'll toss in one perhaps not as well know as these called 'Dark City (1950) starring Charlton Heston with Lizabeth Scott, Harry Morgan, Ed Begley and Jack Webb.
Wow, this vid and the recommendations in the comments have brought back some great viewing memories. I wanted to mention another great noir film, Scandal Sheet with Briaderick Crawford and Donna Reed. Don't know if it's in the Criterion Collection, though. Two more of my personal favorites are Where the Sidewalk Ends and While the City Sleeps with Dana Andrews.
Double Indemnity and Third Man are the best ones on the collection.
The Breaking Point has become a favorite that seems to get overlooked
There were so many that picking a top 10 is totally an individual choice.
Blast of Silence (1961).
And even though it hasn't had a Criterion release, The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) is noteworthy. Haven't seen the original Italian version, Obsession (1943).
Laura (1944) and Detective Story (1951), neither released by Criterion but, worth a watch.
Elliot, I am surprised that you did not mention Night and the City, which is on Criterion. It is one of the great Noirs, with wonderful performances by Richard Widmark and a British cast.
Hi Terry. Night and the City is also brilliant! It should be included here. Cheers
Thank you for your video. I added some to my wish list which I hadn't seen.
Gun Crazy, of course.
And a little known but worthy one: Split Second, 1952, Dick Powell direction.
I do love Gun Crazy!
One of my favourites that doesn’t get talked about much is This Gun For Hire (1942), the first onscreen pairing of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. Adapted from the book A Gun For Sale by a young up and coming novelist and film critic called Graham Greene, it’s tense, funny and very cynical. It also features a song and dance number by Veronica Lake and her pet monkey (beat that, Billy Wilder). Ladd”s performance, as the world-weary and vengeance-seeking hitman Raven, was so striking that his name was quickly moved from fifth billing to above the title. Includes a sensational turn by the great Laird Cregar as an oily villain.
Other faves are Double Indemnity, The Killers, Out of the Past, Sunset Boulevard and several neo-noirs from subsequent decades: Chinatown, The Grifters, Miller’s Crossing and, of course, LA Confidential.
Not sure if it counts as a noir but it’s much in the same vein: Odd Man Out, directed by Carol Reed (The Third Man). One of the movies that made a star of James Mason, who plays a wounded IRA man on the run in an unnamed city (probably Belfast, where it was filmed) in the 1940s.
The Criterion double disc set, with Robert Siodmak's "The Killers" (1946), and the Don Siegel directed remake from 1964.
Out of The Past, no doubt the greatest of all film noirs. Perhaps, one of the greatest movies ever made! Also, Elliot, hold the DVD steady. You move around so much it is distracting. Otherwise, the entire concept of best film noirs is a daunting task, but, no doubt, fun.
Check out 'Too Late For Tears'
I love it! I have the Arrow disc. Cheers Andy!
@@ElliotCoen nice one (I ordered the Arrow BR yesterday). But rented it last - albeit it looked pretty good (UCLA remaster?)
I'm so glad I was born in Noirvember.
Pickup on South Street has to be one of the most underrated films ever. Detour is a shocking one-of-a-kind film that should be studied by ANY young film director. Mildred Pierce is noir melodrama at its best. Ray's In a Lonely Place is just terrific. Adore Gloria Grahame.
I would put Out of the Past up there with any of these. Directed by Jacques Tourneur. James M. Cain as co-screenwriter The quintessential noir film. It's got everything. The sense of fate and inevitability. Mitchum and Douglas. Tough guys. Good girl, bad girl. The classic tragic ending. Even a touch of homosexual attraction thrown in for fun. Why Criterion doesn't have it is a mystery. One of the best films ever, let alone one of the best noir films.
And, of course, Double Indemnity has to be a contender for the "if you're only ever going to see ONE noir film, see this one" award.
"Kiss Me Deadly" started the "light coming form the suitcase when you open it" trope. That trope was used repeatedly by Quentin Tarantino in "Pulp Fiction". If you want to know where "Kiss me Deadly" got the idea from, just search for, "demon core" on TH-cam.
I'm a filmmaker myself and my first film was heavily influenced by noir. I've written about noir on noir sites. I'm not going to search the Criterion collection to see what they have but they do do an excellent job with their transfers. My seven favorite noirs in no order are Vertigo (yes, a color noir) Touch of Evil, Kiss Me Deadly, Out of the Past, White Heat, The Lineup .and Shoot the Piano Player.
You've included Mildred Pierce, but I'd give a strong recommendation for Michael Curtiz's The Breaking Point, one of John Garfield's last films, a very different adaptation of Hemingway's To Have and Have Not than the Hawks film.
Notorious - Night and the City - The Third Man
Definitely add blood simple, double indemnity, branded to kill, notorious, the killing, ace in the hole, and blow out to the list of criterion noirs that are must haves. My favorite noir of all time sadly isn’t in the collection though, sunset blvd!
I really like Night of the Hunter and Thief
Two of my favorites not listed here are “Pale Flower” and “Rififi.”
Ace in the Hole.
SUCH a great choice! One of the most underrated films in Hollywood history... Billy Wilder at his _scathing_ best!
My nickname in high school
I love film Noire !!! Thanks for posting! 🤎🤎🤎
In beautiful black and white if not beautiful in black and white ...
There are about 500 movies made in the USA that meet the true criteria of Film Noir
Most of them are included in my collection
These are my favorites:
Out of the Past
Murder My Sweet
Double Indemnity
Detour
Phantom Lady
Laura
The Big Heat
Notorious
D.O.A
Touch Of Evil
Pitfall
Key Largo
I Walk Alone
The Big CLock