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Happy New Year.

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Me when I accidentally discover a folklore hero which the most famous author of said nation wrote about and which reveals deep archetypal truths about this nation in both its comedy and tragedy.

(I watched "Falstaff"/"Chimes At Midnight")

A pro tip to all - ALWAYS watch something Shakespearean on Christmas. I was in no mood to celebrate at all but this movie made me remember how it was for people long time ago - there is also a scene about Christmas and overall this movie is fairly fitting for the winter mood.

Now I know I like my winter movies need to be Medieval to be fun.

Ahh, the fireplace, hounds at your feet and a drink in your hand...

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Every day I wake up and regret I am not Jimmy Stewart despite looking almost like him (Almost, ALMOST)

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I like Richie when he is staring at you with that face that looks like a low-ranking, dangerous angel that God uses for getting back divine (karmic) loans from overly lucky criminals.

Kiss of Death (1947) dir. Henry Hathaway

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I resisted watching this movie for so long until I heard *moderate* spoilers. The power of the right kind of spoiler (sometimes!)!

And it became one of my top 10 movies of all time, wth.

For those unaware also, 'Mr.Arkadin'/'Confidential report' is actually a fanfiction of 'The Third Man' turned into an original story (no, I am not lying, you can look it up if you don't believe me). Made me see the movie in a different light but, to be real, as 'The Third Man' fanfiction 'Arkadin' looks much more grim in retrospect and it loses some of its whimsy. (WHICH I LIKE, LIKE!!! It should have been The Thid Man 2 and terrified the audiences with its mix of comedy and tragedy! Alas...) But, okay, at its more light-hearted, 'Arkadin' is also good.

ALSO, WATCH IT TOO ('Mr.Arkadin'). (You can find it online)

l'm not interested in whether a racketeer like Lime was killed by his friends or by an accident. The only important thing is that he's dead.

The Third Man (1949) - dir. Carol Reed

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A wonderful movie.

Widmark. 😘🫠😵‍💫💀😱💕💕💕

I love those epic narration intros in old movies, I go out of my way to choose movies with them every time.

Also, the best happy end in noir which feels earned!

Kiss of Death (1947) dir. Henry Hathaway

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Incredible.

Manfred Whiteleir vibes.

(I need to watch this)

Vincent Price -

House on Haunted Hill (1959) dir. William Castle

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'Secret beyond the door'

I once again watched a weirdo film noir for noirvember and while the ending was positively...dreadful and self-defeating and just pointless, 'Secret behind the door' was still a very enjoyable movie for me featuring many novel ideas, two unreliable narrators, many expressionistic shots, sometimes quite smart Freudian dialogue, and so on. Could it be better? I guess. Had it been better, it would be phenomenal. But it is... what it is, I still recommend it to the lovers of strange movies.

Redgrave is very difficult to draw, okay? His face is always existentially bored, capricious, very ironic and dissatisfied with everything. Sometimes the manic rough edge smashes through the effeminacy and it's scary. You believe that this man is DONE - with the world, himself, not just women. I actually believe that Redgrave himself was also capricious, way too capricious and that's why he was a good fit for this role of an ultimately very immature and pampered individual who thinks he was wronged.

Yes, I also know he hated the movie - listen, Redgrave, I don't care. At least, you were well-cast here because I can't imagine anyone else in the role. This chronic dissatisfaction reads in his many roles, even in 'Thunder rock', which is so wholesome it doesn't warrant dissatisfaction.

The more you make this eternally done face, the closer you are to your character. And it's good!

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The most cruel Disney movie of all time.

Publicity Still for Night of the Hunter

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No comments.

STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951) dir. Alfred Hitchcock

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I was just remembering this weird, weird gay movie (the weirdest gay movie ever).

Strangers on a Train (1951)

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Did you know this film noir fact?

In Pokemon Black&White, the protagonist (that we play as) is having a conversation on Truth & Ideals on the Ferris Wheel with his elusive friend/rival/enemy N, who is on the opposite side from them ideologically, which mirrors a scene from the 'The Third Man' where the protagonist is ALSO having a conversation on Truth & Ideals on the Ferris Wheel with his elusive friend/rival/enemy, who is on the opposite side from him ideologically.

However, in the game, N IS idealistic and kind. So, who are WE, the protagonist in this situation?...

The answer is clear. The protagonist who defeats N with the power of their cynicism...

...is nothing else but a justification and a manifestation of Harry Lime himself.

And that's why the game is called Black&White...for it's a pitch black film noir.

*Zither intensifies*

The more you know.

(Return next week for another portion of noirvember fun facts no one knows. Or should *ever* know. After all, they're film Noir facts, pitch black and...not easily seen.)

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I think many 'noirs' have a happy ending, if not a half. I saw one recently /spoiler alert/ called 'Dark Passage'. The movie was really good until you realize there is no mystery and that the author's need to shoehorn their happy end into everything. I actually think that ambiguous endings are the best. But as what typical 'noir' ending is... I am not sure. I am not even sure 'Noir' exists. So whether you think happy endings exist in noir or not, this conversation is impossible without defining noir and noir hasn't been properly defined, and will likely never be.

Let's play a game: Noir or Not Noir?

Film noir is famously hard to define. Is it a genre? A mood? A movement?

People often rely on the "I know it when I see it" argument, but some films toe the line, like Gaslight. I've seen some people call it noir.

The shadow-drenched visuals and crime elements are certainly noir-sympathetic, but I never considered Gaslight a true noir. It's a domestic thriller descended from 19th-century melodrama and its tone isn't quite as bleak or cynical as true noir tends to be.

But what do you guys think? Does noir need to be absolutely bleak? I can think of exceptions, like Murder My Sweet, which has a happy-ish ending.

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It is indeed exactly like that.

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Me making 'Heroes Of Oblivion'

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Alternative movie posters for Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window”

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I really liked it (despite the many strange things about it). It is also the most homoerotic noir ever. There is even a homosexual confession. There is no other movie like it, truly.

Strangers on a Train 1951 - Alfred Hitchcock