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45 of 45 people found the following review helpful
By Nobody
VINE™ VOICE
This is another installment from Warner Bros. of Film Noir classics although lesser known and perhaps less appreciated. The set of ten films is presented as double features with two films to a disc (DL-DVD). As always the transfers are of respectable quality with all films featuring audio commentaries by film historians. This is brilliant value for money.
*****Act of Violence (MGM, 1949)*****
Director: Fred Zinnemann (High Noon,1952; From Here To Eternity, 1953)
An excellent film noir tackling the popular noir theme of a man haunted by the past, in this case survivor's guilt. Excellent chiaroscuro lighting and strong performances all round, but specially from Van Heflin. I thought it was wonderfully well paced tracking the central character's slow downward spiral into guilt with a lack of resistance to his fate that is similar in many ways to "The Killers" (Siodmak, 1946)
Cast:
Van Heflin (Shane, 1953)
Robert Ryan (Crossfire,1947; Bad Day At Black Rock, 1955)
Janet Leigh (Psycho,1960; Touch of Evil,1958)
Mary Astor (The Maltese Falcon,1941)
Cinematography: Robert Surtees (The Bad and the Beautiful,1952; ; The Graduate,1967, The Last Picture Show,1971)
Screenwriter: Robert L Richards (Winchester '73, 1950)
*****Mystery Street (MGM, 1950)*****
Director: John Sturges (Bad Day At Black Rock, 1955)
"Mystery Street" starts out like a typical noir then moves into docu-noir territory with a CSI type investigation. The highlight of the film though is the cinematography by John Alton (The Big Combo, Raw Deal, T-Men) who really defines the noir look. Strong performances also from two actors, notably Jan Sterling (Ace in the Hole, 1951) whom we don't see enough of and Elsa Lanchester (The Bride Of Frankenstein,1935). Overall a good crime thriller.
*****Crime Wave (Warner Bros., 1954)*****
Director: Andre de Toth
Great lesser known noir with some really great performances, most notably Gene Nelson, and location shooting which lends it a certain amount of realism. A real highlight of the set.
Cast:
Sterling Hayden (Asphalt Jungle, 1950; The Killing, 1956; Johnny Guitar, 1954)
Gene Nelson (Oklahoma, 1955)
Cinematography: Bert Glennon (The Scarlett Empress, 1934; Stagecoach, 1939)
*****Decoy (Monogram, 1946)
Director: Jack Bernhard
This film is a genuine B-Noir which allows it to be a bit more outrageous that most A-Noir especially which it comes to the femme fatale character played by English actress Jean Gillie. Wonderfully entertaining to watch.
Cinematography: Lewis William O'Connell (Scarface, 1932)
*****Where Danger Lives (RKO Radio Pictures, 1950)*****
Director: John Farrow (The Big Clock, 1948)
This really is another highlight of the set with superb direction, cinematography and acting most notably from Robert Mitchum and Claude Raines (eve though he's only in it briefly). An upstanding doctor is suck into the whirlpool of the noir world by a woman. Always a popular theme in Film Noir.
Cast:
Robert Mitchum (Out of the Past, 1947; Angel Face,1953; Night of the Hunter, 1955)
Faith Domergue (This Island Earth, 1955)
Screenwriter: Charles Bennett (Blackmail,1929; The 39 Steps, 1939)
Cinematography: Nick Musuraca (Cat People, 1942; The Spiral Staircase,1946; Out Of The Past, 1947)
*****Tension (MGM, 1949)*****
Director: John Berry
This film contains one of the great film noir performances of a femme fatale with a plot you're never quite sure where it's going. Excellent cinematography.
Cast:
Audrey Totter (The Postman Always Rings Twice,1946)
Richard Basehart (The House On Telegraph Hill, 1951; La Strada,1954)
Screenwriter: Alan Rivkin (Dead Reckoning, 1947)
Cinematography: Harry Stradling (A Streetcar Named Desire,1951; Angel Face,1953; A Face In The Crowd, 1957)
*****Illegal (Warner Bros., 1955)*****
Director: Lewis Allen (Suddenly,1954)
Not really a noir but more a courtroom melodama, yet still quite good and definitely recommended for Robinson fans. "Illegal" also features a debut performance from Jane Mansfield.
Cast:
Edward G Robinson (Little Caesar,1930; Double Indemnity,1944)
Nina Foch (An American In Paris, 1951)
Cinematography: J Peveral Marley (The Ten Commandments,1956; The Spirit Of St Louis,1957)
Screenwriter: WR Burnett (Little Caesar, 1930; Scarface, 1932; The Asphalt Jungle, 1950)
*****The Big Steal (RKO Pictures, 1949)*****
Director: Don Siegel (Invasion of the Body Snatchers, 1956; Dirty Harry, 1971)
Early Siegel picture that is a kind of screwball romantic-comedy chase-movie with elements of noir. The reteaming of Mitchum and Greer after the success of "Out of the Past" is always going to be the highlight. The Big Steal struck me as being something Howard Hawks could have made.
Cast:
Robert Mitchum (Out of the Past, 1947; Angel Face,1953; Night of the Hunter, 1955)
Jane Greer (Out of the Past,1947)
William Bendix(Blue Dahlia, 1946;The Glass Key,1942)
Cinematography: Harry J Wild (The Magnificent Ambersons, 1942; Murder, My Sweet, 1944)
*****They Live By Night (RKO Pictures, 1949)*****
Director: Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without A Cause, 1955; Johnny Guitar, 1954; In A Lonely Place, 1950)
The first of several Ray masterpieces which is an innocent precursor to other similar films such as "Bonnie and Clyde"(1967), "Badlands" (1973), "Perroit le Fou"(1965) and "Natural Born Killers" (1994). Romantic noir.
Cast:
Cathy O'Donnell (The Best Years Of Our Lives, 1946; The Man From Laramie, 1955; Ben-Hur,1955)
Farley Granger (Rope, 1948; Stranger on a Train,1951)
Cinematography: George E Diskant (The Narrow Margin,1952; The Bigamist,1953)
*****Side Street (MGM, 1950)*****
Director: Anthony Mann (T-Men, 1947; Raw Deal,1948)
Screenwriter: Sydney Boehm (The Big Heat,1953)
Cinematography: Joseph Ruttenberg (The Philadelphia Story,1940; Gaslight,1944)
*****Act of Violence (MGM, 1949)*****
Director: Fred Zinnemann (High Noon,1952; From Here To Eternity, 1953)
An excellent film noir tackling the popular noir theme of a man haunted by the past, in this case survivor's guilt. Excellent chiaroscuro lighting and strong performances all round, but specially from Van Heflin. I thought it was wonderfully well paced tracking the central character's slow downward spiral into guilt with a lack of resistance to his fate that is similar in many ways to "The Killers" (Siodmak, 1946)
Cast:
Van Heflin (Shane, 1953)
Robert Ryan (Crossfire,1947; Bad Day At Black Rock, 1955)
Janet Leigh (Psycho,1960; Touch of Evil,1958)
Mary Astor (The Maltese Falcon,1941)
Cinematography: Robert Surtees (The Bad and the Beautiful,1952; ; The Graduate,1967, The Last Picture Show,1971)
Screenwriter: Robert L Richards (Winchester '73, 1950)
*****Mystery Street (MGM, 1950)*****
Director: John Sturges (Bad Day At Black Rock, 1955)
"Mystery Street" starts out like a typical noir then moves into docu-noir territory with a CSI type investigation. The highlight of the film though is the cinematography by John Alton (The Big Combo, Raw Deal, T-Men) who really defines the noir look. Strong performances also from two actors, notably Jan Sterling (Ace in the Hole, 1951) whom we don't see enough of and Elsa Lanchester (The Bride Of Frankenstein,1935). Overall a good crime thriller.
*****Crime Wave (Warner Bros., 1954)*****
Director: Andre de Toth
Great lesser known noir with some really great performances, most notably Gene Nelson, and location shooting which lends it a certain amount of realism. A real highlight of the set.
Cast:
Sterling Hayden (Asphalt Jungle, 1950; The Killing, 1956; Johnny Guitar, 1954)
Gene Nelson (Oklahoma, 1955)
Cinematography: Bert Glennon (The Scarlett Empress, 1934; Stagecoach, 1939)
*****Decoy (Monogram, 1946)
Director: Jack Bernhard
This film is a genuine B-Noir which allows it to be a bit more outrageous that most A-Noir especially which it comes to the femme fatale character played by English actress Jean Gillie. Wonderfully entertaining to watch.
Cinematography: Lewis William O'Connell (Scarface, 1932)
*****Where Danger Lives (RKO Radio Pictures, 1950)*****
Director: John Farrow (The Big Clock, 1948)
This really is another highlight of the set with superb direction, cinematography and acting most notably from Robert Mitchum and Claude Raines (eve though he's only in it briefly). An upstanding doctor is suck into the whirlpool of the noir world by a woman. Always a popular theme in Film Noir.
Cast:
Robert Mitchum (Out of the Past, 1947; Angel Face,1953; Night of the Hunter, 1955)
Faith Domergue (This Island Earth, 1955)
Screenwriter: Charles Bennett (Blackmail,1929; The 39 Steps, 1939)
Cinematography: Nick Musuraca (Cat People, 1942; The Spiral Staircase,1946; Out Of The Past, 1947)
*****Tension (MGM, 1949)*****
Director: John Berry
This film contains one of the great film noir performances of a femme fatale with a plot you're never quite sure where it's going. Excellent cinematography.
Cast:
Audrey Totter (The Postman Always Rings Twice,1946)
Richard Basehart (The House On Telegraph Hill, 1951; La Strada,1954)
Screenwriter: Alan Rivkin (Dead Reckoning, 1947)
Cinematography: Harry Stradling (A Streetcar Named Desire,1951; Angel Face,1953; A Face In The Crowd, 1957)
*****Illegal (Warner Bros., 1955)*****
Director: Lewis Allen (Suddenly,1954)
Not really a noir but more a courtroom melodama, yet still quite good and definitely recommended for Robinson fans. "Illegal" also features a debut performance from Jane Mansfield.
Cast:
Edward G Robinson (Little Caesar,1930; Double Indemnity,1944)
Nina Foch (An American In Paris, 1951)
Cinematography: J Peveral Marley (The Ten Commandments,1956; The Spirit Of St Louis,1957)
Screenwriter: WR Burnett (Little Caesar, 1930; Scarface, 1932; The Asphalt Jungle, 1950)
*****The Big Steal (RKO Pictures, 1949)*****
Director: Don Siegel (Invasion of the Body Snatchers, 1956; Dirty Harry, 1971)
Early Siegel picture that is a kind of screwball romantic-comedy chase-movie with elements of noir. The reteaming of Mitchum and Greer after the success of "Out of the Past" is always going to be the highlight. The Big Steal struck me as being something Howard Hawks could have made.
Cast:
Robert Mitchum (Out of the Past, 1947; Angel Face,1953; Night of the Hunter, 1955)
Jane Greer (Out of the Past,1947)
William Bendix(Blue Dahlia, 1946;The Glass Key,1942)
Cinematography: Harry J Wild (The Magnificent Ambersons, 1942; Murder, My Sweet, 1944)
*****They Live By Night (RKO Pictures, 1949)*****
Director: Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without A Cause, 1955; Johnny Guitar, 1954; In A Lonely Place, 1950)
The first of several Ray masterpieces which is an innocent precursor to other similar films such as "Bonnie and Clyde"(1967), "Badlands" (1973), "Perroit le Fou"(1965) and "Natural Born Killers" (1994). Romantic noir.
Cast:
Cathy O'Donnell (The Best Years Of Our Lives, 1946; The Man From Laramie, 1955; Ben-Hur,1955)
Farley Granger (Rope, 1948; Stranger on a Train,1951)
Cinematography: George E Diskant (The Narrow Margin,1952; The Bigamist,1953)
*****Side Street (MGM, 1950)*****
Director: Anthony Mann (T-Men, 1947; Raw Deal,1948)
Screenwriter: Sydney Boehm (The Big Heat,1953)
Cinematography: Joseph Ruttenberg (The Philadelphia Story,1940; Gaslight,1944)
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By Mark Pearce
Amazon Verified Purchase
Vol 4 of Warners Excellent noir series has it's moments but Warners are stretching their definition of noir as Mystery Street(Police procedural)IllegaL (courtroom drama)The Big Steal(crime melodrama)and Crimewave(hardboiled cop thriller)cannot be considered real noir.
Act Of Violence(1949)Tough noir(atypical of director Fred Zinnemann's later career)has Van Heflin as wartime coward pursued by crippled ex-comrade Robert Ryan who has a score to settle.Both stars are fine and the ending is excellent.
Mystery Street(1950)John Sturges directed this striking forensics based murder mystery with Boston Detective Ricardo Montalban on his first murder case struggling to make headway.Superior plotting,excellent script by Sidney Boehm and Richard Brooks and a subtle but unhinged performance by Elsa Lanchester highlight this sleeper.
Crime Wave(1954)Low budgeter from Andre De Toth has Sterling Hayden as tough street cop determined to steer ex-con Gene Nelson from trouble as well as get the bad guys.Okay as far as it goes with some great exterior work.
Decoy(1946)Long heralded shoestring noir features British actress Jean Gillie in a flamboyant performance as the femme fatale to end them all who arranges for her longtime lover to be resusitated after he gets the gas chamber so as to lead her to his hidden loot.However he won't play ball and....well you will have to watch the rest.Over-rated but undeniably(for a noir)great fun.
Illegal(1955)Edward G is the whole show as crusading D A who sends an innocent man to the chair,can't live with the guilt and ends up a defense attorney eventually defending his protege from the Da's office on a murder charge.Okay time filler.
The Big Steal(1949)Jane Greer and Robert Mitchum are reteamed for this Don Siegel thriller set down Mexico way with ex-pal of Mitchum's on the lam with a suitcase of money that he does not wish to share either with Mitchum or with his gal Greer.Fast moving and Greer and Mitchum are well matched as always.
They Live by Night(1949)Held over by 2 years by looney tunes RKO owner Howard Hughes,Nicholas Ray's shadowy youngsters on the lam noir is really a love story.Escaped con Farley Granger(never better)and Cathy O'Donnell try to evade police capture while remaining in the hold of two fellow escapees.Beautiful lighting,innovative camerawork and good performances highlight this stylish film.Foretaste of Ray's subsequent anti Hollywood and brilliant career(In a Lonely Place,Rebel Without A Cause,Bitter Victory etc).
Side Street(1949)Granger and O'donnell again this time as young marrieds who find their lives turned upside after Granger steals what he thinks are a few hundred dollars only to find it is $30 000 of mob money.When he tries to return it,that's when their troubles really begin.Okay but director Anthony Mann has made far better.
Where Danger Lives(1950)Robert Mitchum plays a doctor(!!!)who falls under the spell of grasping socialite Faith Domergue and after her husband is killed the pair go on the run.Unconvincing but watchable throughout but Domergue looks better than she acts and Mitchum lends the film a gravitas it scarcely deserves(as does Claude Rains in his one scene as the husband).
Tension(1949)Audrey Totter is superb as a two timing bucket of slime poured in a dress whose treatment of mild mannered husband Richard Basehart sends the poor fellow into Plan b mode(kill wife).However things don't go according to plan(do they ever)in this slightly overlong but well plotted noir from John Berry.
Good solid fare but no heavyweight standouts.Usual extras.
Act Of Violence(1949)Tough noir(atypical of director Fred Zinnemann's later career)has Van Heflin as wartime coward pursued by crippled ex-comrade Robert Ryan who has a score to settle.Both stars are fine and the ending is excellent.
Mystery Street(1950)John Sturges directed this striking forensics based murder mystery with Boston Detective Ricardo Montalban on his first murder case struggling to make headway.Superior plotting,excellent script by Sidney Boehm and Richard Brooks and a subtle but unhinged performance by Elsa Lanchester highlight this sleeper.
Crime Wave(1954)Low budgeter from Andre De Toth has Sterling Hayden as tough street cop determined to steer ex-con Gene Nelson from trouble as well as get the bad guys.Okay as far as it goes with some great exterior work.
Decoy(1946)Long heralded shoestring noir features British actress Jean Gillie in a flamboyant performance as the femme fatale to end them all who arranges for her longtime lover to be resusitated after he gets the gas chamber so as to lead her to his hidden loot.However he won't play ball and....well you will have to watch the rest.Over-rated but undeniably(for a noir)great fun.
Illegal(1955)Edward G is the whole show as crusading D A who sends an innocent man to the chair,can't live with the guilt and ends up a defense attorney eventually defending his protege from the Da's office on a murder charge.Okay time filler.
The Big Steal(1949)Jane Greer and Robert Mitchum are reteamed for this Don Siegel thriller set down Mexico way with ex-pal of Mitchum's on the lam with a suitcase of money that he does not wish to share either with Mitchum or with his gal Greer.Fast moving and Greer and Mitchum are well matched as always.
They Live by Night(1949)Held over by 2 years by looney tunes RKO owner Howard Hughes,Nicholas Ray's shadowy youngsters on the lam noir is really a love story.Escaped con Farley Granger(never better)and Cathy O'Donnell try to evade police capture while remaining in the hold of two fellow escapees.Beautiful lighting,innovative camerawork and good performances highlight this stylish film.Foretaste of Ray's subsequent anti Hollywood and brilliant career(In a Lonely Place,Rebel Without A Cause,Bitter Victory etc).
Side Street(1949)Granger and O'donnell again this time as young marrieds who find their lives turned upside after Granger steals what he thinks are a few hundred dollars only to find it is $30 000 of mob money.When he tries to return it,that's when their troubles really begin.Okay but director Anthony Mann has made far better.
Where Danger Lives(1950)Robert Mitchum plays a doctor(!!!)who falls under the spell of grasping socialite Faith Domergue and after her husband is killed the pair go on the run.Unconvincing but watchable throughout but Domergue looks better than she acts and Mitchum lends the film a gravitas it scarcely deserves(as does Claude Rains in his one scene as the husband).
Tension(1949)Audrey Totter is superb as a two timing bucket of slime poured in a dress whose treatment of mild mannered husband Richard Basehart sends the poor fellow into Plan b mode(kill wife).However things don't go according to plan(do they ever)in this slightly overlong but well plotted noir from John Berry.
Good solid fare but no heavyweight standouts.Usual extras.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars
27 reviews
180 of 185 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
10 lesser-known but excellent Film Noirs make it to DVD
24 April 2007
By calvinnme
- Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase
This collection is the DVD debut for all ten of these films, and I don't even know if any of them are available on VHS. I've only seen them thanks to Turner Classic Movies playing them at odd hours, along with other cable channels presenting them over the years. They are excellent but not well remembered film noirs. I would rate them all between 4 and 5 stars. I thought I would list their descriptions, stars, and special features below, not in any particular order:
Crime Wave: (1954) Starring Sterling Hayden and Gene Nelson. An ex-con is trying to go straight, but circumstances force him into crime one more time. Gene Nelson plays a hard-nosed cop. Note a young Charles Bronson playing a minor role.
Commentary by James Ellroy and Eddie Muller
Crime Wave: The City is Dark
Theatrical trailer
Decoy: (1946) Starring Gene Gillie and Edward Norris. Sci-Fi meets Film Noir in this story of a woman who will stop at nothing to retrieve 400K stolen in a robbery. Gillie would make Barbara Stanwyck proud as she chews up man after man in her quest.
Commentary by Stanley Rubin and Glenn Erickson
Decoy: A Map to Nowhere
Theatrical trailer
Illegal: (1955) Starring Edward G. Robinson and Nina Foch. Robinson plays a D.A. whose upwardly mobile career faces a train wreck when a man he convicted is executed and then found to be innocent. After he hits bottom he resurrects his legal career, this time as a criminal attorney. The plot can be hard to follow, but Robinson's performance is great.
Commentary by Nina Foch and Patricia King Hanson
Illegal: Marked for Life
Behind the Cameras: Edward G. Robinson
Theatrical trailer
The Big Steal: (1949) Starring Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer. The lead duo from "Out of the Past" trade wisecracks and insults in a cross-country chase over a suitcase full of stolen money. For once, Mitchum is actually not the bad guy. Almost too much fun to be considered Film Noir.
Commentary by Richard B. Jewell
The Big Steal: Look Behind You
They Live By Night: (1948) Starring Cathy O'Donnell and Farley Granger. The story of an escaped convict trying to live a normal life with the help of his girlfriend. Granger plays the convict who isn't entirely bad, but not entirely reformed either.
Commentary by Farley Granger and Eddie Muller
They Live By Night: The Twisted Road
Theatrical trailer
Side Street: (1950) Starring Cathy O'Donnell and Farley Granger. Granger plays a struggling husband trying to make ends meet when he spots some cash lying around in an office one day. He takes the money, but finds out it is much more than he thought. When he tries to return the money, he gets caught up in a murder mystery. Hitchcock-like in its twists and turns.
Commentary by Richard Schickel
Side Street: Where Temptation Lurks
Theatrical trailer
Where Danger Lives: (1950) Starring Robert Mitchum and Faith Domergue. The plot is somewhat unbelievable, even for Film Noir, but Mitchum gives a strong performance that makes it worthwhile. Mitchum plays a doctor who becomes taken with a patient. Due to a concussion, his judgement becomes clouded and he believes he has murdered the patient's husband. He and the woman go on the run, have some strange adventures, and then Mitchum realizes what kind of illness his new girlfriend was being treated for in the first place.
Commentary by Alain Silver and James Ursini
Where Danger Lives: White Rose for Julie
Theatrical Trailer
Tension: (1950) Starring Richard Basehart and Audrey Trotter. Basehart plays a mild-mannered man whose salary and disposition are not enough for his wife. She leaves him for a tough and wealthy man. Why Basehart would want her back is anyone's guess, but he does and plans to murder his wife's new boyfriend. The tough guy is murdered, but not by Basehart's character.
Commentary by Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward with Audrey Trotter
Tension: Who's Guilty Now?
Theatrical Trailer
Act of Violence: (1948) Starring Van Heflin and Robert Ryan. Van Heflin plays a family man trying to adapt to life after the war and internment in a prison camp. Enter Robert Ryan, who plays a man with Terminator-like determination in his quest to murder Heflin's character for something that happened during their joint stay in the German prison camp.
Commentary by Dr. Drew Casper
Act of Violence: Dealing With the Devil
Theatrical Trailer
Mystery Street: (1950) Starring Ricardo Montalban and Sally Forrest. Montalban plays a detective who, working with a forensics expert, tries to solve a murder case and exonerate the lone circumstantial suspect. One of the first films I know of to use science to help solve a murder decades before DNA made this aspect of crime solving so interesting and important.
Commentary by Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward
Mystery Street: Murder at Harvard
Theatrical Trailer
Crime Wave: (1954) Starring Sterling Hayden and Gene Nelson. An ex-con is trying to go straight, but circumstances force him into crime one more time. Gene Nelson plays a hard-nosed cop. Note a young Charles Bronson playing a minor role.
Commentary by James Ellroy and Eddie Muller
Crime Wave: The City is Dark
Theatrical trailer
Decoy: (1946) Starring Gene Gillie and Edward Norris. Sci-Fi meets Film Noir in this story of a woman who will stop at nothing to retrieve 400K stolen in a robbery. Gillie would make Barbara Stanwyck proud as she chews up man after man in her quest.
Commentary by Stanley Rubin and Glenn Erickson
Decoy: A Map to Nowhere
Theatrical trailer
Illegal: (1955) Starring Edward G. Robinson and Nina Foch. Robinson plays a D.A. whose upwardly mobile career faces a train wreck when a man he convicted is executed and then found to be innocent. After he hits bottom he resurrects his legal career, this time as a criminal attorney. The plot can be hard to follow, but Robinson's performance is great.
Commentary by Nina Foch and Patricia King Hanson
Illegal: Marked for Life
Behind the Cameras: Edward G. Robinson
Theatrical trailer
The Big Steal: (1949) Starring Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer. The lead duo from "Out of the Past" trade wisecracks and insults in a cross-country chase over a suitcase full of stolen money. For once, Mitchum is actually not the bad guy. Almost too much fun to be considered Film Noir.
Commentary by Richard B. Jewell
The Big Steal: Look Behind You
They Live By Night: (1948) Starring Cathy O'Donnell and Farley Granger. The story of an escaped convict trying to live a normal life with the help of his girlfriend. Granger plays the convict who isn't entirely bad, but not entirely reformed either.
Commentary by Farley Granger and Eddie Muller
They Live By Night: The Twisted Road
Theatrical trailer
Side Street: (1950) Starring Cathy O'Donnell and Farley Granger. Granger plays a struggling husband trying to make ends meet when he spots some cash lying around in an office one day. He takes the money, but finds out it is much more than he thought. When he tries to return the money, he gets caught up in a murder mystery. Hitchcock-like in its twists and turns.
Commentary by Richard Schickel
Side Street: Where Temptation Lurks
Theatrical trailer
Where Danger Lives: (1950) Starring Robert Mitchum and Faith Domergue. The plot is somewhat unbelievable, even for Film Noir, but Mitchum gives a strong performance that makes it worthwhile. Mitchum plays a doctor who becomes taken with a patient. Due to a concussion, his judgement becomes clouded and he believes he has murdered the patient's husband. He and the woman go on the run, have some strange adventures, and then Mitchum realizes what kind of illness his new girlfriend was being treated for in the first place.
Commentary by Alain Silver and James Ursini
Where Danger Lives: White Rose for Julie
Theatrical Trailer
Tension: (1950) Starring Richard Basehart and Audrey Trotter. Basehart plays a mild-mannered man whose salary and disposition are not enough for his wife. She leaves him for a tough and wealthy man. Why Basehart would want her back is anyone's guess, but he does and plans to murder his wife's new boyfriend. The tough guy is murdered, but not by Basehart's character.
Commentary by Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward with Audrey Trotter
Tension: Who's Guilty Now?
Theatrical Trailer
Act of Violence: (1948) Starring Van Heflin and Robert Ryan. Van Heflin plays a family man trying to adapt to life after the war and internment in a prison camp. Enter Robert Ryan, who plays a man with Terminator-like determination in his quest to murder Heflin's character for something that happened during their joint stay in the German prison camp.
Commentary by Dr. Drew Casper
Act of Violence: Dealing With the Devil
Theatrical Trailer
Mystery Street: (1950) Starring Ricardo Montalban and Sally Forrest. Montalban plays a detective who, working with a forensics expert, tries to solve a murder case and exonerate the lone circumstantial suspect. One of the first films I know of to use science to help solve a murder decades before DNA made this aspect of crime solving so interesting and important.
Commentary by Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward
Mystery Street: Murder at Harvard
Theatrical Trailer
50 of 50 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
fun collection...excellent transfers GREAT extras!!
31 July 2007
By Richardson
- Published on Amazon.com
Okay...I'll let others go into the actual films..
I enjoy them all for different reasons but am a noir fan and a big fan of Mitchum and Sterling Hayden who appear here so I didn't need convincing to purchase. Lets not forget these are directed by Andre De Toth, Nicholas Ray,Don Siegel, Anthony Mann,John Sturges and Fred Zinnemann...legends all. Its also fun to see Charles Bronson as a bit player in "Crime Wave" along with Gene Nelson (not singing or dancing in this one) as well as a young Janet Leigh in "Act OF Violence".
I'd like to review the DVDs themselves...(having just made my way through much of this).
first ...the transfers are excellent (typical for WB's older titles)
The extras...commentaries are by legit experts who know the films and add real value.The commentary by James Ellroy on Crime WAve is the most unbelievably NONPC and hysterically funny/interseting one I've ever heard PERIOD. The short featurettes are also enlightening and give extra value to the project as well as info on the films which added to my enjoymment. These featurettes which feature folks like Oliver Stone, show film clips and the interview subjects are shot/lit very noirish which ads to the flavor and class of this presentation.
I picked this up for $39...thats $4 per film!! If you are a noir fan its simply a no brainer and if you aren't ...why are you reading this(not being smart , sincere). If you have an interest you will not be dissapointed with the quality of the presentation on these films. I agree with the other reviewer..after a slight misstep on NOIR 3..WB is back on the ball...great job!
I enjoy them all for different reasons but am a noir fan and a big fan of Mitchum and Sterling Hayden who appear here so I didn't need convincing to purchase. Lets not forget these are directed by Andre De Toth, Nicholas Ray,Don Siegel, Anthony Mann,John Sturges and Fred Zinnemann...legends all. Its also fun to see Charles Bronson as a bit player in "Crime Wave" along with Gene Nelson (not singing or dancing in this one) as well as a young Janet Leigh in "Act OF Violence".
I'd like to review the DVDs themselves...(having just made my way through much of this).
first ...the transfers are excellent (typical for WB's older titles)
The extras...commentaries are by legit experts who know the films and add real value.The commentary by James Ellroy on Crime WAve is the most unbelievably NONPC and hysterically funny/interseting one I've ever heard PERIOD. The short featurettes are also enlightening and give extra value to the project as well as info on the films which added to my enjoymment. These featurettes which feature folks like Oliver Stone, show film clips and the interview subjects are shot/lit very noirish which ads to the flavor and class of this presentation.
I picked this up for $39...thats $4 per film!! If you are a noir fan its simply a no brainer and if you aren't ...why are you reading this(not being smart , sincere). If you have an interest you will not be dissapointed with the quality of the presentation on these films. I agree with the other reviewer..after a slight misstep on NOIR 3..WB is back on the ball...great job!
40 of 40 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bravo! Bravo!
11 Aug 2007
By Carl Tait
- Published on Amazon.com
Whoever put this collection together should get a promotion, a raise, and a personal letter of thanks from every serious noir fan. This is an absolutely wonderful assortment of moody, gritty noirs that deserve to be better known. Of the ten (yes, TEN!) movies in this collection, none except "The Big Steal" has ever been on commercial VHS, much less DVD. "Decoy" is so scarce that the only version generally circulating before now was taken from a European TV broadcast, complete with Croatian subtitles.
Before anyone gets the wrong idea: these are not masterpieces. They are, however, very good movies and quintessential noir. The selection has been made with care and affection. This set is ideal for newcomers to noir who have seen a number of the genre cornerstones and want to further steep themselves in the essential style without the glitter of A-list productions. Dedicated noirphiles, of course, have been awaiting official high-quality transfers of these films for years.
I can't say enough good things about this set. The intelligent mini-documentaries for each film and the insanely low price tag are the icing on this ten-layer cake. We can only hope the same people will be in charge of Volume 5 of this series! Maybe we'll get a similar assortment of worthwhile "Never on home video" films such as The Breaking Point, Cry of the City, The Locket, My Name is Julia Ross, Nightfall, The Prowler, Screaming Mimi, Talk About a Stranger, The 13th Letter, The Unsuspected, The Verdict, and more. (Okay, I didn't bother to check who owns the rights to those movies, but you get the idea.)
Before anyone gets the wrong idea: these are not masterpieces. They are, however, very good movies and quintessential noir. The selection has been made with care and affection. This set is ideal for newcomers to noir who have seen a number of the genre cornerstones and want to further steep themselves in the essential style without the glitter of A-list productions. Dedicated noirphiles, of course, have been awaiting official high-quality transfers of these films for years.
I can't say enough good things about this set. The intelligent mini-documentaries for each film and the insanely low price tag are the icing on this ten-layer cake. We can only hope the same people will be in charge of Volume 5 of this series! Maybe we'll get a similar assortment of worthwhile "Never on home video" films such as The Breaking Point, Cry of the City, The Locket, My Name is Julia Ross, Nightfall, The Prowler, Screaming Mimi, Talk About a Stranger, The 13th Letter, The Unsuspected, The Verdict, and more. (Okay, I didn't bother to check who owns the rights to those movies, but you get the idea.)
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4.7 out of 5 stars
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