if he's rich he can't be stupid; if he's president he can't be wrong

The Guardian
Top 10 film noir (from number 10 to number 1)

They Live by Night
Kiss Me Deadly
Blood Simple
Lift to the Scaffold
The Third Man
Out of the Past
Double Indemnity
Touch of Evil
Chinatown
The Big Sleep


my Basic Film Noir

The Big Sleep
Body Heat
Double Indemnity
Laura
The Maltese Falcon
Out Of The Past
Shadow Of A Doubt
Sunset Boulevard
Sweet Smell of Success
The Third Man



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Reader Comments on the Guardian's noir article (2013)


Brobat
Sidney Lumet's Deadly Affair

not sure about this as Film Noir, but it's certainly made in that vein to the degree the cinematographer Freddie Young pre-exposed the film before shooting, Lumet noted "Thematically it was a film about life's disappointments.  
     I wanted to desaturate the colours.  I wanted to get that dreary, lifeless feeling London has in winter.  Freddie suggested pre-exposing the film."

Quincy Jones provided some superb atmospheric music to an amazingly atmospheric film

roland b
Rififi (Jules Dassin).
Body Heat (Lawrence Kasdan)


bonty
What no mention of Jules Dassin's 'RIFIFI' !!!!!

Jesher
Indeed, the absence of Rififi makes this list laughable.


kenofengland
Couldn't agree more about 'Out Of The Past'.  For me one of the greatest films ever made.


JamesLizard1
Where's Notorious?

NorthDallas40
Solid nomination.
What about Night of The Hunter also?


Abedonders
A good list.  More recently I would suggest:
Body Heat
Red Rock West...


profangus
Definitely Body Heat!


stardust69
Hell Drivers
Brighton Rock


Smithy62
Night of the Hunter?


Vortimer
Another Korda film - The great "Odd Man Out" seems to get overlooked in the long shadow of "The Third Man".


shazzerman
Kubrick's The Killing
Fuller's Pickup on South Street
Renoir's Le Chienne (and Le Bete Humaine)
Franklin's One False Move


MildredPlotka
Would love to see Le Chienne.  Not on DVD.

theorbys
La Chienne is on YTube but in French.


smudger1
The definition of what makes a noir film is being stretched here, so I am throwing in The Sweet Smell of Success.

maxfisher
It's not a stretch, it's noir.

smudger1
well it should be on the god damn list!  New York was never photographed better and Tony Curtis has never been sleazier.  And don't get me started on the soundtrack....

maxfisher
Couldn't agree more.  It's one of the great movies, Curtis and Lancaster were never better.  The final scene is wonderful, Lancaster, Lear like, impotently staring into the distance at what was once HIS city.

Kemster
Burt Lancaster is a thoroughly nasty shit in that.  And the dialogue...."Match me, Sidney".


megra
Laura
Sunset Boulevard
The Last Seduction
LA Confidential


Arapas
The Third Man!
I watched that film 20 times in the last ten years!
Just love it, highly recommended.


ChukTatum
"a deadly, molten, much sought-after package that's grandfather to the suitcase in Pulp Fiction and the Chevy Nova in Repo Man."

The end scene in Kiss Me Deadly is clearly the inspiration for the climactic scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark when they open the cask and let out the demons from hell.


skywa2ker
LA Confidential must be on this list!  Sunset Boulevard also deserves a mention.

Chinatown for me is overrated.

Great fun this.


skywa2ker
Double Indemnity defines the genre for me.


MickJH
Where The Sidewalk Ends is missing.

Lushattic
In a Lonely Place would have to be there for me.
Proper menacing performance by Bogart and keeps you guessing right up to the last minute.

ID7531566
I would add Body Heat, Whirlpool and the Japanese film Zero Focus to the list.


zombiedeadhead
Let's stick to films which actually are Film Noir.
Laura
Double Indemnity
Gun Crazy
The Big Heat
In A Lonely Place
Out Of The Past
The Postman Always Rings Twice
Gilda
Body and Soul
The Narrow Margin
The Killers.


RealDealBillMcneal
If you're going to have a film noir article, you can't have colour films in there.

I tried to do my own top 10 of proper noir in alphabetical order but I've ended up with slightly more.

Beyond A Reasonable Doubt
Body and Soul
Brighton Rock
Call Northside 777
Dark Passage
Dead Reckoning
Double Indemnity (probably joint number one with Laura)
Fallen Angel
In A Lonely Place
Laura
Night and the City
Stage Fright
The Desperate Hours
The Killing
The Maltese Falcon
The Third Man
The Woman in the Window
Too Late For Tears
Touch Of Evil
The Big Sleep

There, you've got the classics, the great directors (Hitchcock, Preminger, Lang, Kubrick, Wilder), and the stars (Bogart, Bacall, Stewart, Mitchum, Scott, Garfield, Tierney, Hayden, Welles, Stanwyck, Robinson).

Colour flicks top 10 would probably be

12 Paces to Baker Street
Brick
Charade

Chinatown
Frantic
Hollywoodland
LA Confidential
Match Point
The Long Goodbye
Zodiac


dphphd
Nice one.  You nailed that list.  Tipping my hat (in smoky room).

streetsideguitarman
thanks for the list - now I know how I will be spending the rest of the weekend!

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