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Turner Classic Movie host and Film Noir Foundation President Eddie Muller returns with a selection of crime classics, half in rare 35mm film prints, with a focus on women related to his book Dark City Dames.Saturday 8pm
Ace in the Hole (1951). Paramount. 111 minutes. 35mm.
On its release, critics called this the most bitter, cynical, mean-spirited movie ever made. It still might hold the honor. What’s certain is how scarily prescient Wilder’s tale of media manipulation (originally released as The Big Carnival) turned out to be. Kirk Douglas is stupendously rotten as a disgraced reporter reclaiming the spotlight by prolonging the plight of a trapped miner. Jan Sterling is unforgettable as the miner’s less-than-compassionate wife. It may not feature many of the tropes and iconography of classic noir, but its withering depiction of human nature and American culture is as pitch-black as any film of the era. A genuine masterpiece.
Scarlet Street (1945). Universal–International. 102 minutes. Digital.
On the night of his retirement, aging, mild-mannered cashier Christopher Cross (Edward G. Robinson)becomes an accidental hero—rescuing a gorgeous young woman, Kitty March (Joan Bennett) from a would-be attacker. The poor sap doesn’t realize he’s stumbled upon a dust-up between a hooker and her pimp, and before long the devious duo is playing him for a prize chump, selling to tony galleries the amateurish paintings the love-struck Cross bestows on Kitty. This wretched roundelay can only end in tragedy. One of the truly definitive noir films, Scarlet Street is a perfectly directed and acted immorality play. Edward G. Robinson’s performance—so achingly sincere and utterly delusional—is at times almost painful to watch.
This is one of four double features in the Noir City Film Festival. Check out our other screenings here: https://redfordtheatre.com/events/
All-Access Passes are available here: https://redfordtheatre.com/events/noir-city-detroit/
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Redford Theatre, 17346 Lahser Rd, Detroit, MI 48219-2348, United States, Redford
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