D.O.A. is a 1950 American film noir directed by Rudolph Maté, starring Edmond O'Brien and Pamela Britton. It is considered a classic of the genre. A fatally poisoned man tries to find out who has poisoned him and why. It was the film debuts of Beverly Garland and Laurette Luez. In 2004, D.O.A. was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Eamon Joseph O'Brien was an American actor of stage, screen, and television, and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Ella Wallace Raines was an American film and television actress active from the early 1940s through the mid-1950s. Described as "sultry" and "mysterious", the green-eyed star appeared frequently in crime pictures and film noir, but also in drama, comedy, Westerns, thrillers, and romance.
Impact is a 1949 American film noir drama film starring Brian Donlevy and Ella Raines. Directed by Arthur Lubin, it was shot entirely in Northern California, including scenes in Sausalito at Larkspur in Marin County, on Nob Hill in San Francisco, and throughout the Bay area. The screenplay was based on a story by film noir writer Jay Dratler. Charles Coburn, Helen Walker, Anna May Wong, Philip Ahn, and William Wright appear in support.
The Big Steal is a 1949 American black-and-white film noir reteaming Out of the Past stars Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer. The film was directed by Don Siegel, based on the short story "The Road to Carmichael's" by Richard Wormser.
Brute Force is a 1947 American crime film noir directed by Jules Dassin, from a screenplay by Richard Brooks with cinematography by William H. Daniels. It stars Burt Lancaster, Hume Cronyn, Charles Bickford and Yvonne De Carlo.
Zoot Suit is a 1981 American independent drama musical film of the Broadway play Zoot Suit. Both the play and film were written and directed by Luis Valdez. The film stars Daniel Valdez, Edward James Olmos—both reprising their roles from the stage production—and Tyne Daly. Many members of the cast of the Broadway production also appeared in the film. Like the play, the film features music from Daniel Valdez and Lalo Guerrero, the "father of Chicano music."
Pitfall is a 1948 American film noir crime film directed by André de Toth. The film is based on the novel The Pitfall by Jay Dratler and stars Dick Powell, Lizabeth Scott, and Jane Wyatt, and features Raymond Burr.
The Mob is a 1951 American film noir crime-thriller produced by Columbia Pictures, directed by Robert Parrish, and starring Broderick Crawford. The screenplay, which was written by William Bowers, is based on the novel Waterfront by Ferguson Findley.
True Confessions is a 1981 American neo-noir crime drama film directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall as the brothers Spellacy, a priest and police detective. Produced by Chartoff-Winkler Productions, it is adapted from the novel of the same name by John Gregory Dunne, loosely based on the Black Dahlia murder case of 1947. Dunne wrote the screenplay with his wife, novelist Joan Didion. The film was released on September 25, 1981, receiving generally positive reviews from critics.
It's in the Bag! is a 1945 comedy film featuring Fred Allen in his only starring film role. The film was released by United Artists at a time when Allen was at the peak of his fame as one of the most popular radio comedians. The film has been preserved by UCLA Film & Television Archive. The film is loosely based on the comic novel The Twelve Chairs (1928) of Ilf and Petrov, later filmed by Mel Brooks as The Twelve Chairs (1970). The team of screenwriters included Jay Dratler, Alma Reville, and Morrie Ryskind. Allen's encounter with Jack Benny in the film is notable as at this time they were involved in a famous 'feud', which ran for over a decade.
Thunder on the Hill is a 1951 American film noir crime film directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Claudette Colbert and Ann Blyth. The picture was made by Universal-International Pictures and produced by Michael Kraike from a screenplay by Oscar Saul and Andrew Solt, based on the play Bonaventure by Charlotte Hastings. The music score was by Hans J. Salter and the cinematography by William H. Daniels.
The Suspect is a 1944 American film noir starring Charles Laughton and Ella Raines, and directed by Robert Siodmak. Set in Edwardian London in 1902, it is based on the 1939 novel This Way Out, by James Ronald, and was released by Universal Pictures.
A Dangerous Profession is a 1949 American film noir directed by Ted Tetzlaff, written by Warren Duff and Martin Rackin, and starring George Raft, Ella Raines and Pat O'Brien. The film was one of a series of thrillers in which Raft appeared in the late 1940s, with decreasing commercial results.
Alias Nick Beal is a 1949 American film noir mystery starring Ray Milland, Audrey Totter and Thomas Mitchell. Directed by John Farrow, it is a retelling of the Faust myth, and is also known as Dark Circle, Strange Temptation and Alias Nicky Beal.
The Champagne Murders is a 1967 French crime thriller film based on a story William Benjamin, directed by Claude Chabrol and starring Anthony Perkins. It was the first of two films that Chabrol made with Perkins.
Rider on the Rain is a 1970 French mystery thriller film starring Marlène Jobert and Charles Bronson, directed by René Clément and scripted by Sébastien Japrisot, produced by Serge Silberman, with film music composed by Francis Lai. It won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Desert Fury is a 1947 American film noir crime film directed by Lewis Allen, and starring Lizabeth Scott, John Hodiak and Burt Lancaster. Its plot follows the daughter of a casino owner in a small Nevada town who becomes involved with a racketeer who was once suspected of murdering his wife. The screenplay was written by Robert Rossen and A. I. Bezzerides (uncredited), adapted from the 1947 novel of the same name by Ramona Stewart. The picture was produced by Hal Wallis, with music by Miklós Rózsa and cinematography in Technicolor by Edward Cronjager and Charles Lang.
Shield for Murder is a 1954 American film noir crime film co-directed by and starring Edmond O'Brien as a police detective who has become malevolent. It was based on the novel of the same name by William P. McGivern.
White Tie and Tails is a 1946 American comedy drama film directed by Charles Barton and starring Dan Duryea, Ella Raines, William Bendix, and Frank Jenks. The film tagline is "Clothes Don't Make the Man ... a Gentleman!" The film is based on Rufus King's serial novel Double Murder published in Red Book Magazine and on Charles Beakon's play Dangerously Yours.
