NOVEMBER 2022 ROUND-UP
TOTAL FILMS SEEN IN NOVEMBER / NOIRVEMBER: 10
(see the film posters at the bottom of the post, arranged in watching order)
NEW-TO-ME: 10 (8 features & 2 shorts)
REWATCHES: 0
SEEN ON THE BIG SCREEN: 0
FILM NOIRS: 8
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Philip Carey and Dorothy Malone for Pushover
It's Noirvember again, that month of the year where femme fatales and hard-boiled detectives inhabit stories of alienation and moral corruption, the month where I'm supposed to be watching a lot of film noirs. I had hoped to reach a decent amount of films this month, but alas ... it's a disappointing figure of only 10 films seen (and two of them were silent shorts), but at least I have a good excuse. It has nothing to do with my obsession with K-dramas as I only managed to watch two full-length series this November (Mental Coach Jegal and Adamas) and three short web dramas (Everyday Loves, Just an Ordinary Love Story and Timing). My two holidays (one in Rojales with my sisters and mum, and the other in Valencia with my elder sister and her husband) and the new apartment took up most of my time. We were very lucky to find an unfurnished and lovely duplex of 110 square meters including terrace, yet it's outside of Valencia since it's nearly impossible now to find something to our liking and budget in Valencia capital. Our new place is still close to Valencia's city center by metro and we're actually looking forward to living in a small town.
Philip Carey and Dorothy Malone in Pushover (screenshot by me)
Let's take a look at my film stats for Noirvember.
My most watched actor is Philip Carey with two films seen (Pushover, The Shadow on the Window).
I watched a total amount of 8 film noirs: They Made Me a Killer, Pushover, The Suspect, The Shadow on the Window, The Sellout, Behind Green Lights, 711 Ocean Drive and Dial 1119.
I watched 2 silent shorts: They Would Elope and The Big Idea.
My highest rated film of the month is Pushover.
My lowest rated films are They Made Me a Killer, Behind Green Lights, They Would Elope and The Big Idea.
My favourite screen couples are Philip Carey and Dorothy Malone in Pushover and Audrey Totter and John Hodiak in The Sellout.
Audrey Totter and John Hodiak in The Sellout
Breaking the 10 watched films down in decades:
1900s - 1
1910s - 1
1920s - 0
1930s - 0
1940s - 3
1950s - 5
1960s - 0
NOW LET'S MOVE ON TO THE FILMS!
(read notes with caution as they might contain spoilers; with ratings going from ½ to ★★★★★ and watched date)
THEY MADE ME A KILLER (Pine-Thomas Productions/ Paramount, 1946) is a low-budget B-noir starring Robert Lowery (an actor I'm unfamiliar with), who's been framed for a robbery and murder he didn't commit. He tries to prove his innocence with the help of Barbara Britton, the sister of a man who's also implicated in the crime but dies in the hospital. The leads make a nice couple (both pictured) but overall this noir is unexciting. I was only startled when Lowery punches a nurse in the face and overturns the bed with the dead body of Britton's brother in it in order to escape from the cops. Watched this for its short runtime and for Britton whom I've seen and liked in Cover Up with Dennis O'Keefe. The public domain copy I watched online was pretty bad, in the darker scenes it was even difficult to discern what was going on. Support by Lola Lane (in her last film), Frank Albertson and Elisabeth Risdon. Directed by William C. Thomas. ★★ / 01.11.2022
PUSHOVER (Columbia, 1954) is a solid and entertaining film noir directed by Richard Quine, starring Fred MacMurray and young Kim Novak in her (credited) film debut. MacMurray plays a crooked cop, who's supposed to get information from Novak about the whereabouts of her bank robber boyfriend and his partner, but instead finds himself mixed up with her romantically. He then plans to get rid of the boyfriend and make a getaway with Novak and the money. As these things go, the plan doesn't run smoothly. Despite the fact that the plot isn't very original, there was enough suspense to keep me involved. There is a nice subplot with good cop Philip Carey (I really like him, know him from Calamity Jane) and Dorothy Malone as Novak's neighbour (Malone pictured here with MacMurray and Novak). The voyeurism executed by the cops reminded me of Rear Window. Good black-and-white photography by Lester White. ★★★½ / 03.11.2022
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THE SUSPECT (Universal, 1944), directed by Robert Siodmak, is an enjoyable film noir but unfortunately it's not really suspenseful and never surprises. Yet Charles Laughton carries this film and gives a great performance. I love Ella Raines and she looks lovely here but I didn't really buy into her relationship with Laughton and the romance isn't convincing (both pictured, screenshot by me). The black-and-white photography by Paul Ivano is often beautiful and the leads are ably supported by Stanley Ridges (as the detective) and Henry Daniell. ★★★ / 09.11.2022
THE SHADOW ON THE WINDOW (Columbia, 1957), directed by William Asher, is a noir that I watched for Philip Carey, having recently seen him in Pushover and liking him. It's a home invasion type of film where the male lead Carey is not trapped in the house but his estranged wife Betty Garrett (pictured with Carey and Jerry Mathers) is, yet not in her own home but in the house of some rich man for whom she's doing a stenographer's job. Three juvenile thugs invade the home, rob the old man, kill him and keep Garrett captive. Carey plays a police detective (how convenient) who has to figure out where the house is located, and I like how the police pieces the clues together. There's a chase scene that is well photographed and I like the jazzy score. John Drew Barrymore, son of the great John Barrymore and father of Drew, plays one of the three thugs (who are all a bit stupid and act like they are in a play) and is quite handsome. Seen a very good print of this online, probably taken from the Blu-ray. ★★★ / 10.11.2022
Another film noir that never reaches its peak but is still enjoyable, THE SELLOUT (MGM, 1952) is elevated by the strong performance from John Hodiak as a state attorney and a good supporting cast. Walter Pidgeon has first billing as a city journalist determined to bring to justice a corrupt small-town sheriff (Thomas Gomez) and his staff, but he doesn't have a lot of screen time. Audrey Totter is here too, and I love her, but she's criminally underused. She makes a believable couple with Hodiak (both portrayed) but too bad there's not enough of them together. I also love Karl Malden and fortunately he plays one of the good guys, siding with Hodiak. The final courtroom scene is good but the ending is a bit preachy. Paula Raymond, Cameron Mitchell and Everett Sloane round out the rest of the cast, and Gerald Mayer directed. ★★★ / 10.11.2022
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I've been meaning to see the short B-noir BEHIND GREEN LIGHTS (20th Century-Fox, 1946) for some time now, because I like the leads Carole Landis and William Gargan (both pictured). But unfortunately this noir has tonal issues and ventures into comedy territory, primarily with the body swap, and therefore never gets suspenseful. Also, it clearly needs more Landis. There is some nice moody black-and-white photography by Joseph MacDonald — the only thing that makes this film look like a film noir — but overall it's a lukewarm viewing experience with a plot that isn't very compelling. John Ireland can be seen in a supporting role as Gargan's assistant cop and Mabel Paige as the flower lady is a bit annoying. That ending that hints at romance between the leads doesn't make much sense. Otto Brower directed. ★★ / 12.11.2022
Watched 711 OCEAN DRIVE (Frank Seltzer Productions/Essaness Productions, 1950) on a return train ride from Alicante to Valencia. I really like Edmond O'Brien, here in the role of a telephone technician, who gets involved in the world of organised crime due to his telephone-wiring skills and makes the wrong decisions because of his greed. O'Brien's good in playing these shady characters. Joanne Dru (reminding me here of Dorothy McGuire) as his love interest (pictured with O'Brien, screenshot by me) is pretty boring, I was actually rooting for Dorothy Patrick. It's predictable yet inevitable that O'Brien meets his downfall in the end, and the final chase is probably the best scene of this film noir. It's greatly photographed by Franz Planer, making good use of the wonderful location at Hoover Dam, formerly called Boulder Dam. Joseph M. Newman directed. ★★★ / 15.11.2022
The only reason I watched the short silent film THEY WOULD ELOPE (American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1909) was because of its supershort runtime of 8 minutes. And I like Mary Pickford (pictured, screenshot by me). Here her character wants to marry the man she loves and they decide to elope. The story is simple and uneventful but it's still pretty entertaining, with the parents already anticipating the marriage and arranging a wedding ceremony upon the couple's return. D.W. Griffith directed. ★★ / 30.11.2022
As the last film of November I chose another silent short in order to complete my month's total of 10 films watched because I didn't have time to watch a full-length film. THE BIG IDEA (Rolin Films, 1917) featuring Harold Lloyd, Harry 'Snub' Pollard and Bebe Daniels (pictured with Lloyd, screenshot by me), suffered from my sleepiness and I didn't catch much the first time so had to watch it twice. It's nothing special but the broom kiss is quite memorable. Directed by Hal Mohr and Gilbert Pratt. ★★ / 30.11.2022
So ... that's another (disappointing) round-up! I won't make 200 watched films by the end of the year. I'm at 165 films now and it's very unlikely — even impossible — I'll watch 35 films this December. We'll also make the definite move to our new home mid-December and will spend time with our family in The Netherlands during the Christmas holidays, so watching classics or K-dramas has to take a back seat. Cannot believe we're at that time of the year again, but here we are. See you next month for the year's last round-up! Have a great December!
