Hoganman1

Looks like I'm way behind on Lake/Ladd movies. I've not seen Blue Dahlia nor Saigon. I did see THE GLASS KEY once. There's a character named Eloise Matthews which was my mother's name.

So TCM cannot show films made by Paramount?

I just got around to watching THIS GUN FOR HIRE. It was great. All these years I thought it was a Western. I guess SHANE made me think of Alan Ladd as a cowboy star. Obviously, I have a lot to learn about this Hollywood icon. Although I've been a big fan of films made in the late 40s and early 50s for decades, Noir Alley has introduced me to many great actresses and actors I have overlooked. Here's hoping Eddie keeps doing his thing. As I age I find these films much more entertaining that the comic book action films that seem to dominate the market today. There is nothing wrong with Ironman, Wonder Woman and The Hulk. I just prefer Sam Spade, Walter Neff and Jeff Bailey.

I'm not a country music fan either. I'm more of a smooth jazz guy, but I guess one cannot ignore how country music has moved into the mainstream. It seems like there are awards shows every week. Thanks for getting back to Noir Alley. I've missed the last couple of weeks. Here's hoping TRAPPED is decent.

I thought The Woman on the Beach was OK. Eddie explained that it was cut and re-edited to make the studio happy. That explains why it wasn't better. I'm quickly becoming a Joan Bennett fan. I thought she was great in her role. However, my favorite Bennett movie is still The Woman in the Window.

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid is my second favorite film of all time (Casablanca is #1). It's hard to believe it's 50 years old. Newman, Redford and Katherine Ross were all fabulous in their roles. I've watched it many times and introduced it to my children when they were teens. We all still use quotes from the movie all the time. I encourage anyone who hasn't seen it to please take a look. I know there are those that don't like it when Hollywood glorifies criminals. The Godfather received some of the same criticism. Still I consider both of these movies to be classics. If you disagree all I can say is "I've got vision and the rest of the world wears bifocals".

I just watched NOWHERE BOY on Showtime. It covers John Lennon as a teenager. It was really well done. John was always my favorite Beatle and the movie gives good insight into why he was such a complicated individual. While the film only briefly touches on the birth of the Fab Four, every Beatle fan should enjoy it. UPDATE: Today TCM showed A HARD DAYS NIGHT. I hadn't seen it in years. I guess I got my "Beatle fix" this week.

Just finished SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT starring John Hodiak. This was a film noir that I had not seen. It's really good with the usual plot turns and mysterious characters. I won't go any further so as not to spoil the ending. I highly recommend it to all my friends that enjoy this genre.

Cary Grant would have been a great Bond. In fact his role in TO CATCH A THIEF kind of confirms that he could have done the physical stuff as well as being suave and debonair. Also, I like Peebs's idea of finding a relatively unknown actor to follow Craig. After all, Connery wasn't that well known until Dr. No was released.

I'm not sure he would be a great Bond, but I thought Matt Damon as Jason Bourne was fantastic. Obviously, Bourne and Bond were very different characters. Still I wish they would do more Bourne films. I've read they're actually thinking of retiring Bond as 007 and introducing a new female 007 at MI-6. I'm not sure that will go over well with many of us older fans of James Bond. I guess it's a creative way to keep the franchise alive for the next generation of movie goers. I'm still trying to think of who I would like to play Bond when Daniel Craig hangs up his Walther PPK.

Well, if you want to go way back, maybe William Powell of THIN MAN fame might have worked. Of course he was in his 60s when Casino Royal was first published.

I tend to agree with Clive Owen. However, I'm hard pressed to think of anyone better than Sean Connery. Pierce Brosnan was my second favorite. I'll have to give some thought to whom might be good from today's stars.

I just watched ZODIAC on Fusion TV. I love serial killer movies and this is one of my favorites. Don't worry, I don't identify with the killers. I minored in psychology in college and I'm very curious as to what motivates these people. Mass murderers seem to want to kill indiscriminately. Serial killers seem more interested in playing cat and mouse with law enforcement. Their victims seem to fit a certain type. They also enjoy the notoriety they usually get from the media. I guess Zodiac is so interesting to me because they never caught him. My apologies if this is too creepy for some of you. It's just that one of my unfulfilled dreams was to be an FBI profiler. John Douglas has always been one of my heroes.

I'll have to check out the re-make. Do you know if it's available on Netflix or Prime as yet?

I always thought the clown, Pennywise, in the original 1990 mini-series IT was pretty scary. It's hard to believe that was almost thirty years ago and John Ritter and Harry Anderson are no longer with us. There is a 2017 re-make, which I haven't seen as yet, and I understand a Chapter Two is due out next month.

Even as a young child in the 1950s I was a big fan of classic horror flicks. I'm hard pressed to remember what actually frighten me. I found Dracula, the Frankenstein Monster, the Mummy and the Wolfman all fascinating. I guess I realized none of these creatures actually existed. To this day, I still enjoy scary movies. GHOST STORY from the early 80s is one of my favorites. It's unfortunate that somewhere in the past few decades real horror movies gave way to the slasher movies. All the blood and gore are a poor substitute for creativity. I agree with whoever said that said a true horror movie should scare you, not make you sick to your stomach. In my opinion the original HALLOWEEN was one of the last great horror flicks even though they ruined it with all the sequels. I'm sure there are others that I've forgotten.

Getting back to the original question; I think it's a tie between Casablanca and The Godfather.

I've always like Ben Vereen too. I think his best role ever was Chicken George in ROOTS.

We watched ON THE WATERFRONT the other night during the Brando marathon. It's really the first time I've seen it from start to finish. I was surprised to hear Sinatra was originally cast as Terry Malloy. Brando was so good in the part it's hard to imagine anyone else in the role. . Lee J Cobb was great too. It's interesting that when I first read the book THE GODFATHER, before the movie was cast, I had Cobb in my mind as Vito Corleone.

Yes. LAURA is definitely in my top ten. As is THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW. I won't go so far as to list my "top ten" although I think that would make for a fun thread. Hopefully, someone else will start such a thread. My guess is, it's probably already been done.

I agree. THIEVES HIGHWAY was entertaining, but not one of my favorites. I was surprised to hear it's the film that ignited Eddie's love of noir. I realize many accept a very broad definition of what is considered Film Noir . For me, classic noir is more in the vein of films like DOUBLE INDEMNITY, THE BIG SLEEP, THE MALTESE FALCON, and THE LADY IN THE LAKE. I prefer films that feature a private eye, a femme fatale and a crooked cop or businessman. Granted there are many noir films that don't fit this mold which I find entertaining such as THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE and many more. However, they just don't make my top ten.

Sorry I'm late posting, but I was somewhat disappointed in WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS. I thought Eddie's comments after the showing were on target and I'm glad he explained why he showed the film in the first place. It was a great cast, but the story just didn't seem to display their talent. Here hoping THIEVES HIGHWAY is better.

I too enjoyed THE PEOPLE AGAINST O'HARA. My maternal grandfather was a lawyer and looked a lot like Spencer Tracy. So he's always been one of my favorites. I didn't realize this was his only movie that is considered to be noir. I think INHERIT THE WIND is my favorite Tracy film followed closely by BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK.

No, I haven't read it, but it sounds like something I would find interesting. I'm a big fan of serial killer stories where the police, journalists or even private citizens become obsessed with trying to solve the crimes. I'll look for the book.

I like Ruffalo too. I've always been intrigued by the Zodiac killer and Ruffalo is one of the stars of the movie. I watch it frequently and he is great in his role. He does look a lot like Garfield. I'm sure he would do a good job if the movie were to happen. I actually like Cusack as well. I do agree that his portrayal of Brian Wilson was a stretch, but I've enjoyed most of his other movies.