January 23 through February 1, 2009
The Castro Theatre
San Francisco
February 13th through 19, 2009
SIFF Cinema
Seattle
Noir City once again surrounds San Francisco's palatial Castro Theatre with its dark miasma. This year's program, running January 23 through February 1, focuses on "Newspaper Noir" with some forays into the worlds of radio broadcasting and magazine publishing too. Programmers Eddie Muller and Anita Monga also deliver a taste of the 1940s film-going experience by rounding out each evening's double feature with an actual B picture. Most of the films, however, center around the press and its all consuming desire for THE STORY and what desperate reporters and editors will do to expose it, conceal it or capitalize on it.
Bogie lays it on the line in Deadline, USA
The newsmen in these stories range in character from the heroic to the despicable. In Deadline, USA, Humphrey Bogart's reporter decides to take down a racketeer before his paper is sold to a tabloid outfit in one last show of journalistic integrity. Sort of like Edward R. Murrow but tougher. Kirk Douglas' big time reporter stranded at a small time paper in Ace in the Hole manipulates a tragic, and deadly, situation in hopes of regaining his place in the big league regardless of the costs to others. Then there's Burt Lancaster's megalomaniacal gossip columnist in The Sweet Smell of Success who wants to use the press to destroy the man who loves his sister.
"Newspaper Noir" may seem like a man's world, but never fear, the girls are far from being ignored in this festival. The dames in these films come in as many varietes as the gents. In Chicago Deadline, Donna Reed portrays the murdered prostitute who becomes the obsession of a reporter, Alan Ladd, as he uncovers the events that led to her demise. In Two O'clock Courage, a plucky female cabbie, Ann Rutherford, investigates her amnesic fare, Tom Conway, who finds himself the object of a manhunt and possibly her affections. Signe Hasso contributes a vengeful woman scorned to the mix in Strange Triangle when her lover dumps her on discovering she's married to his business rival. Unfortunately for him, she can't take no for an answer.
Noir City also pays special tribute to the sexy film noir icon Arlene Dahl. Last year's audience may remember her from the period noir, Reign of Terror. She'll be on hand for an onstage interview prior to the screenings of two of her noir outings, Wicked as They Come and Slightly Scarlet on January 24. In Wicked as They Come she plays a woman who seduces and abandons men in her quest to move up the socio-economic ladder. In Slightly Scarlet, she plays the recently paroled kleptomaniac sister of good girl Rhonda Fleming, the secretary and sweetheart to a reform party mayor. The sisters find themselves in competition for John Payne who's out to destroy the mayor. In addition to seeing her on stage, pass holders will also be able to meet Miss Dahl at a special reception before the double feature.
So, once again the programmers at Noir City have arranged an interesting and rare collection of noirs for their festival goers. All but six of the films are unavailable on DVD and are seldom screened. In fact, it took the combined efforts of the Film Noir Foundation and UCLA Film and Television Archive to locate the only existing print of Chicago Deadline. Tickets are now available at Noir City's official website. For those Seattleites who wish to have Noir City come to them, it will. February 13th through 19th, in conjunction with SIFF, the Film Noir Foundation will present a slightly shorter version of the series, check it out here.
The full San Francisco program follows:
Friday, January 23
DEADLINE USA 7:30
(1952) dir. Richard Brooks
SCANDAL SHEET 9:30
(1952) dir. Phil Karlson
Saturday, January 24
BLIND SPOT 1:30
(1947) dir. Robert Gordon
CHICAGO DEADLINE 3:00
(1949) dir. Lewis Allen
PASSPORT HOLDERS RECEPTION FOR ARELENE DAHL 6:00 - 7:00
Evening show with ARLENE DAHL IN PERSON!
WICKED AS THEY COME 7:00
(1956) dir. Ken Hughes
SLIGHTLY SCARLET 9:30
(1956) dir. Allan Dwan
Sunday, January 25
CRY OF THE HUNTED 1:00, 5:00, 9:20
(1953) dir. Joseph H. Lewis
ACE IN THE HOLE 2:45, 7:00
(1951) dir. Billy Wilder
Monday, January 26
ALIAS NICK BEAL 7:30
(1949) dir. John Farrow
NIGHT EDITOR 9:30
(1946) dir. Henry Levin
Tuesday, January 27
THE HARDER THEY FALL 7:30
(1956) dir. Mark Robson
JOHNNY STOOL PIGEON 9:30
(1949) dir. William Castle
Wednesday, January 28
WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS 7:30
(1956) dir. Fritz Lang
SHAKEDOWN 9:30
(1950) dir. Joe Pevney
Thursday, January 29
THE BIG CLOCK 7:30
(1948) dir. John Farrow
STRANGE TRIANGLE 9:30
(1946) dir. Ray McCarey
Friday, January 30
THE UNSUSPECTED 7:30
(1947) dir. Michael Curtiz
DESPERATE 9:30
(1947) dir. Anthony Mann
Saturday, January 31
BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT 2:00, 7:30
(1956) dir. Fritz Lang
TWO O'CLOCK COURAGE 3:45, 9:20
(1945) dir. Anthony Mann
Sunday, February 1
THE KILLERS 1:00, 7:00
(1957) dir. Robert Siodmak
SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS 3:15, 9:30
(1946) dir. Alexander Mackendrick
