Post by Midge on Jan 24, 2010 4:07:30 GMT -6
San Francisco's landmark Castro Theater kicked off its annual film noir festival Friday night with a double feature, Pitfall and Larceny. Neither of these films is available on DVD. I was there and was pleased to see that the house was packed with an enthusiastic audience of noir lovers, and many of them were young people.
Pitfall (1948) was directed by Andre de Toth and stars Dick Powell as John Forbes. an insurance company executive who lives in the suburbs of Los Angeles. He's got a seemingly perfect life - a lovely home, a beautiful, devoted wife Sue (Jane Wyatt) and a worshipful young son Tommy (Jimmy Hunt). The only problem is, Forbes has become bored with his predictable, regimented life.
Into his office walks Mac (Raymond Burr), a burly, thuggish-looking detective who's been investigating an embezzlement case. The embezzler, Smiley (Byron Barr) has been thrown into prison, but first he blew all the money showering his girlfriend Mona (Lizabeth Scott) with expensive gifts. It's the insurance company's job to recover the ill-gotten goods to help defray their losses.
Forbes notices that Mac seems obsessed with Mona, so he dismisses the detective and take over the case himself. He drives out to Mona's studio apartment, where he finds the sultry blonde model, lonely and touchingly vulnerable. The dull, predictable life of John Forbes is about to be turned upside down.
This seemingly simple tale of suburban ennui and adultery turns complicated when the obsessed Mac starts stalking Mona and threatening to blackmail Forbes, whose quietly observant wife has begun to suspect that something is amiss. Then Mac visits the insanely jealous Smiley in prison to tip him off that his girlfriend is playing around, and the suspense builds to an unbearable pitch that ends in a deadly climax.
Pitfall benefited from director de Toth's keen eye for composition, light and shadow which enhances the drama and makes the film a pleasure to look at. The action is also tightly-paced and never drags. Powell and Burr are both excellent. Lizabeth Scott specialized in this type of bad girl with a heart roles, and she makes her character of Mona seem not only believable, but touching as well.
Larceny (1948) was the second film on the bill. Directed by George Sherman, it stars John Payne, Dan Duryea, Joan Caulfield and a young Shelley Winters. It's the story of Silky (Duryea) and RIck (Payne), part of a gang of smooth-talking con men. The two have just fleeced a wealthy businessman in Florida, Now they're on the West Coast to bilk a rich war widow Deborah Owens Clark (Joan Caulfield) out of her fortune.
Rick poses as Deborah's husband's Army buddy in order to gain her trust. He then persuades her to let them raise money for a youth center named in honor of the dead war hero. Of course there will never be a youth center. The two con men plan to fleece as many investors as possible, pocket the money and flee.
Things start to go wrong when the lonely, trusting widow takes a shine to Rick and he in turn starts to feel protective toward her. To complicate matters even more, Silky's moll, a saucy, hard-boiled dame named Tory (Shelley Winters) has a yen for Rick, and she's not happy about having a rival.
Things go from bad to worse when Deborah innocently foils Rick's scheme. Meanwhile the jealous, vengeful Tory bursts onto the scene. This bleach blonde boa constrictor in high heels is not going to go quietly Look out, she's got a gun!
Larceny is also a highly entertaining film but does have its weaknesses. First, there's the implausibility of its overly-complicated plot. Sherman's direction isn't as taut and fast-paced as de Toth's, and some scenes tend to drag. The ending of the film is abrupt. (One reviewer on imdb.com remarked that Larceny doesn't end, it just stops.)
The ever-reliable Payne and Duryea are competent as the two con men, but the leading lady, Joan Caulfield, beautiful as she is, doesn't make much of an impression as Mrs. Clark. She looks well-bred and refined but has little to bring to the character of Deborah.
On the other hand, Shelley Winters lights up the screen in her skin-tight low-cut gowns and her take-no-prisoners personality. Despite having a relatively minor role, Winters is by far the most memorable presence in the film. You literally can't take your eyes off her. Honorable mention goes to veteran character actor Percy Helton, who adds comic relief in the role of a high-voiced, nebbishy front desk clerk, and he's delightful.
I thoroughly enjoyed both these potboilers. They were entertaining, suprisingly adult and were full of witty, sardonic one-liners:
Girl to Man: "Why don't you knock me around a little bit so people will think we're married?"
Businessman to colleague: "There's a client born every minute."
One con man to another: "OK, I'm sorry. I just won't write it on the blackboard 100 times."
The Noir City festival continues through January 31st. Some of the upcoming films are Niagara, The Asphalt Jungle, Pickup on South Street, The Postman Always Rings Twice, He Ran All the Way, Women's Prison, Slattery's Hurricane, Odds Against Tomorrow, Cry Danger and Walk a Crooked Mile. Here's a link:
www.noircity.com
Pitfall (1948) was directed by Andre de Toth and stars Dick Powell as John Forbes. an insurance company executive who lives in the suburbs of Los Angeles. He's got a seemingly perfect life - a lovely home, a beautiful, devoted wife Sue (Jane Wyatt) and a worshipful young son Tommy (Jimmy Hunt). The only problem is, Forbes has become bored with his predictable, regimented life.
Into his office walks Mac (Raymond Burr), a burly, thuggish-looking detective who's been investigating an embezzlement case. The embezzler, Smiley (Byron Barr) has been thrown into prison, but first he blew all the money showering his girlfriend Mona (Lizabeth Scott) with expensive gifts. It's the insurance company's job to recover the ill-gotten goods to help defray their losses.
Forbes notices that Mac seems obsessed with Mona, so he dismisses the detective and take over the case himself. He drives out to Mona's studio apartment, where he finds the sultry blonde model, lonely and touchingly vulnerable. The dull, predictable life of John Forbes is about to be turned upside down.
This seemingly simple tale of suburban ennui and adultery turns complicated when the obsessed Mac starts stalking Mona and threatening to blackmail Forbes, whose quietly observant wife has begun to suspect that something is amiss. Then Mac visits the insanely jealous Smiley in prison to tip him off that his girlfriend is playing around, and the suspense builds to an unbearable pitch that ends in a deadly climax.
Pitfall benefited from director de Toth's keen eye for composition, light and shadow which enhances the drama and makes the film a pleasure to look at. The action is also tightly-paced and never drags. Powell and Burr are both excellent. Lizabeth Scott specialized in this type of bad girl with a heart roles, and she makes her character of Mona seem not only believable, but touching as well.
Larceny (1948) was the second film on the bill. Directed by George Sherman, it stars John Payne, Dan Duryea, Joan Caulfield and a young Shelley Winters. It's the story of Silky (Duryea) and RIck (Payne), part of a gang of smooth-talking con men. The two have just fleeced a wealthy businessman in Florida, Now they're on the West Coast to bilk a rich war widow Deborah Owens Clark (Joan Caulfield) out of her fortune.
Rick poses as Deborah's husband's Army buddy in order to gain her trust. He then persuades her to let them raise money for a youth center named in honor of the dead war hero. Of course there will never be a youth center. The two con men plan to fleece as many investors as possible, pocket the money and flee.
Things start to go wrong when the lonely, trusting widow takes a shine to Rick and he in turn starts to feel protective toward her. To complicate matters even more, Silky's moll, a saucy, hard-boiled dame named Tory (Shelley Winters) has a yen for Rick, and she's not happy about having a rival.
Things go from bad to worse when Deborah innocently foils Rick's scheme. Meanwhile the jealous, vengeful Tory bursts onto the scene. This bleach blonde boa constrictor in high heels is not going to go quietly Look out, she's got a gun!
Larceny is also a highly entertaining film but does have its weaknesses. First, there's the implausibility of its overly-complicated plot. Sherman's direction isn't as taut and fast-paced as de Toth's, and some scenes tend to drag. The ending of the film is abrupt. (One reviewer on imdb.com remarked that Larceny doesn't end, it just stops.)
The ever-reliable Payne and Duryea are competent as the two con men, but the leading lady, Joan Caulfield, beautiful as she is, doesn't make much of an impression as Mrs. Clark. She looks well-bred and refined but has little to bring to the character of Deborah.
On the other hand, Shelley Winters lights up the screen in her skin-tight low-cut gowns and her take-no-prisoners personality. Despite having a relatively minor role, Winters is by far the most memorable presence in the film. You literally can't take your eyes off her. Honorable mention goes to veteran character actor Percy Helton, who adds comic relief in the role of a high-voiced, nebbishy front desk clerk, and he's delightful.
I thoroughly enjoyed both these potboilers. They were entertaining, suprisingly adult and were full of witty, sardonic one-liners:
Girl to Man: "Why don't you knock me around a little bit so people will think we're married?"
Businessman to colleague: "There's a client born every minute."
One con man to another: "OK, I'm sorry. I just won't write it on the blackboard 100 times."
The Noir City festival continues through January 31st. Some of the upcoming films are Niagara, The Asphalt Jungle, Pickup on South Street, The Postman Always Rings Twice, He Ran All the Way, Women's Prison, Slattery's Hurricane, Odds Against Tomorrow, Cry Danger and Walk a Crooked Mile. Here's a link:
www.noircity.com
Watching them on a small screen is no comparison to seeing them the way they were meant to be seen! :thumbsup: 
