How Do You Choose A Classic Film Noir?
We have the French to thank for the term “film noir,” but plenty of American movies fit the category. If you like gritty urban settings and hard-boiled, jaded heroes battling shady characters and deceitful women, then you should love this movie genre. Finding the best film noir titles takes a little effort, but the payoff is always terrific. Read about film noir in film history books such as those by Gerald Mast or David A. Cook. This will give you a clearer sense of the genre and its roots. Use major search engines to do a little online research on film noir. Yahoo! and Google work well. Start a list of film noir classics based on your reading and online searches. Be sure to include such must-see standards as “The Maltese Falcon” (1941), “This Gun for Hire” (1942), “Laura” and “Double Indemnity” (1944), “Murder, My Sweet” and “Scarlet Street” (1945), “The Killers” and “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (1946), “Out of the Past” and “Desperate” (1947), “Raw Deal,” “The Lady From Shanghai
