J.B. Spins

No film noir anti-hero ever starts a movie in media res to marvel at all the shrewd decisions they just made. That is especially true of Cha...

It is often the case that those who are most convinced they can see clearly enough to decipher the hidden signs and cabals covertly gove...

Brace yourself for some film noir that takes a detour into Samuel Butler terrain. Instead of Erehwon, a motley band of rogues sinks into...

Breakout starlet Heather Anderson is one of the beautiful people, whereas her assistant Jill LeBeau is one of the little people. However...

Forget about An American in Paris and Amélie . Bob Montagné knows the real Montmartre. It is a place where you can find dodgy night clubs...

In China’s western provinces, it is every man for himself. There is no OSHA regulating mine safety. The media doesn’t report on what goes...

He is often called “Inspector,” but Jules Maigret was in fact the Commissioner of the Paris Major Crimes Division. He is a sleuth, but al...

Missouri is the home of barbecue spare ribs and Provel cheese, so maybe it’s not surprising the villain of this Midwest border state noir...

It’s a distinctly Chinese variant on film noir—the noodle shop noir. This snappy debut, following in the loose tradition of Zhang Yimou’s...

Think of it as the inverse opposite of Robert Altman’s The Player . The gimmick for this larky noir was the unrecognizable presence of so...

Business is slower at Luanne’s greasy spoon than at the diner in Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks . Like the eatery in Petrified Forest , it se...

We’re not saying Tomu Uchida’s three-hour film noir masterpiece is dark, but it starts with a ferry disaster killing hundreds of innocent...

In French film noir, nobody personifies bad karma like Lino Ventura. Unfortunately, his characters were not immune from the payback they ...

Myra Hudson is a hit Broadway playwright by day and a wealthy San Francisco heiress-socialite by night—or vice versa. Lester Blaine is a ...

If you think Niagara Falls is a romantic spot, you probably haven’t seen Niagara with Marilyn Monroe and Joseph Cotten. Hopefully, you ar...

Communication is important in a marriage, even if you are a gold-digging adventurer. Just ask Edward “Teddy” Bare. Upon learning his much...

It is a two-part triptych. Obviously, it was intended to be a trio of Cornell Woolrich (a.k.a. William Irish) short story adaptations, bu...

In the Orson Welles’ filmography, this 1943 espionage thriller always has an asterisk next to the title in fans’ minds. Throughout his li...