A Month of Noirs: An Introduction

Some housekeeping items to start this off right:

The project is simple. During the month of July, I will watch a movie a day. The movies will be from somewhere in the noir spectrum, which is to say that I am not limiting myself to pure noirs in the classic sense. Some of these will be the gangster/crime films that predated the noir period; some will be films from the noir period that are not strictly noir themselves, but are informed somewhat by the style. Finally, in the first five days of August, I will watch a short series of films that follow classic noir: one neo-noir, one modern noir, one sci-fi noir, one nouvelle vague, and foreign noir.

Originally, this was a simple project of enjoyment and discovery, rewatching old favorites and discovering classics I had missed in the past. However, after watching my first movie, I have remembered how much I love writing about noirs, something I have not done in a while. So, I’ll also be doing write-ups on each film as I go. These are, at minimum, for my own pleasure, to help me sort of my thoughts on the movies and to more intently focus my attention. However, if other people read them, wonderful! A warning to potential/imaginary readers, however, I will be discussing plot spoilers in at least some, if not all of my reviews.

Here is, as it stands, the list (non-chronological, either in terms of filming or viewing) of movies for the Shadows in the Summertime project:

* = I have seen this
** = I have seen this and remember not loving it, but believe it was due to me being young(er) and stupid(er)

July:

1. M
2. Casablanca**
3. The Big Sleep
4. The Maltese Falcon
5. Citizen Kane
6. The Third Man**
7. The Invisible Man
8. Scarface
9. The Public Enemy
10. Sweet Smell of Success*
11. Double Indemnity*
12. The Postman Always Rings Twice
13. Stranger on the Third Floor
14. Kiss Me Deadly
15. Touch of Evil
16. In a Lonely Place*
17. Notorious
18. Sunset Boulevard*
19. White Heat
20. The Manchurian Candidate*
21. Out of the Past*
22. Gilda*
23. Laura
24. Murder, My Sweet
25. The Killers*
26. A Double Life*
27. The Dark Corner
28. Criss Cross
29. Scarlet Street
30. Night and the City
31. They Live By Night

August:

1. Breathless**
2. Brick
3. Blade Runner**
4. Alphaville
5. Chinatown*

With that, housekeeping draws to a close. The month begins.