Episode 443: Double Indemnity (1944)

Guest Co-Hosts: Kat Ellinger, Keith Gordon

Noirvember 2019 wraps up with Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944). With a screenplay co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler and based on a story by James M. Cain, the film is one of the seminal works of film noir. It stars Fred MacMurray as fast-talking Walter Neff, an insurance agent who gets played for a dope by a dame. The dame in question, Phyllis Dietrichson, is played by the one and only Barbara Stanwyck. The two cook up an insurance scam to pay off big after they bump off her husband.

Keith Gordon and Kat Ellinger join Mike to discuss Double Indemnity, its 1973 TV remake, the adult adaptation Eruption (1977), Body Heat (1981), and the Body Heat/Double Indemnity mash-up, Jism (2003).

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 443: Double Indemnity (1944)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Double Indemnity on Blu-Ray
Buy Double Indemnity by James M. Cain
Buy Body Heat on Blu-Ray
Buy Jism on DVD
Read more about Dispatches from Elsewhere

Music:
Soundtrack by Miklos Rosza

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Episode 442: The Conversation (1974)

Guest Co-Hosts: Vincenzo Natali, Jamey Duvall

Noirvember 2019 continues with a look at The Conversation (1974). Sandwiched between the first two Godfather films, The Conversation is writer/director Francis Ford Coppola’s paean to European art films of the 1960s, most notably Antonioni’s Blow-Up.

Instead of swinging London, however, The Conversation is set in San Francisco and stars Gene Hackman as Harry Caul, a schlubby nudnik whose life revolves around audio surveillance, his own privacy, and violating the privacy of others.

Vincenzo Natali (In the Tall Grass) and Jamey Duvall (Movie Geeks United) join Mike to discuss the film and its spiritual sequel Enemy of the State (1998).

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 442: The Conversation (1974)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Conversation on Blu-Ray
Buy The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film by Michael Ondaatje
Buy In the Blink of an Eye: A Perspective on Film Editing by Walter Murch

Music:
"The Conversation" - Twilight Singers

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Episode 441: The Reckless Moment (1949)

Special Guest: Lutz Bacher
Guest Co-Hosts: Samm Deighan, Cullen Gallagher

We continue Noirvember 2019 with a look at Max Ophüls's The Reckless Moment (1949) which tells the story of Lucia Harper (Joan Bennett), a mother who’s out to protect her family from the forces of evil including Ted Darby, a swindler who’s making moves on her 17 year old daughter. Mrs. Harper will go to extremes to keep her family safe.

Cullen Gallagher and Samm Deighan join Mike to discuss the film and swoon over star James Mason. Our interview this week is with Lutz Bacher, author of Max Ophuls in the Hollywood Studios.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 441: The Reckless Moment (1949)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Reckless Moment on Blu-Ray
Buy The Blank Wall by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding
Read Woody Haut's poem about The Reckless Moment

Music:
"Reckless" - Tilly and the Wall

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Episode 440: The Big Combo (1955)

Guest Co-Hosts: Jedidiah Ayres, Brian Hoyle

We kick-off Noirvember 2019 with a look at Joseph H. Lewis’s The Big Combo (1955). Written by Philip Yordan, the film stars Cornel Wilde as Lt. Leonard Diamond. He’s a cop with a soft spot for Susan Lowell (Jean Wallace), the main squeeze of Mr. Brown (Richard Conte). Diamond and Brown play a strange game of cat and mouse as Diamond seems to pursue justice while Brown is a psychopathic thug who thinks he’s anything but.

Jedidiah Ayres and Brian Hoyle join Mike to discuss the film and posit just what that big combo of the title can mean.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 440: The Big Combo (1955)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Big Combo on Blu-Ray
Read about Philip Yordan [PDF]

Music:
Shorty Rodgers & His Giants

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Episode 392: The Long Goodbye (1973)

Special Guest: Elliott Gould
Guest Co-Hosts: Terry Frost, Eric Cohen

We wrap up #Noirvember and our Philip Marlowe journey for the year with Robert Altman's The Long Goodbye (1973). Adapted by Leigh Brackett, one of the two main writers from Howard Hawks’s The Big Sleep, the film stars Elliott Gould as Philip Marlowe, a man now out of time with the world.

Eric Cohen and Terry Frost join Mike to discuss Philip Marlowe's place in the now and the Japanese mini-series of The Long Goodbye.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 393: The Long Goodbye (1973)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Long Goodbye on Blu-Ray
Buy The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
Hear more about Jim Bouton's Ball Four
Read ‘The Long Goodbye’: Robert Altman and Leigh Brackett’s Unique and Fascinating Take on Chandler and Film Noir

Music:
"The Long Goodbye" - Poisonville
"The Long Goodbye" - Jack Sheldon

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Episode 391: The Big Sleep (1946)

Special Guest: Dahlia Schweitzer
Guest Co-Hosts: Terry Frost, Eric Cohen

We continue our #Noirvember coverage with a discussion of The Big Sleep (1946). The first proper Philip Marlowe book by Raymond Chandler, it was the second appearance of Marlowe on screen, this time portrayed by Humphrey Bogart.

Eric Cohen and Terry Frost join Mike to discuss the pre-release version of Howard Hawks's film, how Bogart portrayed Marlowe, and the 1978 re-interpretation of the source material by Michael Winner.

Dahlia Schweitzer returns to The Projection Booth to discuss her upcoming book, L.A. Private Eyes.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 391: The Big Sleep (1946)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Big Sleep (1945/1946) on DVD
Buy The Big Sleep (Annotated Version) by Raymond Chandler
Buy The Big Sleep (1978) on Blu-Ray
Read more about Bogart and Hawks

Music:
"Du plomb dans la cervelle" - Max Steiner
"And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" - Anita O'Day

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Episode 390: Murder My Sweet (1944)

Special Guest: Tom Williams
Guest Co-Hosts: Terry Frost, Eric Cohen

We continue our #Noirvember2018 coverage with the first in a trio of Raymond Chandler adaptations -- Edward Dymytrk’s Murder My Sweet (1944). Based on the second of Chandler's Philip Marlowe novels, Farewell My Lovely, the film stars Dick Powell "as you've never seen him before."

Terry Frost and Eric Cohen join Mike to discuss the 1944 film and the 1976 adaptation. Tom Williams, the author of A Mysterious Something in the Light; the Life of Raymond Chandler, provides insight on Chandler's career in and out of Hollywood.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 390: Murder My Sweet (1944)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Murder My Sweet on Blu-Ray
Buy Farewell My Lovely by Raymond Chandler
Buy Farewell My Lovely on DVD
Read about Only To Sleep by Lawrence Osborne

Music:
"Farewell My Lovely" - Yeong-Wook Jo

Links:
Buy Raymond Chandler and Film by William Luhr

Watch:

Episode 389: The Getaway (1972)

Guest Co-Hosts: Maitland McDonagh, Aaron Carruthers

#Noirvember2018 kicks off with the 1972 film from director Sam Peckinpah, The Getaway. Based on the novel by Jim Thompson and adapted by Walter Hill, the film stars Steve McQueen as Doc McCoy and Ali MacGraw as Carol McCoy, two young lovers with nothing better to do than rob a bank with the duplicitous Rudy Butler (Al Lettieri) and the barely-a-character Jack Dodson (Bo Hopkins). Let’s just say that things don’t go as well as they should.

Maitland McDonagh and Aaron Carruthers join Mike to discuss the 1972 film, the 1994 remake.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 389: The Getaway (1972)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Getaway (1972) on DVD
Buy The Getaway (1994) on DVD
Buy The Getaway by Jim Thompson

Music:
"Fly Away" - Lenny Kravitz

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Episode 355: L.A. Confidential (1997)

Special Guest: James Ellroy
Guest Co-Hosts: Richard Edwards, Eric Cohen

Eric Cohen and Richard Edwards return to take a ride in a convertible time machine, be-bopping back to the year 1997 to look at Curtis Hanson's L.A. Confidential. Starring more folks from down under than you can shake a boomerang at, this jazzy flick plays with many classic noir tropes while playing fast and loose with the third book of James Ellroy's first L.A. Quartet.

We examine how Hanson and co-writer Brian Helgeland masterfully condensed Ellroy's compelling and complicated story to craft a Neo-Noir that some rank among the best. The film features dazzling performances from "newcomers" Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 355: L.A. Confidential (1997)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy L.A. Confidential on Blu-Ray
Buy L.A. Confidential by James Ellroy
Listen to the Out of the Past episode on The Black Dahlia
Read The Dark Places of James Ellroy by Mike White
Buy L.A. Confidential by Manohla Dargis

Music:
"Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" - Johnny Mercer
"Bloody Christmas" - Jerry Goldsmith

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Episode 354: The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Guest Co-Hosts: Richard Edwards, Eric Cohen

Written and directed by John Huston in his directorial debut, The Maltese Falcon (1941) stars Humphrey Bogart as gumshoe Sam Spade who unravels the mystery of the titular black bird.

Eric Cohen and Richard Edwards join Mike to discuss the original Dashiell Hammett story, the two other film adaptations of The Maltese Falcon, and the 1975 sequel.

Links:
Buy The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
Buy Dashiell Hammett: A Life at the Edge by William F. Nolan
Read Wim Wenders Discusses Painful ‘Hammett’ Collaboration With Coppola, Friendship With Nicholas Ray by Edward Davis

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 354: The Maltese Falcon (1941)" on Spreaker.

Music:
"Main Title - The Maltese Falcon" - The Global Stage Orchestra
"The Maltese Falcon" - Warner Chappell Productions

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Episode 299: The Chase (1946)

Special Guest: Francis M. Nevins Jr.
Guest Co-Hosts: Maitland McDonagh, Cullen Gallagher

Noirvember 2016 concludes with a look at Arthur D. Ripley's The Chase (1946). Adapted by Philip Yordan from a Cornell Woolrich novel, the film tells the tale of Chuck Scott (Robert Cummings) a down-on-his-luck veteran who ends up working for gangster Eddie Roman (Steve Cochran) before falling for Roman's wife (Michèle Morgan) and stealing away with her to Cuba.

Cullen Gallagher and Maitland McDonagh join Mike to discuss The Chase, Cornell Woolrich, and more.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 299: The Chase (1946)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Chase on Blu-Ray
Buy Cornell Woolrich: First You Dream, Then You Die by Francis M. Nevins Jr.
Buy books from Maitland McDonagh
Read more from Cullen at Pulp Serenade

Music:
"Peter Lorre" - Satan's Pilgrims
"Peter Lorre" - Tony Miracle

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Episode 298: Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)

Special Guest: Stephen D. Youngkin
Guest Co-Hosts: Maitland McDonagh, Samm Deighan

Directed by Boris Ingster with a screenplay by Frank Partos , Stranger on the Third Floor (1940) defines the stylistic conventions that would come to be known as film noir. The movie stars John McGuire as a hot shot reporter and Margaret Tallichet as his best gal (who eventually becomes the protagonist). He's framed for a murder committed by the man only known as "The Stranger" (Peter Lorre).

Maitland McDonagh and Samm Deighan join Mike to discuss this first entry in the film noir pantheon as well as what it helped spawn. Author Stephen D. Youngkin joins the program to talk about the captivating Peter Lorre.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "Episode 298: Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Stranger on the Third Floor on DVD
Buy The Lost One: A Life of Peter Lorre by Stephen D. Youngkin
Buy books from Maitland McDonagh
Hear more from Samm Deighan on the Daughters of Darkness podcast
Visit the Diabolique Magazine website

Music:
"Peter Lorre" - The Jazz Butcher

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Episode 297: Decoy (1946)

Guest Co-Hosts: Maitland McDonagh, Christa Faust

Difficult to find on home video for many years, Jack Bernhard's Decoy (1946) stands as a highly off-beat film noir in which Margot Shelby (Jean Gillie) plays the consummate femme fatale with designs on the $400,000 her lover, Frankie (Robert Armstrong), has hidden. She needs to break him out of jail in order to get her hands on the money and does so by allowing him to be executed, only to bring him back from the dead...

Writers Christa Faust and Maitland McDonagh join Mike to discuss this usual film.

Download Episode Now:

Listen to "Episode 297: Decoy (1946)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Decoy on DVD (Film Noir Set)
Buy Decoy on DVD (Double Feature)
Read a great article about Decoy
Buy Maitland McDonagh's books
Visit the official Christa Faust website
Learn more about Peepland
Visit the Hard Case Crime website

Music:
"Femme Fatale" - The Velvet Underground & Nico

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Episode 296: Mulholland Dr (2001)

Special Guests: Laura Harring, Patrick Fischler
Guest Co-Hosts: Jedidiah Ayres, Erik Marshall

David Lynch's Mulholland Drive (2001) lived a double life as a television pilot and feature film. A neo-noir that plays with themes of identity, roleplaying, and obsession, the film stars Naomi Watts as innocent ingénue Betty Elms and Laura Elena Harring as Rita, a woman with a past hidden from herself.

Mike talks to Patrick Fischler and Laura Harring about their roles in Mulholland Drive (and a lot more). Professor Erik Marshall and author Jedidiah Ayres help elucidate the mystery of Mulholland Drive.

Download Episode Now:

Listen to "Episode 296: Mulholland Dr (2001)" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Mulholland Dr on Blu-Ray
Buy the Mulholland Dr soundtrack
Read the Mulholland Dr script
Read I Had a Dream about This Place by Mike White
Visit an invaluable Mulholland Dr website
Visit the official Laura Harring website
Follow Patrick Fischler on Twitter
Buy books from Jedidiah Ayres
Read Jedidiah Ayres's blog
Hear more of Erik Marshall on the That's A Wrap podcast
Listen to the Rena Riffel interview
Listen to the Frannk Collison interview

Music:
"Dwarfland/Love Theme" - Angelo Badalamenti/David Lynch
"Mulholland Drive/Love Theme" - Angelo Badalamenti
"I've Told Every Little Star" - Linda Scott
"Llorando (Crying)" - Rebekah Del Rio

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Episode 246: Shallow Grave

Special Guest: Mark Browning & John Hodge
Guest Co-Host: Jeff Meyers

Noirvember 2015 concludes with a little murder among friends in Danny Boyle's 1994 feature debut Shallow Grave which stars Kerry Fox, Ewan McGregor, and Christopher Eccleston as three prats looking for a new flatmate. When they find him and he dies, he leaves a suitcase full of money and a world of problems.

We talked to the film's screenwriter, John Hodge, as well as author Mark Browning (Danny Boyle: Lust for Life: Critical Analysis of All the Films from Shallow Grave to 127 Hours). We're joined once again by journalist and filmmaker Jeff Meyers.

Links:
Buy Shallow Grave on DVD
Buy Danny Boyle: Lust for Life: Critical Analysis of All the Films from Shallow Grave to 127 Hours by Mark Browning
Visit Jeff Meyers's Moviemaker page
Follow Jeff Meyers on Twitter
Listen to Mike on Geek Juice talking about Danny Boyle

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: Shallow Grave" on Spreaker.

Music:
"Happy Heart" - Andy Williams

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Episode 245: Elevator to the Gallows

Special Guest: Nathan Southern & Jack Chambers
Guest Co-Host: Jedidiah Ayres

Noirvember continues as we consider Louis Malle's debut feature film, Elevator to the Gallows AKA Ascenseur pour l'échafaud, which stars Jeanne Moreau as Florence and Maurice Ronet as Julien. Shot in beautiful black and white and featuring a legendary improved jazz score by the great Miles Davis, Elevator to the Gallows questions the nature of self, love, and life as only Louis Malle could.

Our guests this week include Nathan Southern, author of The Films of Louis Malle: A Critical Analysis and Jack Chambers, author of Milestones: The Music And Times Of Miles Davis. Our guest co-host, Jedidiah Ayres, is a writer for page and screen.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: Elevator to the Gallows" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy Elevator to the Gallows on DVD
Buy the Lift to the Scaffold soundtrack by Miles Davis
Buy The Films of Louis Malle: A Critical Analysis by Nathan Southern
Buy Milestones: The Music And Times Of Miles Davis by Jack Chambers
Buy Jewish Noir edited by Kenneth Wishnia
Visit Jedidiah Ayres's website
Buy some of Jedidiah Ayres's books
Follow Jedidiah Ayres on Twitter

Music:
"Love in an Elevator" - Aerosmith

Watch:
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Episode 244: Alphaville (1965)

Special Guest: David Sterritt
Guest Co-Host: Cullen Gallagher

Noirvember continues as we look at crime and detective films with a foreign accent. We're looking at Jean-Luc Godard's 1965 sci-fi philosophical noir starring Eddie Constantine and Anna Karina, Alphaville.

We're joined by David Sterritt, the author of The Films of Jean-Luc Godard: Seeing the Invisible, and Pulp Serenade's Cullen Gallagher.

Links:
Buy Alphaville on DVD
Buy The Films of Jean-Luc Godard: Seeing the Invisible by David Sterritt
Visit the official David J. Sterritt website
Read a very different opinion of Germany Year 90 Nine Zero by Jonathan Rosenbaum
Keep up with Cullen Gallagher at Pulp Serenade

Music:
"Big in Japan" - Alphaville
"F*ck the World" - Insane Clown Posse

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: Alphaville" on Spreaker.

Watch:

Episode 223: After Dark My Sweet (1990)

Special Guests: James Foley & Robert Redlin
Guest Co-Host: Robert Polito

Based on a novel by hardboiled scribe Jim Thompson, James Foley's After Dark My Sweet is a neo-noir from 1990 starring Jason Patric, Bruce Dern, and Rachel Ward. The film tells the tale of Kevin "Kid" Collins, a punchdrunk palooka who falls in with a kidnapping scheme.

We're joined by Professor Robert Polito, author of the definitive Jim Thompson biography, Savage Art.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: After Dark My Sweet" on Spreaker.

Bonus Interview: Bruce Dern
Listen to "TPB: Bruce Dern on The Hateful Eight and Nebraska" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy After Dark My Sweet on DVD
Buy After Dark My Sweet by Jim Thompson
Buy Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson by Robert Polito

Music:
"Thirsty for Beer" - ElFilmMaker (AKA Tito & Tarantula)

Watch:

Episode 194: The Burglar

Guest Co-Host: Duane Swierczynski

Originally slated for release in 1955, Paul Wendkos's The Burglar didn't hit theaters until 1957 when one of it's stars, Jayne Mansfield, had gained popularity. The film stars Dan Duryea as Nat Harbin, our titular burglar. He and his crew rob Sister Sarah, a Philadelphia spiritualist, of a pricey necklace.

We'll be talking more about the film, it's screenwriter -- David Goodis -- and the 1971 adaptation, Le Casse.

Listen / Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: The Burglar" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy The Burglar by David Goodis
Buy The Burglar as part of the Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classics III
Buy The Burglar on DVD
Buy Le Casse / The Burglars on DVD
Visit the official Duane Swierczynski website
Buy some of Duane Swierczynski's books
Buy some of David Goodis's books
Listen to the Married with Clickers episode on The Burglar
Read more about the Cassidy's Girl movie
Visit a Jayne Mansfield fan site
Read more about the cinema of David Goodis
Buy David Goodis: A Life in Black and White by Philippe Garnier
Listen to our Shoot the Piano Player episode

Music:
"Le Casse" - Ennio Morricone
"Suey" - Jayne Mansfield
"Ma Non Troppo Erotico" - Ennio Morricone

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Episode 193: In a Lonely Place

Special Guests: Patrick McGilligan, Steven Rybin, Will Scheibel, & Steve Anderson
Guest Co-Host: Jared Case

Noir November continues with Nicholas Ray's In a Lonely Place. Based loosely on a novel by Dorothy B. Hughes, the film stars Humphrey Bogart as a screenwriter on the edge of madness and Gloria Grahame as the woman who tries to love him.

We're joined by Jared Case, Head of Motion Picture Collection Information and Access at the George Eastman House.

We conclude our interview with Patrick McGilligan as we discuss his book Nicholas Ray: The Glorious Failure of an American Director.

Listen/Download Now:

Listen to "TPB: In a Lonely Place" on Spreaker.

Links:
Buy In a Lonely Place on DVD
Buy In A Lonely Place by Dorothy B Hughes
Buy Nicholas Ray: The Glorious Failure of an American Director by Patrick McGilligan
Buy Lonely Places, Dangerous Ground: Nicholas Ray in American Cinema Edited by Steven Rybin and Will Scheibel
Visit the This Last Lonely Place website
Learn more about The George Eastman House
Support the Nicholas Ray Foundation
Visit the official Humphrey Bogart website
Listen to the Out of the Past podcast about In a Lonely Place

Music:
"In a Lonely Place" - New Order
"In a Lonely Place" - The Smithereens
"The Beast in Me" - Johnny Cash

Watch: