Act of Violence, my favorite film noir! It was on TCM this morning. They play it two or three times a year. Robert Ryan should have gotten an Academy Award for that one. Janet Leigh is great, too...very young and a natural beauty (before they bleached the daylights out of her beautiful locks and smacked on layers of greasepaint).
Another great noir, Out of the Past, with Mitchum and Jane Greer, is airing on TCM this Thursday.
Love the set up--the Mystery Trip intro and the language "... if the post-war era tried to shine sunlight everywhere in America, film noir is where the shadows went, and the shadows in this 1949 film are sharp enough to draw black-and-white blood." It seems too noir for me however (I'm the kind that gets nightmares ) but I wanted you to know how much I appreciate your postings, recommendations and omg! there are still some literate folx out there!
Astor killed it here. She was doing one of her by-then standard wholesome mother roles by day while they shot AOV by night, and she loved it, as she did picking out her own costumes off the rack at secondhand stores. Sure wouldn't ever have been an MGM film until Dore Schary took over from the old man, with his Andy Hardy dreams...
Suspense from the start... and I loved all but the end. Somehow I feel Robert Ryan shouldn't be made out to be the good guy telling his wife of his death - didn't sit right. And why show the girlfriend putting the gun in her handbag if she never uses it? Thanks for the afternoon mystery movie, Ty.
One of the better noirs--and what a cast! Janet Leigh and Mary Astor were so good. Cinematography and camera angles appropriately atmospheric and genuine suspense. I wasn't sure until the very end which one, Heflin or Ryan--or maybe both--would die. But, as we know, the wages of noir is death. Thanks for the recommendation!
Still enjoying your post. Went back today and looked at the two excellent resources you gave us. What the heck is 'Daily Motion?' You are a goldmine, Burr.
From now on when looking in the dictionary for the word 'taut' the definition will have to read "Act of Violence" Gripping all the way through, great performances from everyone, wonderfully dark score. A true hidden gem, as they say. By the way, I noticed that Van Heflin bears an uncanny resemblance to the young Orson Welles.
Act of Violence, my favorite film noir! It was on TCM this morning. They play it two or three times a year. Robert Ryan should have gotten an Academy Award for that one. Janet Leigh is great, too...very young and a natural beauty (before they bleached the daylights out of her beautiful locks and smacked on layers of greasepaint).
Another great noir, Out of the Past, with Mitchum and Jane Greer, is airing on TCM this Thursday.
Love the set up--the Mystery Trip intro and the language "... if the post-war era tried to shine sunlight everywhere in America, film noir is where the shadows went, and the shadows in this 1949 film are sharp enough to draw black-and-white blood." It seems too noir for me however (I'm the kind that gets nightmares ) but I wanted you to know how much I appreciate your postings, recommendations and omg! there are still some literate folx out there!
love this one so hard!
Astor killed it here. She was doing one of her by-then standard wholesome mother roles by day while they shot AOV by night, and she loved it, as she did picking out her own costumes off the rack at secondhand stores. Sure wouldn't ever have been an MGM film until Dore Schary took over from the old man, with his Andy Hardy dreams...
Great film, super suspense -- what a cast, including Zinneman as director. Thanks for the suggestion.
Suspense from the start... and I loved all but the end. Somehow I feel Robert Ryan shouldn't be made out to be the good guy telling his wife of his death - didn't sit right. And why show the girlfriend putting the gun in her handbag if she never uses it? Thanks for the afternoon mystery movie, Ty.
Thanks for the recommendation......had to stop though, too violent for my sensibilities.
One of the better noirs--and what a cast! Janet Leigh and Mary Astor were so good. Cinematography and camera angles appropriately atmospheric and genuine suspense. I wasn't sure until the very end which one, Heflin or Ryan--or maybe both--would die. But, as we know, the wages of noir is death. Thanks for the recommendation!
That was fun! Really dark story.
That was such a fun surprise!
We took your advice and clicked in. I really liked the whole thing. All the melodrama and the switch up at the end. Thanks for doing what you do.
Brand new film for me. Thanks. Loved the immediate 'click in.'
Watched this last night. It was fantastic! And I think this may be the film that’s finally convinced me of Robert Ryan’s effectiveness.
Still enjoying your post. Went back today and looked at the two excellent resources you gave us. What the heck is 'Daily Motion?' You are a goldmine, Burr.
82 minutes very well spent.
Ty, I just watched your mystery movie. It was a nail biter all the way through!
From now on when looking in the dictionary for the word 'taut' the definition will have to read "Act of Violence" Gripping all the way through, great performances from everyone, wonderfully dark score. A true hidden gem, as they say. By the way, I noticed that Van Heflin bears an uncanny resemblance to the young Orson Welles.