Double Indemnity (1944, Apple TV, Binge, Foxtel Now):

Perhaps the quintessential film noir, this adaptation by director Billy Wilder and crime novelist Raymond Chandler of James M. Cain's novel is often darkly funny. Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), an insurance salesman, is smitten by femme fatale housewife Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck). They devise a plan to murder her husband for the insurance money. But can they get past the shrewd claims manager Keyes (Edward G. Robinson)? And can they trust each other?

Quote: "Murder's never perfect. Always comes apart sooner or later, and when two people are involved it's usually sooner."

Trivia: Cain said this was the only movie made from one of his books that had things in it he wished he had thought of.

If you liked this, try: The Postman Always Rings Twice; Body Heat; Out of the Past.

Touch of Evil (1958, Apple TV):

Writer-director-star Orson Welles opens this movie with a dazzling long take (it's not the only one) and weaves a tale of murder and police corruption that pits two cops against each other - honest Mexican Vargas (Charlton Heston) and crooked American Quinlan (Welles). Janet Leigh co-stars and there are appearances from Marlene Dietrich, Joseph Cotten, Dennis Weaver and even Zsa Zsa Gabor.

Quote: "Your future's all used up."

Trivia: The film was re-edited in multiple versions. A 1998 reissue attempted to recreate Welles' vision as described in a long memo he wrote.

Chinatown (1974, Stan, Google Play):

A lot of this neo-noir takes place in broad daylight but it's as dark as any. In the 1930s, private investigator Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) thinks he's taken on a simple adultery case but finds himself drawn into public corruption and personal darkness. Faye Dunaway and John Huston co-star and director Roman Polanski has a memorable cameo wielding a knife. Referenced a lot including the animated film Rango.

Quote: "Politicians, ugly buildings and whores all get respectable if they last long enough."

Trivia: Polanski changed the ending of Robert Towne's script.

If you like this, try: Laura; LA Confidential; Mystic River.

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Se7en (1995, Apple TV):

Veteran detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and younger partner Mills (Brad Pitt) investigate the case of a serial killer who is murdering people in ways inspired by the seven deadly sins. The grim grotesqueness and the ending make this feel more like noir rather than a standard cop movie.

Quote: "What's in the box?"

Trivia: The seven deadly sins are sloth, lust, gluttony, greed, wrath, pride and envy. Have you tried them all?

If you like this, try: Red Dragon; The Silence of the Lambs; Nightcrawler.

Memento (2000, Prime Video):

Told both going forward (black and white) and backward (colour) in time, this is the story of Leonard (Guy Pearce), a former insurance investigator with short-term memory loss who is seeking revenge for the rape and murder of his wife. But his condition makes this - and everything else - a challenge. Writer-director Christopher Nolan made a striking debut with this film even if it was a bit hard for people to get their heads around at times.

Quote: "I have to believe in a world outside my own mind."

Trivia: Writer-director Christopher Nolan's brother Jonathan wrote the short story on which this was based.

If you like this, try: Mulholland Drive; The Prestige; Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Nightmare Alley (2021, Apple TV, Disney+, Foxtel Now):

William Lindsay Gresham's grim story was well adapted to the screen in 1947 with Tyrone Power cast against type and is well worth seeing but this later version from Guillermo del Toro might be easier to find. During the Depression, Stan Carlisle (Bradley Cooper) joins a travelling carnival and is soon part of a mind-reading act. When he's learned what he can he leaves with another carny, Molly (Rooney Mara) to strike it rich. But could he be too confident for his own good?

Quote: "Find out what they're afraid of and sell it back to them."

Trivia: Shooting was shut down midway through production for a year because of COVID.

If you like this, try: Nightmare Alley (1947), The Grifters, The Night of the Hunter.

Regarding gangster movies from last week: regular reader Russell remembers Love Me Or Leave Me (1955) with James Cagney and Doris Day and Rod Steiger in the title role of Al Capone (1959).

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