#245 Shoot the Piano Player (1960)

Directed by: Francois Truffaut
Starring: Charles Aznavour and Marie Dubois
Genre: Film Noir
IMDB

Truffaut came up with the idea for Tirez sur le pianiste because he wanted to try his hand at a genre of film he despised (a noble goal), taking it and deconstructing it while at the same time remaining true to some of the genre specifics. What he churned out was a critically acclaimed box-office flop that has aged better than almost any film from the time period and is now considered one of cinemas greatest treasures. The critical reception of the film scarred Truffaut to the point that he never tried anything as fun or experimental again.

The film tells the story of a lowly and emotionally troubled piano player who gets caught up in his brother’s dealings with a couple of thugs and is forced to fend for himself while at the same time cultivating a relationship with a beautiful young woman. The set up is pure noir, but the execution is where Truffaut distances himself. The film vacillates between the hilarious bordering on slapstick and the truly heartbreaking. It really is a one-of-a-kind genre piece that is the obvious stylistic forerunner of films such as Pulp Fiction and Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels. Truffaut’s nouvelle vague roots bubble to the surface in brilliant ways including a magnificent scene with Charlie and Lena in bed where he jump cuts between the two talking to each other and silently holding each other and an ahead-of-its-time inner-first person narration by Charlie where he neurotically tries to decide whether or not he should take Lena’s hand as the two walk along the streets of Paris. I constantly go back-and-forth trying to decide whether I prefer this or Jules et Jim. That is about the highest praise I can give a film.

#117 Out of the Past (1947)

Directed by: Jacques Tourneur
Starring: Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer and Kurt Douglas
Genre: Film Noir
IMDB

Let’s see. Robert Mitchum is my favorite actor. Film noir is my favorite style of film. This film is my favorite film noir. I will try to refrain from overloading this review with too many superlatives. Out of the Past tells the story of Jeff Bailey, a former private eye, turned straight, but forced back into the life in order to search out the woman who shot and stole money from his old boss (a fantastic Kurt Douglas). It’s a tried and true noir setup, but it’s the three leads that truly set this film apart.

Mitchum plays cool better than anyone on the planet, but he infuses Bailey with a slight vulnerability that seems to extend even further than his attraction to femme fatale Kathie Moffat (Jane Greer). Speaking of Greer, her portrayal of the cold hearted and beautiful Moffat makes her, for my money, the best femme fatale of all time. It’s one of history’s biggest disappointments that her career never took off (rumors were that her refusal to sleep with Howard Hughes was to blame), because had she gotten more roles, I believe we’d be talking about her along with Bacall and Taylor as the greatest actresses of her generation. A flawless film with enough depth to its style to really give you something to chew on. I’ve probably seen this film more times than any other film, and I still find it popping into my head on random days and just begging me to sit down and watch it again.

#580 Ace in the Hole (1951)

Directed by: Billy Wilder
Starring: Kirk Douglas and Jan Sterling
Genre: Film Noir

“Bad news sells best, because good news is no news”

These words, as spoken by Kirk Douglas in the lead role of the slimy and conniving Chuck Tatum have never rung truer than they do right now. Our news media bombards us with the gruesome and the horrifying because we eat it up. The fastest way to make a buck in the news business is to run a story so upsetting that the public can’t help but be drawn to it. Ace in the Hole, maybe more than any film I’ve ever seen, illustrates and comments on this phenomenon and the people on both sides of the story; the ones who engineer it, and the ones who are caught up by it.

The two leads, Douglas as Tatum and Sterling as Ms. Minosa are some of the most vile and despicable characters ever to appear on the big screen, but there is something very human about their desires and motives, even if we judge them harshly for their actions. Wilder’s directions is spot on and the cinematography, from the dark cave where the dust falls intermittently from cracks in the ceiling to the fantastic panorama shots of the “circus” that arrives to revel in the unfortunate circumstances, is the best I’ve seen in a film from this era. If you enjoyed Network then this film will be right down your alley. Ace in the Hole is a can’t miss and a wonderful way to start this project.