Noir Alley

[JamesJazGuitar]

5 minutes ago, Hibi said:

I think they were actually bigger than JOAN'S!!!

Joan was also under contract with Warner Brothers at the time,  so for all we know that jacket came from the clothes the studio set aside for Joan.   

[Vautrin]

Guess you can't call her Baby anymore. I don't know about Bogie,

but if I saw her in that outfit I might find a palm tree to hide behind. 

[Dargo]

10 minutes ago, jamesjazzguitar said:

Joan was also under contract with Warner Brothers at the time,  so for all we know that jacket came from the clothes the studio set aside for Joan.   

And of course a fashion trend that would be revived by a whole other "Joan" just a few decades later...

[Hibi]

15 minutes ago, jamesjazzguitar said:

Joan was also under contract with Warner Brothers at the time,  so for all we know that jacket came from the clothes the studio set aside for Joan.   

True. Could've been one of her cast offs........

[LornaHansonForbes]

1 hour ago, Dargo said:

And of course a fashion trend that would be revived by a whole other "Joan" just a few decades later...

She looks like The Joker in BATMAN ON ICE.

[speedracer5]

6 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

And Bette sort of commits career suicide in playing her....

...or she commits the greatest triumph of her life!

[Sepiatone]

18 hours ago, jamesjazzguitar said:

Each women killed herself for similar reasons:  she couldn't get her man and she didn't want anyone else to have him.

 

???       

Just reminded me of that old "Beverly Hillbillies" episode in which dummy JETHRO, broken hearted over not being able to win over his heart's desire MISS CHICKADEE,  was caught by Jed standing on the diving board of the "C-MENT POND"  with an anvil tied to his neck.   Jed asks what he's up to, and Jethro explains he's going to end it all and says, "Heck FIRE, Uncle Jed, if'n I cain't have her, cain't NOBODY ELSE have her!"  Well, Jed then asks, "How's you drownin' YOURself gonna stop anyone ELSE from comin' along and gettin' her?"     Jethro sheepishly grins and says, "Shucks!  Never thought  o' that...." 

Sepiatone

[LornaHansonForbes]

slightly off topic, but last night TCM showed THE FOXES OF HARROW, which featured an onscreen suicide by a  character- a slave and mother to a newborn who hurled herself into a river and drowned rather than see her baby become a slave as well.

it was surprising for a lot of reasons.

[Looney]

I enjoyed SCENE OF THE CRIME (1949).  I can't say I loved Johnson, but I enjoyed seeing him doing something outside his norm like THE CAINE MUTINY (1954).  Muller definitely nailed this one when he pointed out that Gloria DeHaven steals the show.  She had me fooled, but I disagree that she steals the show more than Norman Lloyd.  He was just great "Nyuk, Nyuk." 

I REALLY don't want to wait a month for Noir Alley to return.  It has become one of the only things I can schedule to watch on TCM right now.  Everything else I have to catch on the fly or hope it shows up on the Sling TV On Demand.  

[ElCid]

32 minutes ago, Looney said:

I enjoyed SCENE OF THE CRIME (1949).  I can't say I loved Johnson, but I enjoyed seeing him doing something outside his norm like THE CAINE MUTINY (1954).  Muller definitely nailed this one when he pointed out that Gloria DeHaven steals the show.  She had me fooled, but I disagree that she steals the show more than Norman Lloyd.  He was just great "Nyuk, Nyuk." 

I REALLY don't want to wait a month for Noir Alley to return.  It has become one of the only things I can schedule to watch on TCM right now.  Everything else I have to catch on the fly or hope it shows up on the Sling TV On Demand.  

It is curious (if possible) that even in SUTS month, there won't be some Noir.  After all, many "stars" made Noir movies.  Maybe they just decided not to do Noir Alley as such.  Then there is always TCM on Demand.

As for Scene of the Crime, Gloria DeHaven was definitely the best part.  Arlene Dahl really didn't add a lot to it and they tended to glamorize her too often.

[speedracer5]

11 minutes ago, TheCid said:

It is curious (if possible) that even in SUTS month, there won't be some Noir.  After all, many "stars" made Noir movies.  Maybe they just decided not to do Noir Alley as such.  Then there is always TCM on Demand.

As for Scene of the Crime, Gloria DeHaven was definitely the best part.  Arlene Dahl really didn't add a lot to it and they tended to glamorize her too often.

It's interesting that they weren't able to select SUTS nominees that would have a noir film that would allow Noir Alley to continue.  When Robert Osborne was still hosting The Essentials, we were able to speculate on who the four Saturday nominees were based on the "Essential" that was scheduled.  Since The Essentials seemingly has disappeared, it seems like Noir Alley could have been scheduled. I could see it being complicated if both The Essentials and Noir Alley were still active. 

[cigarjoe]

You can see why Van Johnson never made any more Noirs. He just doesn't seem quite hard boiled enough, another song and dance man who was trying to harden his image, sort of like Dick Powell, although Powell easily made the switch Johnson didn't.  He's too vanilla. The rest of the cast are quite adapt in their rolls. Arlene Dahl is fine but wasted in the good girl role though she does look stunning. Gloria DeHaven is an eye opener. She's another refugee from musicals and she's quite believable as the stripper.  In fact, she would have been good in Noir but she never appeared in another that I know of. However since this was 1949 her strip act is pretty tame, lol. McIntire is doing a variation of his his usual shtick, and Norman Lloyd is very entertaining as Sleeper.

The battle between the police and Turk's armored car is unusually detailed and quite drawn out. It is an interesting sequence that would be more at home in a 30s gangster flick

[Looney]

I also forgot to mention that the Dahl and Johnson have to have one of the most awkward marriages in any crime drama.  The way it is portrayed is so interesting.  It is like they said, "We've got this fairly typical structured marriage of a hard-nosed cop and a debutante - for lack of a better word.  Rather than go the predictable route of her just being miserable and wanting him to quit let's put a twist on it where they play these weird games, including him telling her he is about to try to seduce another woman."  I agree that Dahl was a bit wasted here, but I think the odd dynamic they established really added to the entertainment quality.  I can't help but feel I wish she had gotten on that plane. 

And another little side note, I don't think I've seen a movie where they used particular type of street vernacular before.  That was a pretty interesting aspect of it.

[cmovieviewer]

For those who are looking for Noir Alley -type films during Eddie's Summer Under the Stars hiatus, I made a list of some of those coming up that might qualify:

Monday, August 6 - AUDREY TOTTER (she is the "Queen of Noir" this month)
Postman Always Rings Twice, The (1946)
Man in the Dark (1953)
Sellout, The (1951)
Set-Up, The (1949)
Tension (1950)
High Wall (1947)
Lady in the Lake (1947)
Unsuspected, The (1947)

Friday, August 10 - DOROTHY MALONE
Convicted (1950)
Tip on a Dead Jockey (1957)

Tuesday, August 21 - ANITA LOUISE
Shadowed (1946)

Wednesday, August 22 - DANA ANDREWS
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)
While the City Sleeps (1956)
Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950)
Fallen Angel (1945)

Thursday, August 23 - VIRGINIA MAYO
Flaxy Martin (1949)
Backfire (1950)

Friday, August 24 - PETER LORRE
Face Behind the Mask, The (1941)
M (1931)
Crime and Punishment (1935)
Mask of Dimitrios, The (1944)
Verdict, The (1946)

Monday, August 27 - AGNES MOOREHEAD
Caged (1950)
Journey Into Fear (1942)

Tuesday, August 28 - LEW AYRES
Unfaithful, The (1947)
No Escape (1953)
Fingers at the Window (1942)

Wednesday, August 29 - LAUREN BACALL
Dark Passage (1947)
Big Sleep, The (1946)

Friday, August 31 - JOAN CRAWFORD
Sudden Fear (1952)

(Of course some of these have already been shown on Noir Alley.)

If you want to get a head start and have access to other sources, here's what's coming up on Noir Alley in September:

9-02 The Locket (1946) Robert Mitchum, Laraine Day
9-09 Desperate (1953) Steve Brodie, Audrey Long
9-16 Angel Face (1952) Robert Mitchum, Jean Simmons
9-23 The Stranger (1946) Orson Welles, Loretta Young
9-30 The Gangster (1947) Barry Sullivan

I hope nobody strongly objects to any of my suggestions.  I used the IMDB descriptions to pick out the crime dramas and film-noir category films.

 

[HelenBaby2]

7 minutes ago, Looney said:

I also forgot to mention that the Dahl and Johnson have to have one of the most awkward marriages in any crime drama.  The way it is portrayed is so interesting.  It is like they said, "We've got this fairly typical structured marriage of a hard-nosed cop and a debutante - for lack of a better word.  Rather than go the predictable route of her just being miserable and wanting him to quit let's put a twist on it where they play these weird games, including him telling her he is about to try to seduce another woman."  I agree that Dahl was a bit wasted here, but I think the odd dynamic they established really added to the entertainment quality.  I can't help but feel I wish she had gotten on that plane. 

And another little side note, I don't think I've seen a movie where they used particular type of street vernacular before.  That was a pretty interesting aspect of it.

I’m with you about the script; I thought it was very literate and well written. You just don’t hear dialogue that good these days.

[Looney]

17 minutes ago, cmovieviewer said:

For those who are looking for Noir Alley -type films during Eddie's Summer Under the Stars hiatus, I made a list of some of those coming up that might qualify:

Monday, August 6 - AUDREY TOTTER (she is the "Queen of Noir" this month)
Postman Always Rings Twice, The (1946)
Man in the Dark (1953)
Sellout, The (1951)
Set-Up, The (1949)
Tension (1950)
High Wall (1947)
Lady in the Lake (1947)
Unsuspected, The (1947)

Friday, August 10 - DOROTHY MALONE
Convicted (1950)
Tip on a Dead Jockey (1957)

Wednesday, August 22 - DANA ANDREWS
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)
While the City Sleeps (1956)
Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950)
Fallen Angel (1945)

Friday, August 24 - PETER LORRE
Face Behind the Mask, The (1941)
M (1931)
Crime and Punishment (1935)
Mask of Dimitrios, The (1944)
Verdict, The (1946)

Monday, August 27 - AGNES MOOREHEAD
Caged (1950)
Journey Into Fear (1942)

Tuesday, August 28 - LEW AYRES
Unfaithful, The (1947)
No Escape (1953)
Fingers at the Window (1942)

Wednesday, August 29 - LAUREN BACALL
Dark Passage (1947)
Big Sleep, The (1946)

Friday, August 31 - JOAN CRAWFORD
Sudden Fear (1952)

(Of course some of these have already been shown on Noir Alley.)

If you want to get a head start and have access to other sources, here's what's coming up on Noir Alley in September:

9-02 The Locket (1946) Robert Mitchum, Laraine Day
9-09 Desperate (1953) Steve Brodie, Audrey Long
9-16 Angel Face (1952) Robert Mitchum, Jean Simmons
9-23 The Stranger (1946) Orson Welles, Loretta Young
9-30 The Gangster (1947) Barry Sullivan

I hope nobody strongly objects to any of my suggestions.  I used the IMDB descriptions to pick out the crime dramas and film-noir category films.

 

WOW!!!!!  THANKS!!!!!

[cmovieviewer]

32 minutes ago, Looney said:

WOW!!!!!  THANKS!!!!!

You're welcome!

- I updated the list above to add some Anita Louise and Virginia Mayo films.  Hope there aren't many others that I missed.

[misswonderly3]

3 hours ago, TheCid said:

It is curious (if possible) that even in SUTS month, there won't be some Noir.  After all, many "stars" made Noir movies.  Maybe they just decided not to do Noir Alley as such.  Then there is always TCM on Demand.

.

I'm curious why you made the assumption that there'd be no noir movies during August, "Summer Under the Stars" month. Thanks to cmovieviewer who did a little research and posted a list of all the noir(ish) films scheduled for August.

[misswonderly3]

The main thing I noticed about Scene of the Crime was the character of Lili  - played, as several here have noted, by cute and perky Gloria DeHaven, who handles the role quite well.

I've seen attractive, deceptive, "trashy" women in noirs ( and for that matter, tons of other movies) before, loads of times. But, whether it was the screenplay, or DeHaven's performance, I was truly surprised when she turned out to be such a fake. She seemed so genuinely touched and flattered and grateful when Van Johnson's character started paying attention to her.  I do think it might have made her character even more interesting if she'd somehow manifested some kind of regret, or at least a certain degree of sadness, or inner conflict, when she reveals to Mike Conovon that she's been playing him all along ( as indeed, he was playing her...) And for some reason I find it a bit hard to believe that she truly cared about Turk.

But what surprised and , I must admit, kind of bothered me the most, is the penultimate scene where Turk is dying ( of course these guys always get a few minutes before they kick off to make some kind of speech or confession or last words ). When Mike asks him if he'd like to see Lili, he says no. And not just "no": he finds the energy to rail against her, saying something about "her type", what a tramp she is, how worthless and undeserving she is. No touching death bed farewell for those two ! Poor Lili, I found myself feeling just a little sorry for her, how she'd done all this business, going along with Conovon for Turk's sake, and she gets nothing, not one good word, from him when he dies.

[cmovieviewer]

Do we have to say SPOILERS here?

I thought the relationship between Van Johnson's Det. Conovan and Lili was unusual to say the least.  At first I wasn't sure what the detective was aiming for, but eventually just assumed he wanted to get in her good graces so she would confess anything she knew.  Is a movie and some candy all it takes?  Even after he admits that he is police and married?  Is Det. Conovan's wife used to this sort of thing happening on a regular basis?  I must admit that I was surprised when the Lili twist was revealed. It did make it seem cruel that Turk would reject her after everything she had done for him.

[ElCid]

1 hour ago, misswonderly3 said:

I'm curious why you made the assumption that there'd be no noir movies during August, "Summer Under the Stars" month. Thanks to cmovieviewer who did a little research and posted a list of all the noir(ish) films scheduled for August.

My error.  I actually meant to say that there could be a Noir Alley because there would probably be some Noir movies during SUTS.  Of course, maybe what Muller really meant was that he was taking a week off to harvest grapes or make wine or taste a lot of wine?

As for Scene of the Crime, it was fairly good and most of the good points have been mentioned already.  Somehow I just did not get into the Dahl role.  She was too perfect in the way she dressed and appeared.  I don't think her character as portrayed really added much to the movie.  On the other hand, I really liked Gloria DeHaven's performance.  A little softer than most, but in the end she was a femme fatale.  In looking at it, you could see that her character was an actress and she played men for what she could get.  After all, it was 1949 and she was a stripper.  As for "loving" Turk, is that not the quintessential nice girls like bad men?  Here again, you have to consider her background.  In some respects, she could be easily manipulated by men.  Perhaps a more complex character than we are used to.

As for Van Johnson, he did OK, but that is about it.

Guess one thing about the movie is all the changes of direction and character motivation that we often don't see. And they made it work.  In hindsight DeHaven did a 180, but a believable 180.  Dahl and Johnson at the airport was kind of sappy.

By my calculations they had about 16 pieces/packages of "six cent candy" at the movie.

I have noticed that Muller often refers viewers to twitter or something to discuss the movie.  He never mentions this forum, much less this thread.  But maybe that is a good thing?

[LornaHansonForbes]

Yaaaaaaaaaas SUDDEN FEAR! Aug 31!

[Vautrin]

Another nosy cop being killed by public minded citizens who are just out

for a good time. Great way to start a movie. I couldn't remember if I

had seen this one before or not, but as the movie progressed I realized

I had, though quite a while ago. Well done overall, though nothing very

original or different. I thought Johnson was pretty believable as the cop,

even a somewhat disillusioned one. Looks like the killers heard Norman

Lloyd's yuck thing one time too many. Can't really blame them. 

[misswonderly3]

 

 

I don't take kindly to that, Mr. Vautrin. Nyuck Nycuk.

[Vautrin]

2 hours ago, misswonderly3 said:

 

 

I don't take kindly to that, Mr. Vautrin. Nyuck Nycuk.

Are you still hanging around, Sleeper? Well Curly called and he wants his

nycuks nycuks back. The firefight at the end was pretty cool. The bad guys

had an armor plated car, but what about the windows? The cops could have

shot at them, though maybe they couldn't get a downward angle. All's well

that ends well.