The Film Noir Thread! Gats, dames, and cheap hooch welcome.

[Ian Jane]

I just got my copy yesterday, Big Combo too. Checked out Combo, looks great. Still love the movie. Got Plunder Road on tap for this weekend and am really looking forward to it. I'm more or less going in blind.

[Andrew Monroe]

The new Olive BD of PLUNDER ROAD was my first exposure to the film...anyone on the fence about this one, let me say this: WOW! Get it. As lean, mean and efficient a B noir as you'll ever see. This doesn't waste a second, jumps in with both feet as the film opens with a train heist (10 million in gold) in progress, the gang pulls it off and splits up into three groups in rented trucks heading for California (the heist sequence is really striking, done with almost no dialogue). Incredibly tense as they must navigate various roadblocks and keep cool while John Law gives them the stink eye. The lack of stars in this only adds to the gritty, non-glossy feel of the film. The cast of great character actors, led by Elisha Cook, Jr. and Stafford Repp - both veterans of many a noir - do wonders with barely sketched characters. Cap it all off with a memorable ending - photographed with great effect on a busy freeway by Ernest Haller - and you have a near perfect low budget film noir.

[Paul L]

Lew Archer novels:
1. The Moving Target (1949) aka Harper
2. The Drowning Pool (1950)
3. The Way Some People Die (1951)
4. The Ivory Grin (1952) aka Marked for Murder
5. Find a Victim (1954)
6. The Barbarous Coast (1956)
7. The Doomsters (1958)
8. The Galton Case (1959)
9. The Wycherly Woman (1961)
10. The Zebra-Striped Hearse (1962)
11. The Chill (1964)
12. The Far Side of the Dollar (1965)
13. Black Money (1966)
14. The Instant Enemy (1968)
15. The Goodbye Look (1969)
16. The Underground Man (1971)
17. Sleeping Beauty (1973)
18. The Blue Hammer (1976)

There is also a collection of short stories entitled Lew Archer Private Eye published in 1977. I've read a couple of books about Ross MacDonald, too, literary analysis stuff.

Thanks for the definitive list, Richard!

Factoid: Ross MacDonald wrote two novels in a year and then took a break for a couple of years. When he came back with The Instant Enemy, the stories had changed, and Lew Archer had undergone a transition, a kind of maturation.

I preferred the earlier ones, mainly because I like my private eyes to operate in the classic era, the late 1960s and the 1970s settings made them feel a little out of place for my tastes.

I've been reading these out of sequence and dipped around in the series when I could get hold of them in paperback. Actually, the first of the series that I read was THE BLUE HAMMER, then BLACK MONEY, THE DROWNING POOL and THE INSTANT ENEMY - so whilst reading them, I didn't see the development that Richard hints at above, but on reflection there seems to be a quite definite cut-off point between BLACK MONEY and THE INSTANT ENEMY: there's a subtle shifting of theme, and what I liked about the later novels in the series (that I've read so far) is the juxtaposition of Archer's worldview with the more 'modern' sensibilities of the late 1960s and 1970s. Archer's 'out of place-ness' of the later novels that I've read added to the overriding theme of alienation.

I read James Crumley's THE LAST GOOD KISS for the first time a year or two back, and that reminded me an awful lot of the Archer books that I've read so far.

I also picked up the four non-Archer MacDonald books that Black Lizard reprinted a couple of years ago (THE FERGUSON AFFAIR, MEET ME AT THE MORGUE, THE THREE ROADS, BLUE CITY) but haven't read those yet.

[Andrew Monroe]

I've read a handful of the Archer books and it's on my to-do list to get back to them one day. My first was The Moving Target via a nice hardcover reprint (I can't recall off hand the publisher but they did a series of essential mystery reprints that also included Christiana Brand's Fog Of Doubt, which featured Inspector Cockrill of GREEN FOR DANGER fame). The Archer books I've read are terrific, I might rate them just below Chandler but they're top notch. I have the Black Lizard edition of The Barbarous Coast on hand for my next one when I go back to them. I preferred the earlier ones, mainly because I like my private eyes to operate in the classic era, the late 1960s and the 1970s settings made them feel a little out of place for my tastes.

[Barry M]

Millar zeitgeist: I've just started on 'em, too, last month. Ross MacDonald's always been on my one-day list, and I think the thing that nudged me was reading that Warren Zevon bio (big fan). Thanks for the list, Richard: I just finished THE IVORY GRIN last week, and I was using the "Books by" list in the front as my guide, and couldn't find MEET ME AT THE MORGUE in any of my usual bookstores. FOUND A VICTIM. (The Black Lizard reprints seem pretty plentiful locally, for which I am grateful.)

[Dom D]

Big fan of Harper here as well. Not as good as The Long Goodbye but my brain classifies them in the same bracket. It was William Goldman's first original screenplay if I'm not mistaken.

[Richard--W]

No one who picks up The Way Some People Die can put it down until it's over. You're gonna love it. A hardboiled masterpiece written during the height of crime noir fiction. Private-eye fiction doesn't get any tougher than The Way Some People Die. The gangsters are still colorful, the Hammett and Chandler influence is still felt, and the personal, family tragedies with the environmental disaster have not yet taken over. I read all the paperbacks in chronological order of publication when they were cheap and easy to get. Eeach succeeding novel has a distinct personality all its own, and they are brilliant. Later I got hold of some 1st Editions in nice dust jackets. Factoid: Ross MacDonald wrote two novels in a year and then took a break for a couple of years. When he came back with The Instant Enemy, the stories had changed, and Lew Archer had undergone a transition, a kind of maturation.

Lew Archer novels:
1. The Moving Target (1949) aka Harper
2. The Drowning Pool (1950)
3. The Way Some People Die (1951)
4. The Ivory Grin (1952) aka Marked for Murder
5. Find a Victim (1954)
6. The Barbarous Coast (1956)
7. The Doomsters (1958)
8. The Galton Case (1959)
9. The Wycherly Woman (1961)
10. The Zebra-Striped Hearse (1962)
11. The Chill (1964)
12. The Far Side of the Dollar (1965)
13. Black Money (1966)
14. The Instant Enemy (1968)
15. The Goodbye Look (1969)
16. The Underground Man (1971)
17. Sleeping Beauty (1973)
18. The Blue Hammer (1976)

There is also a collection of short stories entitled Lew Archer Private Eye published in 1977. I've read a couple of books about Ross MacDonald, too, literary analysis stuff.

[Paul L]

Addendum: I've just found a UK-based etailer who has some US paperbacks for good prices (£7, inc. postage). I've ordered SLEEPING BEAUTY, FIND A VICTIM and THE MOVING TARGET.

[Paul L]

amazon france is always too expensive.

Have you invested much time in Lew Archer? There was a time in the 1980s when I couldn't get enough of his adventures. Ross McDonald's writing undergoes a transformation from the 1950s into the 1970s. Each book (there are only 18) is a masterpiece of its kind, progressive and deeply etched. As a character Archer disappears into his observations of other people's lives and his analysis of their motivations. His voice is our cypher, but his identity is not there. It may be argued that we get to know him by his observations and his analysis, but the basic building blocks of a character are never present in a Lew Archer novel [so one fills in the blanks when adapting an Archer novel into a film. Paul Newman and company got it right in HARPER (1966) which is an outstanding private-eye crime film]. Or so it seems to me, and I've read and re-read them all, although not lately. My favorites are the last three -- The Underground Man (published 1971), Sleeping Beauty (1973) and The Blue Hammer (1976).

I only discovered the Archer books about three or four years ago and I've read about a third of the series so far, Richard. They're fantastic books, but quite hard to get hold of over here (although a few of the titles were reprinted last year, a number of them are out of print or only available as quite expensive imports). The next one I plan to read is THE WAY SOME PEOPLE DIE, which I gather is supposed to be one of the best entries into the series. In terms of the Archer books, I plan on reading THE WAY SOME PEOPLE DIE, THE BARBAROUS COAST, THE GALTON CASE and THE UNDERGROUND MAN before the end of the year.

THE BLUE HAMMER is one of my favourites so far too; I also enjoyed THE INSTANT ENEMY greatly. SLEEPING BEAUTY is one of those that's difficult to get hold of over here, but I may end up importing the US paperback edition.

[Richard--W]

... (After the book I'm reading at the moment, I'm going to catch up on my Lew Archer books before I get round to reading any more Goodis, however.)

Tangentially, is anyone thinking of buying the Wild Side Video Blu-ray of Joseph H Lewis' GUN CRAZY that's due out in France in a month or two? I'd love to get it, but the 60 Euro price tag is putting me off.

Linky: http://www.amazon.fr/Gun-Crazy-Combo...ords=gun+crazy

amazon france is always too expensive.

Have you invested much time in Lew Archer? There was a time in the 1980s when I couldn't get enough of his adventures. Ross McDonald's writing undergoes a transformation from the 1950s into the 1970s. Each book (there are only 18) is a masterpiece of its kind, progressive and deeply etched. As a character Archer disappears into his observations of other people's lives and his analysis of their motivations. His voice is our cypher, but his identity is not there. It may be argued that we get to know him by his observations and his analysis, but the basic building blocks of a character are never present in a Lew Archer novel [so one fills in the blanks when adapting an Archer novel into a film. Paul Newman and company got it right in HARPER (1966) which is an outstanding private-eye crime film]. Or so it seems to me, and I've read and re-read them all, although not lately. My favorites are the last three -- The Underground Man (published 1971), Sleeping Beauty (1973) and The Blue Hammer (1976).

[Paul L]

I really like ON DANGEROUS GROUND, although I have to admit that I've not seen it in maybe 20 years - although I own the Warner Film Noir boxed set which contains it, and must get round to rewatching it some day. I liked the redemptive 'twist': on my first viewing, that's what made it stand out for me for many of the other films noirs I was watching at the time (ah, those pre-DVD, pre-Internet days when these films were often so hard to see ). However, I enjoyed the first part of the film more than the second half, I have to say. I would also day that, on reflection, Preminger's WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS deals with a similar theme of redemption - but it's a film that I find myself returning to again and again (definitely one of my favourite 1950s films noirs) - Ryan's character is turned away from his brutality by Lupino, whereas in WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS Dana Andrews' character is constantly struggling with his own violence. Or something like that. Either way, for my money the Preminger film is much-neglected.

On the other hand, Ray's IN A LONELY PLACE takes a lot to beat.

I can't say whether or not I've seen CRY VENGEANCE: if I have, it certainly didn't make a big impression on me. Ulmer's RUTHLESS is a film I'd like to revisit: I still have my VHS, but I'm pretty close to importing the Olive Blu-ray.

NIGHTFALL is a firm favourite of mine too, by the way. That's an excellent film. I've got David Goodis' novel, which to my shame I haven't read and should do soon. (After the book I'm reading at the moment, I'm going to catch up on my Lew Archer books before I get round to reading any more Goodis, however.)

Tangentially, is anyone thinking of buying the Wild Side Video Blu-ray of Joseph H Lewis' GUN CRAZY that's due out in France in a month or two? I'd love to get it, but the 60 Euro price tag is putting me off.

Linky: http://www.amazon.fr/Gun-Crazy-Combo...ords=gun+crazy

[Richard--W]

This German DVD presents the film very nicely indeed.

Colin, have you seen Joseph Losey's THE PROWLER (1951) ?

THE PROWLER is one of my favorite noirs. NIGHTFALL is really good too. The problems I have with ON DANGEROUS GROUND and CRY VENGEANCE aren't the rural settings, it's that they take a turn from dark noir territory to redemption stories. Not to say they're bad - CRY VENGEANCE made a particularly strong impression on me - just not personal favorites. NIGHTFALL and THE PROWLER stay tough even in the unusual settings. By the way, Scott, you'd probably like THE HITCH-HIKER if you haven't seen it. It takes place in the countryside mostly. It's coming to blu in the near future.

Hmm. I follow your reasoning. Perhaps the theme of redemption softens the impact, but it amplifies the suffering which in itself is hardboiled. I will keep your observation in mind the next time I watch ON DANGEROUS GROUND which should be soon.

[Richard--W]

The screen captures sell me on both blu's.
But I will keep the MGM disc of THE STRANGER nonetheless.

I would like to see all five or six of Ida Lupino's "roughies" get the same treatment.

HARD FAST AND BEAUTIFUL (1951) is on a Warner Archives DVD-R, the rest are sorrowful pd transfers. The rarest is OUTRAGE (1950).

I like Ida.

Love the way she tells Robert Preston "You can go to hell or Australia" in JUNIOR BONNER (1972).

[Paul L]

Thanks for the screenies, Ian! Both discs look very good to my eye - especially THE HITCH-HIKER. I'll definitely be getting that one this month (it's a great film, and one I don't currently own aside from a VHS recording from a UK television screening) and will most likely get THE STRANGER in November - or at the end of the month, if I can afford it.

[Andrew Monroe]

Damn, THE HITCH-HIKER looks like a big improvement on the mostly pd or TCM copies that I've seen. I can't wait to get that. Both films look good. Thanks Ian. It's funny how the noir discs seem to come in cycles, it had been kinda quiet and then we get the new TCM/Columbia set, those new Olive BDs like PLUNDER ROAD and THE BIG COMBO, and these two.

By the way, Ian, did you like THE HITCH-HIKER?