Noir Alley

[Detective Jim McLeod]

Just saw Born To Kill (1947) for the second time. One of the darkest and most depraved of the 1940s noirs.

Laurence Tierney plays one of the most menacing thugs in film history. He apparently was like that in real life. Just from the way he looked, he didn't appear to have an upper lip so even when he smiled it looked like a sneer.

I watched it again (I think I've seen it 4 times now). It's amazing this thing got Code approval even with cuts. Tierney is really frightening, but Trevor even more so in her depravity. I love the scene where Esther Howard tells her off and spits on her!

At one point Trevor says the line "He doesn't give a tinker's damn" which I was also surprised it got by the censors in 1947, I don't think it was used since 1939 and Gone With The Wind

[Hibi]

Just saw Born To Kill (1947) for the second time. One of the darkest and most depraved of the 1940s noirs.

Laurence Tierney plays one of the most menacing thugs in film history. He apparently was like that in real life. Just from the way he looked, he didn't appear to have an upper lip so even when he smiled it looked like a sneer.

I watched it again (I think I've seen it 4 times now). It's amazing this thing got Code approval even with cuts. Tierney is really frightening, but Trevor even more so in her depravity. I love the scene where Esther Howard tells her off and spits on her!

At one point Trevor says the line "He doesn't give a tinker's damn" which I was also surprised it got by the censors in 1947, I don't think it was used since 1939 and Gone With The Wind

I missed that and I've never heard that expression, even when I was young. Guess it died out over time. I think it's interesting that you never see the husband Trevor is divorcing. She never even talks about him or says his name. LOL. Guess another turnip with no money....

[kingrat]

I was glad that Eddie pointed out the homosexual implications of the Elisha Cook, Jr./Lawrence Tierney relationship. Their little apartment has one bed. Elisha is reading on his side of the bed when Tierney enters the room after committing two murders and then goes to sit down on his side of the bed.

Really, you'd think that the censors didn't read the script or see the finished film.

[Hibi]

I was glad that Eddie pointed out the homosexual implications of the Elisha Cook, Jr./Lawrence Tierney relationship. Their little apartment has one bed. Elisha is reading on his side of the bed when Tierney enters the room after committing two murders and then goes to sit down on his side of the bed.

Really, you'd think that the censors didn't read the script or see the finished film.

They were on a tight budget...

[Andree]

The first murder points to a variation on the old saying about bringing a knife to a
gun fight. If he had a gun he could have shot Tierney with nothing to worry about.
Of course it would have been a much shorter movie. Yes, Sam Wilde is one of the
most cold-blooded killers in noir and one of the most arrogant. I think It would be
fun to run a newspaper. He thinks he's such a brilliant guy he could run a big city
paper with zero experience. Wow. Poor Elisha Cook, Jr. Never gets a break. Bogie
humiliated him in The Maltese Falcon and now Tierney bumps off the little
runt in this one. Esther Howard and Walter Slezak made an interesting pair of
supporting actors. Too bad the detective turned out to be a blackmailer and a
litter bug. I'm not sure about any gay subtext. I see them as two losers who have
pooled their resources for mutual benefit. Cook might have a thing for Tierney, it's
hard to tell, but I don't see Larry returning that feeling. I don't usually pay much
attention to these things, but some of Clair Trevor's hats are awful, especially that
one she wears on the train trip. Looks like a lampshade for a vanity table lamp.

[Bronxgirl48]

Oh joy!! THE BIG KNIFE is coming on the 27th and 28th!!

Wonder what Eddie has to say about this laugh fest noir. It's a treasure trove of campy good badness, including hilariously gauche "ironic" musical touches emphasizing the existential and metaphorical aspects of Charlie's compromised Hollywood lifestyle.

Shelley Winters and Ida Lupino are actually quite good. It's Jack Palance and Rod Steiger who chew up the scenery in the most delightful ways.

I haven't seen this one in a very long time! Not since are local station ran it many years ago when I was a teen. I remember not liking it then, but maybe I'll like it now for different reasons!

To quote Eddie Muller, Rod Steiger in this is at "his most Steiger-est".

And that is only one of its pleasures!

[txfilmfan]

...I’m not trying to be critical of Noir Alley for repeats. After 5 years they are probably unavoidable, and at least Eddie is freshening up the material as he sees fit...

And exactly the reason I've been saying for years now that I hope Eddie will eventually get around to featuring some Neo-Noir films as well.

(...I'd love to hear what he could tell us about movies such as 'Chinatown' and 'L.A. Confidential', or lesser known ones such as 'Red Rock West' and 'The Last Seduction' for instance and when TCM gives him this extra wraparound time to do his thing)

Just got back from the TCMFF, and he introduced many films there this year, including Chinatown (crime films was the main theme this year, so he was busy). He said it was emotional for him, because the movie changed the direction of his life, and here he was 50 years later introducing it.

Here he was with Mankiewicz a few years ago introducing the film during TCM's Friday Night Neo-Noir series...



And the outro...

[Hibi]

Oh joy!! THE BIG KNIFE is coming on the 27th and 28th!!

Wonder what Eddie has to say about this laugh fest noir. It's a treasure trove of campy good badness, including hilariously gauche "ironic" musical touches emphasizing the existential and metaphorical aspects of Charlie's compromised Hollywood lifestyle.

Shelley Winters and Ida Lupino are actually quite good. It's Jack Palance and Rod Steiger who chew up the scenery in the most delightful ways.

I haven't seen this one in a very long time! Not since are local station ran it many years ago when I was a teen. I remember not liking it then, but maybe I'll like it now for different reasons!

To quote Eddie Muller, Rod Steiger in this is at "his most Steiger-est".

And that is only one of its pleasures!

LOL! I remember it being very talky....

[Hibi]

The first murder points to a variation on the old saying about bringing a knife to a
gun fight. If he had a gun he could have shot Tierney with nothing to worry about.
Of course it would have been a much shorter movie. Yes, Sam Wilde is one of the
most cold-blooded killers in noir and one of the most arrogant. I think It would be
fun to run a newspaper. He thinks he's such a brilliant guy he could run a big city
paper with zero experience. Wow. Poor Elisha Cook, Jr. Never gets a break. Bogie
humiliated him in The Maltese Falcon and now Tierney bumps off the little
runt in this one. Esther Howard and Walter Slezak made an interesting pair of
supporting actors. Too bad the detective turned out to be a blackmailer and a
litter bug. I'm not sure about any gay subtext. I see them as two losers who have
pooled their resources for mutual benefit. Cook might have a thing for Tierney, it's
hard to tell, but I don't see Larry returning that feeling. I don't usually pay much
attention to these things, but some of Clair Trevor's hats are awful, especially that
one she wears on the train trip. Looks like a lampshade for a vanity table lamp.

I think the relationship was more one sided on Cook's part. Tierney used him to clean up his messes. As his reward, Tierney let him worship him. Although there seems to be some homoerotic longing going on, you'd think if Cook ever acted on it, why would Tierney go off on Cook after he left Trevor's bedroom then?? With his hotheadedness, would think Tierney had killed his fair share of people before he ever hit Reno. I agree Trevor's hat wardrobe left much to be desired!

[Andree]

I think the relationship was more one sided on Cook's part. Tierney used him to clean up his messes. As his reward, Tierney let him worship him. Although there seems to be some homoerotic longing going on, you'd think if Cook ever acted on it, why would Tierney go off on Cook after he left Trevor's bedroom then?? With his hotheadedness, would think Tierney had killed his fair share of people before he ever hit Reno. I agree Trevor's hat wardrobe left much to be desired!

Tierney was definitely the boss in their relationship and Cook was mostly along
for the ride. He might have killed before and he obviously had an obsessive
jealous streak. And he was jealous about Trevor not about Cook.

[Hibi]

I think the relationship was more one sided on Cook's part. Tierney used him to clean up his messes. As his reward, Tierney let him worship him. Although there seems to be some homoerotic longing going on, you'd think if Cook ever acted on it, why would Tierney go off on Cook after he left Trevor's bedroom then?? With his hotheadedness, would think Tierney had killed his fair share of people before he ever hit Reno. I agree Trevor's hat wardrobe left much to be desired!

Tierney was definitely the boss in their relationship and Cook was mostly along
for the ride. He might have killed before and he obviously had an obsessive
jealous streak. And he was jealous about Trevor not about Cook.

Right. And why be jealous if Cook was gay? Unless he was too dumb to notice!

[kingrat]

I haven't seen this one in a very long time! Not since are local station ran it many years ago when I was a teen. I remember not liking it then, but maybe I'll like it now for different reasons!

To quote Eddie Muller, Rod Steiger in this is at "his most Steiger-est".

And that is only one of its pleasures!

LOL! I remember it being very talky....

And by talky, if you mean "shoulda been cut by 45 minutes," I totally agree! The dialogue is very fancy-schmancy, "peritonitis of the soul" and such. I don't consider it noir, just a waste of a good cast. It might even be eligible for a "Stinky the Skunk" award when we get around to that year in another thread.

[Dargo]

And exactly the reason I've been saying for years now that I hope Eddie will eventually get around to featuring some Neo-Noir films as well.

(...I'd love to hear what he could tell us about movies such as 'Chinatown' and 'L.A. Confidential', or lesser known ones such as 'Red Rock West' and 'The Last Seduction' for instance and when TCM gives him this extra wraparound time to do his thing)

Just got back from the TCMFF, and he introduced many films there this year, including Chinatown (crime films was the main theme this year, so he was busy). He said it was emotional for him, because the movie changed the direction of his life, and here he was 50 years later introducing it.

Here he was with Mankiewicz a few years ago introducing the film during TCM's Friday Night Neo-Noir series...
....

Hope ya had a good time at the TCMFF, Tex. Sounds as if ya did.

And re those wraparounds of 'Chinatown' you posted, it seems to me that that Neo-Noir series that Eddie and Ben hosted on TCM was rather short-lived, wouldn't ya say? Wasn't it only broadcast for a month and presented pretty much as a special? I do remember watching this particular presentation, though.

And re again about Neo-Noirs here, coindentally as I went online today, the following clickbait titled "The 10 Most Underrated Neo-Noirs of All Time" appeared on my Microsoft screen. And coincidentally enough again, both 'Red Rock West' and 'The Last Seduction', both of which I mentioned last year in the above posts you quoted here, are mentioned in it:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/t ... 3f94&ei=22

(...yep, as I said in that earlier post of mine, I'd sure like to hear what Eddie would have to say about these two films, and in fact what he might have say about a few of the others mentioned in the above link and some of which I've never before have watched but sound very interesting)

[Andree]

Right. And why be jealous if Cook was gay? Unless he was to dumb to notice!

I doubt he thought much about Cook one way or the other. He was just
a guy that Tierney could use for his own purposes. As bad as Trevor is,
she kind of blends into the background compared to Tierney.

[laffite]

I wish I could enjoy BORN TO KILL because, well, let's face it, who really doesn't love Laurence Tierney, Claire Trevor, Elisha Cook, Jr. and director Robert Wise. But I just can't get excited or engaged in any way -- the whole thing for me is flat, hollow, unsubtle, and, considering the subject matter, frankly kind of a slog. To add insult to injury, I find Walter Slezak's philosophizing detective obnoxious plus somewhat embarrassing.

Thank you !!!

Agree completely.