A femme fatale, sometimes called a maneater, Mata Hari, or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of literature and art. Her ability to enchant, entice and hypnotize her victim with a spell was in the earliest stories seen as verging on supernatural; hence, the femme fatale today is still often described as having a power akin to an enchantress, seductress, witch, having power over men. Femmes fatales are typically villainous, or at least morally ambiguous, and always associated with a sense of mystification, and unease.
Murder, My Sweet is a 1944 American film noir, directed by Edward Dmytryk and starring Dick Powell, Claire Trevor and Anne Shirley. The film is based on Raymond Chandler's 1940 novel Farewell, My Lovely. It was the first film to feature Chandler's primary character, the hard-boiled private detective Philip Marlowe.
The Narrow Margin is a 1952 American film noir starring Charles McGraw and Marie Windsor. Directed by Richard Fleischer, the RKO picture was written by Earl Felton, based on an unpublished story written by Martin Goldsmith and Jack Leonard. The screenplay by Earl Felton was nominated for an Academy Award.
Gilda is a 1946 American film noir directed by Charles Vidor and starring Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford.
102 Dalmatians is a 2000 American crime comedy film produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Cruella Productions and Kanzaman S.A.M. Films with distribution by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. Directed by Kevin Lima and produced by Edward S. Feldman with a screenplay by Kristen Buckley, Brian Regan, Bob Tzudiker and Noni White from a story by Buckley and Regan, it is the sequel to Disney's 1996 feature film 101 Dalmatians, which was a live-action remake of the 1961 animated feature film of the same title. It stars Glenn Close reprising her role as Cruella de Vil as she attempts to steal puppies for her "grandest" fur coat yet, with Ioan Gruffudd, Alice Evans, Tim McInnerny, Ian Richardson, Gérard Depardieu, Ben Crompton, Carol MacReady, Jim Carter, Ron Cook, David Horovitch, Timothy West, and Eric Idle in supporting roles. Close and McInnerny were the only two actors from the 1996 film to return for the sequel, while Adrian Biddle and Anthony Powell reprised their respective duties as cinematographer and costume designer.
Fear is a 1946 American low-budget film noir directed by Alfred Zeisler and produced by Monogram Pictures. The film loosely follows the main plot of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's 1866 novel Crime and Punishment, without attribution.
Framed is a 1947 American crime film noir directed by Richard Wallace and starring Glenn Ford, Janis Carter and Barry Sullivan. It was released by Columbia Pictures. The movie is generally praised by critics as an effective crime thriller despite its low budget.
Pushover is a 1954 American film noir crime film directed by Richard Quine, starring Fred MacMurray, Phil Carey and Kim Novak in her first credited role. The motion picture was adapted from two novels – Thomas Walsh's The Night Watch and William S. Ballinger's Rafferty – by Roy Huggins, who went on to great success creating television series, including The Fugitive, Maverick, and The Rockford Files.
Deception is a 1946 American film noir drama released by Warner Brothers and directed by Irving Rapper. The film is based on the 1927 play Monsieur Lamberthier by Louis Verneuil. The screenplay was written by John Collier and Joseph Than. It stars Bette Davis, Paul Henreid, and Claude Rains, who had also appeared together in the highly successful Now, Voyager (1942), which was also directed by Rapper.
Long Pants is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Frank Capra and starring Harry Langdon. Additional cast members include Gladys Brockwell, Alan Roscoe, and Priscilla Bonner.
Kristine Miller was an American film actress. She appeared in film noir and Westerns. A discovery of Paramount producer Hal Wallis, she appeared in I Walk Alone (1948), Jungle Patrol (1948), Too Late for Tears (1949), Shadow on the Wall (1950), and the TV series Stories of the Century (1954–55).
Blonde Ice is a 1948 American crime film noir starring Leslie Brooks, Robert Paige, and Michael Whalen. Based on the 1938 novel Once Too Often by Elwyn Whitman Chambers, the B picture was directed by Jack Bernhard, with music by Irving Gertz.
Jean Gillie was an English film actress of the 1930s and 1940s. Gillie appeared in 20 British and two American films before her career was cut short by her early death.
Violence is a 1947 American drama film noir starring Nancy Coleman, Michael O'Shea, and Sheldon Leonard, and directed by Jack Bernhard.
Pickup is a 1951 American low-budget film noir starring Hugo Haas, Beverly Michaels, Allan Nixon and Howland Chamberlain. Written and directed by Haas, a Czech actor and filmmaker, it was his first American film behind the camera. Haas, a refugee from German-occupied Europe, went on to make a series of gloomy noirs about doomed middle-aged men led astray by younger femmes fatales.
Strange Impersonation is a 1946 American film noir drama film directed by Anthony Mann and starring Brenda Marshall, William Gargan and Hillary Brooke.
She Devil is a 1957 American widescreen science fiction horror film, shot in RegalScope, from Regal Films, that was produced, written, and directed by Kurt Neumann. The film stars Mari Blanchard, Jack Kelly, and Albert Dekker and was theatrically released by 20th Century-Fox on a double bill with Regal's Kronos.
Strangers in the Night is a 1944 American film noir mystery film directed by Anthony Mann and starring William Terry, Virginia Grey and Helene Thimig.
Jack Bernhard was an American film and television director. His films include Decoy (1946), Blonde Ice (1948), Unknown Island (1948) and The Second Face (1950).
The depictions of women in film noir come in a range of archetypes and stock characters, including the alluring femme fatale. A femme fatale, is a prevalent and indicating theme to the style of film noir.
