Classic Pulp and Noir Worth Watching
Being a fan of Pulp and Noir Films. I have endeavored to create a list of movies and shows that appeal to like-minded fans. This list will include generally three types of material: two-fisted hard broiled style tales such as Sax Rhomer Fu-Manchu Movies and more Modern Indiana Jones films, good Noir such as "The Maltese Falcon" and finally any Weird Tales Type Films.
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- DirectorJohn HustonStarsHumphrey BogartMary AstorGladys GeorgeSan Francisco private detective Sam Spade takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a gorgeous liar and their quest for a priceless statuette, with the stakes rising after his partner is murdered.This may be one of my all-time favorite pulp noir films. One that endured repeated viewing and still entertains.
- DirectorJacques TourneurStarsRobert MitchumJane GreerKirk DouglasA private eye escapes his past to run a gas station in a small town, but his past catches up with him. Now he must return to the big city world of danger, corruption, double crosses, and duplicitous dames.This is another of my top noir favorites. Robert Mitchem, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Greer (wow). These are three major actors who were on top of their game. An outstanding detective noir flick. I've watched this 4 times as of writing this and could sit down and watch it again today.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsGlenn FordGloria GrahameJocelyn BrandoTough cop Dave Bannion takes on a politically powerful crime syndicate.This is another movie pulp noir favorite that tops the list with Glenn Ford as a Hard Nosed Detective and Lee Marvin as a Tough Hood. Again this movie is solid enough to watch repeatedly and still enjoy it.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsHumphrey BogartIngrid BergmanPaul HenreidA cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.A great pulp classic.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsHumphrey BogartWalter HustonTim HoltTwo down-on-their-luck Americans searching for work in 1920s Mexico convince an old prospector to help them mine for gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains.If you haven't seen this flick, you need to. This is a great noir adventure movie with a little bit of everything. One of my top 10 movies period, holds up to repeated viewing too.
- DirectorEdmund GouldingStarsTyrone PowerJoan BlondellColeen GrayThe rise and fall of Stanton Carlisle, a mentalist whose lies and deceit prove to be his downfall.This is a really good noir flick. Ends with a great bit of irony.
- DirectorByron HaskinStarsCharlton HestonEleanor ParkerAbraham SofaerThe Leiningen South American cocoa plantation is threatened by a 2-mile-wide, 20-mile-long column of army ants.This movie is great. A Man vs. Nature. Normally nature always wins that battle, unless your a man like Charlton Heston (or Guns and Moses as I like to call him). Man struggles to wage war against an unstoppable foe, billions of army ants heading for his mansion.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsJack NicholsonFaye DunawayJohn HustonA private detective hired to expose an adulterer in 1930s Los Angeles finds himself caught up in a web of deceit, corruption, and murder.Wow...I put off watching this one for years. I'm glad I finally did. It's a good one with lots of twists and turns. Don't know how often it'll be before I get the itch to rewatch it but it's definitely a great detective noir. Wheew the ending is tough. What a great cast of characters. It's great to see Faye Dunnaway and Huston not to mention Roman Polanski as a gunsel.
- DirectorOrson WellesStarsRita HayworthOrson WellesEverett SloaneFascinated by gorgeous Mrs. Bannister, seaman Michael O'Hara joins a bizarre yachting cruise, and ends up mired in a complex murder plot.This movie held my attention. It is definitely good and well filmed noir with neat characters and the beautiful Rita Hayworth as the Classic Fem Fatale. I don't know if it is something I'll watch again soon.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsHumphrey BogartLauren BacallJohn RidgelyPrivate detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a wealthy family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail and what might be love.A great classic detective noir. This is a hard one to keep up with the first few times I watched it with all it's interweaving intrigues but it's nevertheless a great picture.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJohn GarfieldPatricia NealPhyllis ThaxterAn otherwise moral captain of a charter boat becomes financially strapped and is drawn into illegal activities in order to keep up payments on his boat.This is good movie about a poor charter boat captain just trying to make a living for his family and make ends meet and the trouble he gets himself into. A very good, overlooked film if you can get your hands on it. Based on a Hemingway book.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsKevin SpaceyRussell CroweGuy PearceAs corruption grows in 1950s Los Angeles, three policemen - one strait-laced, one brutal, and one sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.Wow and I only put off watching this for about 20 years! This is an outstanding crime noir about the LA police department. A stellar all star cast and good plot. No wonder this movie was so well regarded. This is worth watching multiple times too. NOTE: I would definitely watch "This Gun for Hire" before watching this. You'd pick up on who Kim Basinger is so suppose to be a look alike for.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsHumphrey BogartLauren BacallWalter BrennanDuring World War II, American expatriate Harry Morgan helps transport a French Resistance leader and his beautiful wife to Martinique while romancing a sensuous lounge singer.Another Bogey and Bacall flick. Similar to Casablanca but with Bacall. Definitely worth a watch.
- DirectorJohn FarrowStarsRobert MitchumClaude RainsFaith DomergueA young doctor falls in love with a disturbed young woman, becomes involved in her husband's death, and must flee with her to the Mexican border.This movie has a great Fem Fatal which absolutely destroys an innocents man life in a single night. There is a absolutely incredible scene with Robert Mitchum and Claude Raines that makes this movie worth watching, if only to see that one scene.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsBurt LancasterAva GardnerEdmond O'BrienHit men kill an unresisting victim, and investigator Reardon uncovers his past involvement with beautiful, deadly Kitty Collins.I don't know why this movie isn't more popular. Maybe the title? It's pretty good and is one of the better noir films. One of the earlier films done in flashbacks which was really well done. It holds up to repeated viewing well too.
- DirectorLee TamahoriStarsNick NolteMelanie GriffithJennifer ConnellyIn 1950's Los Angeles, a special crime squad of the LAPD investigates the murder of a young woman.Another one I put off for a long time. I really like this movie. It's set in the 50's but has all the pulp noir detective of the great classics. The cast is outstanding and it has good action and a few twists.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsLaraine DayRobert MitchumBrian AherneJust before a wedding, the bridegroom hears a complex tale painting his lovely bride as devilish and unbalanced.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsHarrison FordKaren AllenPaul FreemanIn 1936, archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can obtain its awesome powers.One of the best two-fisted action pulp movies ever. Honorable mention to the next two Indiana Jones movies however the Crystal Skull was painful for me to watch. Perhaps I had begun to expect too much from the franchise.
- DirectorStephen SommersStarsBrendan FraserRachel WeiszJohn HannahAt an archaeological dig in the ancient city of Hamunaptra, an American serving in the French Foreign Legion accidentally awakens a mummy who begins to wreak havoc as he searches for the reincarnation of his long-lost love.I must say, I enjoy this film. The first is the best of these films which begin to get more and more "off base". They do continue to feed the modern pulp genre though.
- DirectorSeth HoltMichael CarrerasStarsAndrew KeirValerie LeonJames VilliersAn archaeological expedition brings back to London the coffin of an Egyptian queen known for her magical powers. Her spirit returns in the form of a young girl and strange things start to happen.I neat British Horror film which contains all the pulp weird tale elements. An enjoyable movie.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingChristopher LeeYvonne FurneauxIn 1895, British archaeologists find and open the tomb of Egyptian Princess Ananka with nefarious consequences.This is a favorite of mine. I love the old British Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee films by Terrence Fisher. It's a pretty good little pulp flick.
- DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsRichard ChamberlainSharon StoneHerbert LomFortune hunter Allan Quatermain teams up with a resourceful woman to help her find her missing father lost in the wilds of 1900s Africa while being pursued by hostile tribes and a rival German explorer.Everyone considered this kinda an Indiana Jones knock-off but in fact it was a remake of an earlier pulp flavored movie and book by the same name. This is also an early Sharon Stone film. I am kinda fond of it for it's pulp flair. The later 2004 version with Swayze is less pulp and more dramatic and character driven. They're both very different and each have their own appeal.
- DirectorRaoul WalshStarsJames CagneyHumphrey BogartPriscilla LaneThree men attempt to make a living in Prohibitionist America after returning home from fighting together in World War I.Another great pulp crime noir film. This features James Cagney and Bogart. The great thing about many Noir films is nobody is really a good guy. Their all shades of grey. This film holds up to repeated viewing.
- DirectorGerardo de LeonEddie RomeroStarsJohn AshleyKent TaylorMario MontenegroNatives of a tropical island have to contend with man-eating plants and animals, mutations caused by radioactivity. Virgin sacrifices become the norm. A small group of interlopers become caught up in the mayhem.This is a pulp adventure horror flick filmed in the late 60's in the Philippines. What is considered an exploitation flick. This is an upper tier B-Movie. There are some B-Movies you'll only watch once and would never consider viewing again. This is one you'd watch and end of watching again 10 years later. It's fun and entertaining. My favorite part of the movie is the ships crew. Worth watching for a weird menace tale. This movie started a string of multiple movies called the Blood Island films. They are all terrible, this is the best of them. Worth a view.
- DirectorJoseph LoseyStarsStanley BakerSam WanamakerGrégoire AslanIn the UK, after pulling a racetrack robbery, repeat offender Johnny Bannion hides the loot in a farmer's field but the police and the local mob come looking for Johnny and the money.A good crime noir film about a jewelry heist. It's dark and enjoyable to see the cast of characters. The lingo is great as are the performances. This holds up to repeated viewing and has the treat of featuring Marolyn Monroe in her prime something you have to see to appreciate.