PROGRAM NOTES FOR NOIR CITY 13, JANUARY 16-25, 2015
Friday, Jan 23, 2015 • Wickedly Wedded Woolrich
THE GUILTY
Scr. Robert Presnell, Sr. Dir. John Reinhardt. 1947, Monogram. 71 min.
7:30 PM
Two war buddies fall for twin sisters, Bonita Granville in a dual role. When one sister turns up dead, the boys are dogged by a suspicious police inspector. Working with only three sets and almost no budget, director Reinhardt and DP Henry Sharp evoke the dreadful, dead-of-night ambiance that was the domain of prolific noir scribe Cornell Woolrich.
WORLD PREMIERE FNF 35mm RESTORATION!
NO MAN OF HER OWN
Scr. Catherine Turney & Sally Benson. Dir. Mitchell Leisen. 1950, Paramount. 98 min.
9:15 PM
Jilted and pregnant Helen Ferguson is offered a fresh destiny—posing as the bride of a man killed in an accident. Based on Woolrich's I Married a Dead Man, this crazy melodrama is made believable by Stanwyck's performance and Mitchell Leisen's compelling storytelling skill. Arguably the best film ever made from a Woolrich story.
Saturday, Jan 24 • Matinée • Tribute to Andrew & Virginia Stone
THE STEEL TRAP
Scr. & Dir. Andrew Stone.1952, 20th Century–Fox. 85 min.
12:30 PM Added Bonus Screening!
A bank teller (Joseph Cotten) steals $1,000,000 from his bank on Friday night, convinced he can escape to a new life in South America with his wife (Teresa Wright). She balks at life on the run, begs him to put the money back. Can he crack the vault before the bank reopens Monday? A taut suspense thriller that raised pointed questions about 1950s bourgeois values.
CRY TERROR!
Scr. & Dir. Andrew Stone.1958, MGM. 96 min.
4:20 PM
A first-rate cast brings to life a nerve-wracking thriller about a married couple forced to assist in the insane schemes of a criminal mastermind. All the stops are pulled out in a reckless race-against-the-clock narrative that climaxes in a breathless chase through the New York subway system. Want believability? Look elsewhere. Want squirmy excitement? Here's your ticket. James Mason and Inger Stevens play the unlucky couple, Rod Steiger their tormentor. Angie Dickinson, Neville Brand, Jack Klugman and Kenneth Tobey contribute supporting roles.
JULIE
Scr. & Dir. Andrew Stone. 1956,
MGM. 99 min.
2:20 PM
Doris Day crosses over to the dark side, in this ultimate example of the "woman-in-peril" film. Shot on location in Carmel and San Francisco, it literally takes the "husband from hell" premise to new heights in an off-the-charts climax that finds stewardess Day fighting for her life aboard a soaring airliner. Implausibility is steamrolled with berserk gusto, leaving the audience helplessly entertained. Louis Jordan plays Julie's dangerous spouse. Barry Sullivan co-stars.
Saturday, Jan 24 • Evening Show • Continental Mariticide
OSSESSIONE
Scr. & Dir. Luchino Visconti. 1943, Industrie Cinematografiche Italiane. 140 min.
7:00 PM
This groundbreaking work of Italian neorealism is an earthy and unlicensed adaptation of James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice. Reviled by the Catholic church and banned by Italy's Fascist government, all prints were destroyed —except one duplicate negative the director hid for decades, allowing Ossessione to survive as Visconti's first masterpiece. Stars Clara Calamai and Massimo Girotti generate serious heat as the adulterous and eventually murderous couple.
LES DIABOLIQUES
Scr. & Dir. Henri-Georges Clouzot. 1955, Filmsonor. 116 min.
10:00 PM
The wrinkle in the typical noir storyline is that this time it's two women—wife and mistress—conspiring to kill the abusive husband. After committing the "perfect" crime, the women become unhinged as things go mysteriously and drastically wrong. Its atmosphere of dread and decay make Les Diaboliques one of the high watermarks of on-screen suspense and shock. All three stars, Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot and Paul Meurisse, give indelible performances.
Sunday, Jan 25 — Loneliness is a Killer
SECONDS
Scr. Lewis John Carlino. Dir. John Frankenheimer. 1966, Paramount. 106 min.
2:00, 7:15 PM
A bored middle-class man learns of a secret company that will allow him to be "born again." He emerges into his new life as a younger, handsome California painter (Rock Hudson), but soon discovers that fixing the surface don't solve problems of the soul. Startling camerawork by James Wong Howe helps make this Frankenheimer's most deeply felt and disturbing film.
THE HONEYMOON KILLERS
Scr. & Dir. Leonard Kastle. 1969,
American–International Pictures. 108 min.
4:00, 9:20 PM
Based on the 1948-49 murder spree of lovers Martha Beck and Ray Fernandez, this might be the most shocking and mordantly funny crime movie ever made. Writer-director Kastle, in his only feature, pushed noir's moral ambivalence to the breaking point. Totally unique; revered by both John Waters and François Truffaut, who called it his "favorite American film." Shirley Stoler's and Tony Lo Bianco's fearlessly depraved performances will stay with you long after the film ends.
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