Time To Head Into The Dark Corners Of Film!
There is a genre of film that lurks in the shadows….and includes amazing dialogue like this:
“How could I have known that murder could sometimes smell like honeysuckle?”
Welcome To The World Of Film Noir…
You wanna know what film noir is?
“Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations.”
Cynical Attitudes and Sexual Motivations, indeed!
I LOVE that definition, as it encompasses what I love most about the movies! Need an example? Well, try out this movie dialogue from “Double Indemnity”:
Walter Neff: You’ll be here too?
Phyllis: I guess so, I usually am.
Walter Neff: Same chair, same perfume, same anklet?
Phyllis: I wonder if I know what you mean.
Walter Neff: I wonder if you wonder.
Ok, that is perfectly written:
“I wonder if you wonder.”
Or try out this steamy dialogue from “Body Heat”:
Ned: “Maybe you shouldn’t dress like that.”
Matty: “This is a blouse and a skirt. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Ned: “You shouldn’t wear that body.”
This, my friends, is GREAT DIALOGUE. And it is from movies that are classic film noir!
Let’s look at three films that, in their own unique ways, are classic NOIR…starting with a modern day classic…
Body Heat
This is classic film noir – starring William Hurt and Kathleen Turner, directed by Lawrence Kasden, who also made “The Big Chill”, “Grand Canyon” and “French Kiss”, among many others. But this is, without a doubt, his finest cinematic achievement, and a career best for Hurt and Turner as well…
Here is the original theatrical trailer, dripping with noir…
William Hurt is Ned Racine, a seedy small town lawyer in Florida. During a searing heatwave he comes across Kathleen Turner, who plays Matty Walker – married to a shady businessman.
Here is the dialogue the first night Ned meets Matty, while her husband is away, and it is CLASSIC film noir:
Ned: You can stand here with me if you want but you’ll have to agree not to talk about the heat.
Matty: I’m a married woman.
Ned: Meaning what?
Matty: Meaning I’m not looking for company.
Ned: Then you should have said I’m a happily married woman.
And speaking of film noir and sexual motivations, this movie is full of sex, sex, sex! Actors William Hurt and Kathleen Turner wanted the crew to feel comfortable filming their love scenes. So they lined up the crew and both actors introduced themselves to each crew member. When they did this, both stars were naked.
This is one of my all-time favorite movies, almost perfect in setup and execution – and there are some who think that “Body Heat” is an homage to our next film, which is one of the all-time greatest films ever made, by one of Hollywood’s GREATEST Directors!
Double Indemnity
There are many great film noirs, but this one is the gold standard – directed by the legendary Billy Wilder, who directed such masterpieces as “Sunset Boulevard” and “Some Like It Hot” – and written by the legendary Author Raymond Chandler, who wrote “The Big Sleep” and “Farewell, My Lovely” among so many other classic books of deception, lust and murder.
Check out the trailer – black and white and noir…
Fred MacMurray is Walter Neff, an experienced salesman of the Pacific All Risk Insurance Co., who meets the seductive wife of one of his clients.
The terrific dialogue starts right away:
Phyllis: “I was just fixing some ice tea; would you like a glass?”
Walter Neff: “Yeah, unless you got a bottle of beer that’s not working.”
Barbara Stanwyck is Phyllis Dietrichson, who seduces the naive salesman for her own reasons…
The film is full of great, steamy dialogue like this:
Walter Neff: You’ll be here too?
Phyllis: I guess so, I usually am.
Walter Neff: Same chair, same perfume, same anklet?
Phyllis: I wonder if I know what you mean.
Walter Neff: I wonder if you wonder.
Barbara Stanwyck was the first choice to play Phyllis, but she was unnerved when seeing she’d be playing a ruthless killer. When she expressed her concern to Billy Wilder, he asked her, “Are you a mouse or an actress?”
And of course, Fred MacMurray is perfect as the poor sap who doesn’t realize he’s a poor sap until it’s too late…
Walter Neff: “It’s just like the first time I came here, isn’t it? We were talking about automobile insurance, only you were thinking about murder. And I was thinking about that anklet.”
It’s a perfect film – and there are few of those…but of course, in the 1970’s we were given another film noir masterpiece:
“Forget it, Jake, it’s Chinatown.”
First, let’s look at the classic trailer for a classic film noir…
Simply put, one of the greatest films of all time. Directed by Roman Polanski, starring Jack Nicholson as LA Private Detective Jake Gittes, Faye Dunaway as Evelyn Mulwray, and legendary Director John Huston as LA Businessman Noah Cross…
Noah Cross: “You’ve got a nasty reputation, Mr. Gittes. I like that.”
‘Jake’ Gittes is a private detective who seems to specialize in matrimonial cases. He is hired by Evelyn Mulwray when she suspects her husband Hollis, builder of the city’s water supply system, of having an affair.
You don’t need to know anything else – the plot is a history of LA’s water system, a meditation on evil, and a masterclass in film making…and of course, every film noir is driven by sex, violence and desire…
Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway have never been better, and this film hold us today as fresh as when it was released…all three of these film noir do…and all involve a guy who gets into trouble for one simple reason: a woman…
My friend Alison Martino runs the great website “Vintage Los Angeles”, and she know this film is a perfect snapshot of a strange, twisted and corrupt town…
This movie is perfect: the writing, directing, and acting are all flawless…and it ends with one of the most iconic movie lines of all time:
“Forget it, Jake, it’s Chinatown.”
Time for some noir! Let me know your favorites!
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