The Twilight Zone: Escape Clause (1959)

A hypochondriac man sells his soul to the devil, exchanging it for several thousand years of immortality.

Cleverly told Faustian tale with a sinisterly good twist ending.

The Killers (1946)

Hit men kill an unresisting victim, and an investigator uncovers his past involvement with beautiful, deadly woman.

Film noir classic with extraordinary b/w photography and excellent performances, Ava Gardner, however, is not quite convincing as femme fatale; the plot is more an imagination about Ernest Hemingways story than an adaptation.

On renewed viewing: Hemingway's famous short story is merely the trigger for an intriguing, complex Noir crime story, arguably one of genre's best; both Lancaster as the 'innocent' cuckold and Gardner as the inscrutable femme fatale set standards with their performances.

Halliwell***: "Elaborate tale of cross and double-cross, stunningly executed."

Maltin****: "Compelling crime drama...Film provides fireworks, early success of Lancaster (in film debut) and Gardner."