For this week’s episode, we watch a very early Robert Wise film, The Set-Up!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because the episode is full of spoilers. The film is available on streaming on iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube.

If you want to read the poem that this movie was based on, you can enjoy “The Set-Up” by Joseph Moncure March right here.

Please also join us again on May 7th, when we take a brief detour into comedy with To Be or Not to Be!

The Set-Up (1949) Rating: 7.8/10 (10,278 votes)
Director: Robert Wise
Writer: Art Cohn, Joseph Moncure March
Stars: Robert Ryan, Audrey Totter, George Tobias
Runtime: 73 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Crime, Film-Noir, Sport
Released: 02 Apr 1949 Plot: Expecting the usual loss, a boxing manager takes bribes from a betting gangster without telling his fighter.

 

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For this week’s episode, we visit bombed-out postwar Germany with Berlin Express!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because the episode is full of spoilers. The film is readily available on streaming on iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube.

Please also join us again on April 21st, when we follow Robert Ryan to The Set-Up!

Berlin Express (1948) Rating: 6.8/10 (3,732 votes)
Director: Jacques Tourneur
Writer: Harold Medford, Curt Siodmak
Stars: Merle Oberon, Robert Ryan, Charles Korvin
Runtime: 87 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Released: 01 May 1948 Plot: A multinational group of train passengers become involved in a post-World War II Nazi assassination plot.

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For this week’s episode, we visit one of the great British noir films, The Third Man!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because we spoil the heck out if it. The film is readily available on streaming on Netflix, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, YouTube, and Amazon.

Please also join us again on February 21st, when we watch another WWII aftermath noir, Berlin Express!

The Third Man (1949) Rating: 8.1/10 (186,002 votes)
Director: Carol Reed
Writer: Graham Greene, Orson Welles, Alexander Korda
Stars: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli
Runtime: 93 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Film-Noir, Mystery, Thriller
Released: 01 Feb 1950 Plot: Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.

The post Episode 55: The Third Man appeared first on A Reel Education: Noir.

For this week’s episode, we conclude our Jimmy Stewart series as we view Hitchcock’s delightful Rear Window!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because there be spoilers ahead. The film is readily available on streaming on Google Play, YouTube, iTunes, Vudu, and Amazon.

Please also join us again on February 7th, when we talk about the amazing British classic, The Third Man!

Rear Window (1954) Rating: 8.5/10 (535,658 votes)
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writer: John Michael Hayes, Cornell Woolrich
Stars: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey
Runtime: 112 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Released: 01 Sep 1954 Plot: A bored photographer recovering from a broken leg passes the time by watching his neighbors and begins to suspect one of them of murder.

The post Episode 54: Rear Window appeared first on A Reel Education: Noir.

For this week’s episode, we continue with our Jimmy Stewart series as we visit Anthony Mann’s noir-western, Winchester ’73!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because there be spoilers ahead. The film is readily available on streaming on Google Play, YouTube, iTunes, Vudu, and Amazon.

Please also join us again on January 21st, when we return with an episode about Rear Window!

Winchester '73 (1950) Rating: 7.6/10 (22,530 votes)
Director: Anthony Mann
Writer: Robert L. Richards, Borden Chase, Stuart N. Lake
Stars: James Stewart, Shelley Winters, Dan Duryea
Runtime: 92 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Action, Drama, Western
Released: 12 Jul 1950 Plot: A cowboy's obsession with a stolen rifle leads to a bullet-ridden odyssey through the American West.

The post Episode 53: Winchester ’73 appeared first on A Reel Education: Noir.

For this week’s episode, we launch into a Jimmy Stewart series, starting with Call Northside 777!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because we spoil things. The film is readily available on streaming on Google Play, YouTube, iTunes, and Amazon.

Please also join us again on January 7th, when we return with an episode about Winchester 73!

Call Northside 777 (1948) Rating: 7.4/10 (10,721 votes)
Director: Henry Hathaway
Writer: Jerome Cady, Jay Dratler, Leonard Hoffman
Stars: James Stewart, Richard Conte, Lee J. Cobb
Runtime: 112 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Drama, Film-Noir
Released: 01 Mar 1948 Plot: Chicago reporter P.J. McNeal re-opens a decade-old murder case.

The post Episode 52: Call Northside 777 appeared first on A Reel Education: Noir.

For this week’s episode, we delve into Lawrence Kasdan’s steamy 80’s thriller, Body Heat!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because don’t care about spoilers. The film is readily available on streaming on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, and Vudu.

Please also join us again on November 21st, when return with an episode about Call Northside 777!

Body Heat (1981) Rating: 7.4/10 (41,301 votes)
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Writer: Lawrence Kasdan
Stars: William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Richard Crenna
Runtime: 113 min
Rated: R
Genre: Crime, Drama, Romance
Released: 28 Aug 1981 Plot: During an extreme heatwave, a beautiful Florida woman and a seedy lawyer engage in an affair while plotting the murder of her rich husband.

The post Episode 51: Body Heat appeared first on A Reel Education: Noir.

FINALLY, it’s here! For episode 50, former co-host Windy returns to the podcast for an episode about Billy Wilder’s Double Indemnity!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because we dive right into the plot. The film is readily available on streaming with a subscription to FilmStruck, and is available for rental on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, and Vudu.

Please also join us again on October 21st, when return with an episode about Body Heat!

Double Indemnity (1944) Rating: 8.3/10 (171,086 votes)
Director: Billy Wilder
Writer: Billy Wilder, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain
Stars: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward G. Robinson
Runtime: 107 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Released: 06 Jul 1944 Plot: An insurance representative is seduced by a dissatisfied housewife into a scheme of insurance fraud and murder that arouses the suspicion of his colleague, a claims investigator.

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In this week’s episode, we introduce Tonya to another Henri-Georges Clouzot masterpiece: the truly wicked Diabolique!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because of spoilers. No, really, we are truly, honestly serious this time… you don’t want this one spoiled if you’ve never seen it! The film is readily available on streaming with a subscription to FilmStruck. (They have a free trial deal, too.)

Please also join us again on June 7th, when we celebrate our 50th episode with Double Indemnity!

Diabolique (1955) Rating: 8.1/10 (70,653 votes)
Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot
Writer: Pierre Boileau, Thomas Narcejac, Henri-Georges Clouzot
Stars: Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse
Runtime: 117 min
Rated: Not Rated
Genre: Crime, Drama, Horror
Released: 21 Nov 1955 Plot: The wife and mistress of a loathed school principal plan to murder him with what they believe is the perfect alibi.

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This week, we watch the amazing Rita Hayworth in Gilda!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because Rita Hayworth truly must be witnessed. The film is readily available for rental on streaming services such as Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube. It is also available with subscription to FilmStruck.

Note: as you will soon be able to tell while listening to the episode, our recording session was interrupted by everything. Dogs! Phones! Husbands! Pizza guy! We apologize. In spite of all that, please join us again on May 21st, when we go back to Clouzot with a viewing of Diabolique!

Gilda (1946) Rating: 7.6/10 (36,444 votes)
Director: Charles Vidor
Writer: E.A. Ellington, Jo Eisinger, Marion Parsonnet
Stars: Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready
Runtime: 110 min
Rated: Approved
Genre: Drama, Film-Noir, Romance
Released: 25 Apr 1946 Plot: A small-time gambler hired to work in a Buenos Aires casino discovers his employer's new wife is his former lover.

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This week, we go see Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo in 70mm, and then we have a whole lot to say about it!

We highly recommend you watch the film before listening to the episode, because oh boy do we spoil all the details. The film is readily available for rental on streaming services such as Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, and YouTube.

Note: Melissa only introduces Alee during the first segment, because they weren’t sure Tonya wasn’t at the theater yet, and she wasn’t sure she was going to make it in time for the start. She did get to the theater, though, so she hopped in for the after-film discussion… but Melissa totally forgot to introduce her after the music break. Sorry for any confusion!

Please join us again on May 7th, when we watch Rita Hayworth play Gilda!

Vertigo (1958) Rating: 8.3/10 (436,994 votes)
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Writer: Alec Coppel, Samuel A. Taylor, Pierre Boileau
Stars: James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes
Runtime: 128 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Released: 28 May 1958 Plot: A former San Francisco police detective juggles wrestling with his personal demons and becoming obsessed with the hauntingly beautiful woman he has been hired to trail, who may be deeply disturbed.

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