New Acquisition: Der Verlorene (1951)

 

My Favorite Brunette (1947)

 

Shortly before his execution on the death row in San Quentin, amateur sleuth and baby photographer Ronnie Jackson, tells reporters how he got there.

Light-weighted, silly, but basically entertaining spoof of a Noir plot keeps the jokes coming, but is hardly a convincing parody of the genre.  

Halliwell*: "Pretty fair star vehicle which half-heartedly spoofs Farewell My Lovely."

Maltin***: "Better-than-usual Hope nonsense...Two very funny surprise cameos at beginning and end of film." 

Casablanca (1942)

A cynical American expatriate struggles to decide whether or not he should help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape French Morocco.

A true masterpiece of Hollywood cinema has perfection in all departments putting together a heartfelt and moving melodrama of its time and yet has become timeless work of cinematic art.

Halliwell****: "Cinema par excellence: a studio-bound Hollywood melodrama which after various chances just fell together impeccably into one of the outstanding entertainment experiences of cinema history, with romance, intrigue, excitement, suspense and humour cunningly deployed by master technicians and a perfect cast."

Maltin****: "Everything is right in this WW2 classic of war-torn Morocco...Rains is marvelous...and nobody sings "As Time Goes By" like Dooley Wilson...Our candidate for the best Hollywood movie of all time."  

The Chase (1946)

 

 

Chuck Scott gets a job as chauffeur to tough guy Eddie Roman; but Chuck's involvement with Eddie's fearful wife becomes a nightmare. 

Odd Cornell Woolrich adaptation hold's our attention with good Noir atmosphere, a capable cast and some suspense, but the disappoints with an unnecessary twist ending.

Halliwell*: "Weird Cuban-set film noir with a strange cast and stranger atmosphere. A genuine bomb, but worth a look for its pretensions, its cast, and its trick ending."

Maltin**1/2: "Mildly diverting melodrama..." 

Peter Lorre

Bio:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Lorre

Quicksand (1950)

After taking 20 dollars from his employer to go on a date with plans to repay it the next day, an auto mechanic falls into increasingly disastrous circumstances for more and more money which rapidly spirals out of his control.

Doom-laden and mildly intense Noir drama with Peter Lorre stealing the show and with an ending more improbable than the twisted plot.

Maltin**1/2: "Minor film noir...Lorre is wonderfully menacing as a sleazy penny arcade owner."

Island of Doomed Men (1940)

An undercover agent gets paroled to a remote tropical island with a diamond mine manned by slave labor run by a sadistic landowner.

Predictable crime drama with a sinister touch; Peter Lorre does his thing and makes it worth the watch.

Maltin**: "Stock characters, stale melodramatics."

The Raven (1963)

 

A magician, who has been turned into a raven, asks a former sorcerer for help. 

From memory: At times hilarious horror comedy with a great cast genre stars goes on a bit too long, but the climactic finale makes it worth the waiting.

Halliwell*: "The rather splendid duel is a long time coming; the preliminaries are largely confined to chat in a single set, and the random jokes do not quite atone for the boredom."

Maltin***: "Funny horror satire...Climactic sorcerer's duel is a highlight."

 

 

 

 

M (1931)

When the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt.

One of the few true masterpieces in cinema history, meticulously made in all departments, every single take in itself an expressionistic work of art; as a clairvoyant social (and political) melodrama it stills grips even today, and Peter Lorre's performance is arguably one of the greatest of all time.

Halliwell***: "An unmistakable classic whose oddities are hardly worth criticizing, this is part social melodrama and part satire, but entirely unforgettable, with most of its sequences brilliantly staged."

Maltin****: "Harrowing melodrama...Riveting and frighteningly contemporary; cinematically dazzling, especially for an early talkie. Lorre's performance is unforgettable."

Black Angel (1946)

When a man is convicted of a singer's murder, his wife tries to prove him innocent...aided by the victim's ex-husband.

Exemplary Film Noir gem, and an excellent Cornell Woolrich adaptation, complete with a 'happy ending' that isn't happy at all. 

On second view: Good little Noir thriller, a bit pedestrian, but reaches Woolrich dimensions of dark dread in the finale.

Halliwell*: "Stylish but empty version of a tired theme, interesting for performance and atmosphere."

Mad Love (1935)

Mysterious Mr. Moto (1938)

Mr. Moto has himself imprisoned on Devil's Island so he can help his cellmate escape and thereby get the goods on a gang of international killers.

Mad Love (1935)

An insane surgeon's obsession with an actress leads him to replace her husband's hands with the hands of a knife murderer which still have the urge to throw knives