Shadows of Noir

Joining us to discuss the visual style and artistic roots of film noir is professional artist and fellow noir enthusiast, Marc Hinkley. With his own fine art series inspired by film noir's cinematographers, Marc has an incredible eye for frame composition and the emotion that can live within an image. He gives us some great history of German Expressionism, and how that fed so naturally into film noir. We also discuss some of Marc's favorite films, scenes, and how he chooses particular works for inspiration. Hope you enjoy!

Marc's Website: https://marchinkley.com/
Film Noir Series: https://marchinkley.com/film-noir

After a brief summer break, we're back with a heavy hitter from film noir's classic era. Join us as we continue with the subject of B-Noir and dive into Detour from 1945. From PRC and directed by Edgar G. Ulmer, Detour has gained legendary status in more recent years as a masterful representation of film noir. And with a famous (although uncertain) budget and production schedule, Detour reminds us that unlimited resources are not necessary to produce a great work.

After a few individual film episodes, we venture back in history to discuss the motion picture industry, and how major events and developments affected the classic era of film noir. We discuss the formation of the studio system in Hollywood, and the industry developments that helped enable the production, distribution, and exhibition of different types of films over the years. We discuss B-pictures more broadly, and how they blended so nicely with the film noir formula. And we conclude with the major events that led to their downfall. Hope you enjoy!

Website: shadowsofnoir.com
Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/

We are joined today by Veronica Fitzpatrick to discuss Mildred Pierce. Veronica is a film professor and critic, and also a host on The Bright Wall/Dark Room Podcast. Her knowledge is extensive and together we discuss the melodramatic noir classic from 1945, while also diving into larger concepts of genre and film history. You won't want to miss this one!

We also have our new online shop up with some branded clothing and branded drinkware, so you can showcase your love of film noir and help support the show! Please check it out if you can: Shadows of Noir Shop

Sticking with 20th Century Fox film noir, we fast-forward a few years from Road House (1948) and talk about Where the Sidewalk Ends. Directed by Otto Preminger and starring Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney, this one is a reunion for the same trio that brought us Laura six years before. With these immensely important figures in film noir, along with highly noir story filled with dark settings, characters, and themes, this 1950 film is especially representative of the classic era. 

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/
Website: shadowsofnoir.com
Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/

What do you get when you combine Ida Lupino and Richard Widmark, two of the most influential people in all of film noir? You get Road House from 1948. Join us as we dissect this melodramatic noir and use it to help highlight the unbelievable contributions of Lupino and Widmark to the world of film noir.

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/
Website: shadowsofnoir.com
Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/

In celebration of our 10th episode, we are doing a revised and expanded version of Episode 1 - What is Film Noir? That is our most popular topic and we wanted to extend and improve upon that discussion, based on feedback and questions we've received so far. We begin with the term film noir, then get into the influences and the distinction between the "classic era" and newer "neo-noir" films. We discuss the classification of film noir, and finish up with the elements and essential films of the classic era. Hope you enjoy! 

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/
Website: shadowsofnoir.com
Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/

This episode is a primer on the overlap between film noir and the Hollywood Blacklist of the late 1940s and 1950s. We have alluded to this connection previously and it’s a topic often mentioned in film noir discussions, so we wanted to give an overview of the major events and prominent figures.  We also talk about some of reasons why film noir's classic era may have been excessively affected by the Hollywood Blacklist events post-World War II. Enjoy!

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/

Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/

We are joined by Clay McCormack from The Rotten Horror Picture Show for our very first guest episode. Clay’s podcast experience and film knowledge is extensive, and together we discuss the nuances of an essential film noir, Kiss Me Deadly. We dive into the literary background, the adaption to the screen, the character of Mike Hammer, and several other aspects of the film. We also compare it to several other important films, and explore film noir’s relationship to other areas of film history. 

Shadows of Noir:

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/
Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/ 

Clay’s Podcast Work:

Patreon: patreon.com/thepenskyfile
Website: thepenskyfile.com

Join us as we venture into the public domain and discuss the widely available 1950 film, D.O.A. Film noir cornerstone star Edmond O'Brien leads the way in this thriller-like noir, that balances late 1940's on-location realism with earlier expressionist roots. Complete with a puzzling plot that demands your full attention, and intriguing themes that are indicative of larger film noir questions, it's no wonder this movie gets plenty of attention within the classic era. Did anyone order some fatalism?

Patreon: patreon.com/ShadowsofNoir/

Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/ShadowsofNoir/