It’s a big day at #TCMFF for film noir fans, from classic to parody to neo-noir. http://goo.gl/ZcugmV
9:00 AM
ACE IN THE HOLE (1951): A small-town reporter (Kirk
Douglas at his hammy best) milks a local disaster to get back into the big
time, destroying everyone, including himself, along the way. Jan Sterling gives
a tremendous performance as the trapped man’s opportunistic wife. Dir. Billy
Wilder
NOON:
AN AFTERNOON WITH CARL REINER/DEAD MEN DON’T WEAR PLAID
DEAD MEN DON’T WEAR PLAID (1982):The film features a series of clips from famous film noirs intercut with new footage of a hard-boiled detective (Steve Martin) and a
possible femme fatale (Rachel Ward) to form a new and suitably convoluted noir
plot. The film was the last project of both costume designer Edith Head and
composer Miklós Rózsa
Dir. Carl Reiner
Followed by a discussion with director Carl Reiner.
3:15 PM
THE BIG SLEEP (1946): In Howard Hawks’ clever and
sophisticated adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s novel, private eye Philip
Marlowe’s (Humphrey Bogart) investigates the involvement of an opium addled
(and nymphomaniacal) society girl (Martha Vickers) in the murder of a
pornographer. He also has to determine if her sister (Lauren Bacall) is helping
or hindering him. Dir. Howard Hawks
6:15PM
THE LONG GOODBYE (1973): This surprisingly effective
adaption of Raymond Chandler’s novel successfully transports Phillip Marlow to
the 1970s. Marlow, played wonderfully by Elliot Gould, of all people, helps his
old friend Terry Lennox (Jim Bouton) flee to Mexico when his wealthy wife is
murdered. Marlow investigates the murder and becomes embroiled with an
alcoholic writer (Sterling Hayder) and his wife (Nina van Pallandt). Dir.
Robert Altman
Elliot Gould in Attendance.
9:15PM
BAND OF OUTSIDERS (1964): Jean-Luc Godard once described this film as “Alice in Wonderland
meets Franz Kafka.” The Alice part certainly fits his beautiful leading
lady: his then-wife Anna Karina. She stars as a bored student who takes
up with two small-time crooks (Sami Frey and Claude Brasseur) with whom
she plots to steal some money from her aunt’s house. Much of the
picture seems to be a dreamlike riff on American gangster films. It’s
also a love letter to Paris, transporting the American crime figures to a
Parisian world of cafes and landmarks. In one memorable scene, the
three kill time before the crime by trying to break the record for
racing through the Louvre. Godard needed a commercial hit at the time,
after the failure of Les Carabiniers (1963). He appealed to
Columbia Pictures for $100,000, then, on François Truffaut’s advice,
picked an adaptation of Dolores Hitchen’s roman noir Fools’ Gold
from the list of suggestions they sent him. Although the film was
panned in Paris, American critics like Manny Farber and Pauline Kael
hailed it as one of his most accessible works. It was also a big
influence on Quentin Tarantino, who named his production company A Band
Apart, for the film’s French title, Bande à part.
Dir: Jean-Luc Godard
(Program notes courtesy of TCM Classic Film Festival)
A discussion with Anna Karina precedes the screening.