The Pocket Essential Film Noir: Films of Trust and Betrayal

by Paul Duncan

From 'Stranger On The Third Floor' in 1940 to 'Touch Of Evil' in 1958, this book outlines the progression of film noir from a style for low budget filmmakers who could only afford one light, to complex tales of mislaid trust and constant betrayal.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1904048676
• ISBN13: 9781904048671
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: Oldcastle Books
• Length: 159 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 4.4" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

Handy, quick reference to Film Noir

As someone who likes to dabble in film studies and is looking for some guidance into watching films with a more critical eye, this is an excellent, little introduction into Film Noir. The author gives a brief history (we are talking about only a handful of pages) of film noir and follows up by summarizing and analizing seven films that help define the genre. None of this is meant to be comprehensive, but it does serve to give the reader a good feel for the entire film genre. Perhaps the best feature of the book is a 40+ page, annotated listing of Film Noir films--a great feature for any one wanting to watch more Film Noir but not knowing which titles to start with.My only complaint is that the writing is often fragmented and not always thoroughly worked through. It seems to me that there could have been some more editorial guidance in creating the final product.