The MoFo Top 100 Film Noir Countdown

The Breaking Point was on my ballot (#11) and Detective Story should've been, just checked my inbox but it's not on there. Anyway, love em both and I think both deserve higher placement than 57 and 58, obviously.
SEEN 17/44
BALLOT 3/25

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About: A hard nosed detective (Kirk Douglas) who's been suspended in the past for police brutality, finds himself on a case so disturbing that his negative emotions spill over to his wife (Elanor Parker). During a one day period at the police precinct room we see a wide range of assorted characters and criminals, each with their own stories.

Review: Kirk Douglas was known for intense acting such as in 1951's Ace in the Hole. Here in Detective Story he's even more intense and more forceful. Thanks to a well crafted backstory, his character has real motivation to act in such a zealot manner. IMO this is one of Kirk Douglas' best performances...and he gave a lot of great performances!

Elanor Parker who's first big role was in Caged (1950), gives a more well rounded performance as the wife of a out of control cop, who's dealing with a marriage that is falling apart. She's able to get her acting chops into the part and as much as I liked her in Caged, I like her performance here better.

The story construction of Detective Story is unique for a film noir and works well. We get the main story of Kirk Douglas as he pursues a suspect and is willing to do anything to get his man. That might be enough for most films but here, every action he takes, causes a secondary story-line to unfold with his wife. That's cleaver. Finally there's even a third subplot running through the story about a young teen accused of a petty crime. All of this is wrapped up in a birds eye view of the inner workings of a police precinct.

Liked this movie...a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/...ive_story.html

Seen Detective Story once and thought highly enough of it to put it on my ballot.

Don't think I've seen Breaking Point.

7. Body and Soul (#94)
13. Detective Story (#57)
15. Force of Evil (#85)
20. The Blue Dahlia (#74)
24. Drunken Angel (#70)
25. The Letter (#72)

1 for 2 for these latest ones.

I've never even heard of The Breaking Point but Detective Story is as self-contained a noir as there ever was. Crime and punishment with all sorts of little dramas playing out on the periphery. Great cast. Lee Grant and William Bendix. And I thought Joseph Wiseman did a great job as a ticking time bomb. Just a good solid movie all around.

20 of 44 seen.

Haven't seen either film again. I'm feeling like a broken record right now.

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Neither of these is on my list nor have I seen them.
But as everyone else has said, they look really good.
I'm definitely going to check them out.

Finally on the board with Act of Violence. I do hope to get some more hits further up the ballot as a result of participating in the HOF's.

I've heard of both films but for some insanse reason I didn't watch either in time for the Countdown. They are definitely on my Watch List!

My ballot is looking a bit better after a long stretch:
#14 Kiss of Death List Proper #59
#15 He Walked By Night List Proper #88
#16 The Naked City List Proper #60
#22 This Gun For Hire List Proper #78

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"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

no votes. detective story is good, though.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

The Naked City (1948) - #20 on my ballot. I'll be honest, it's been a while since I've seen it and my memory is beyond spotty on it (true of many a movie I have watched at this point). But it stuck out in my memory for its procedural aspect and I recall some neo-realism creeps in via all of the different people they investigate.

I have not seen any of the other ones.

*Leaves hole. Doesn't see shadow. And by shadow, I mean any of the 44 movies listed*


0 for 44



Looks like we have an early spring. 😅

There's another one :

#58 The Breaking Point - The more I think about The Breaking Point the more I like it. There's so much to it, and it speaks to us in economic terms, moral terms and psychological terms. In many films that explore these issues men are forced to commit crimes just so their business can survive, they can afford to feed their family and they can pay their rent. One bad situation after another, no fault of protagonist Harry Morgan (John Garfield), occur, which have him smuggling illegal immigrants and helping bank robbers escape with loot. In the meantime he's being seduced by another woman, because why not add that to the plethora of issues Harry is going through. He's just a family man who wants a decent life for his wife and daughter(s), and this film often segues to and from a kind of typical noir tone depending on where Harry is - closer to home, and this is closer to a normal film. Once on the dock, in his boat, or in a seedy nightclub, everything gets much darker - and the dangers are much closer to hand. There seems to be so much squeezed into The Breaking Point, and Michael Curtiz guides it all with panache. I had it at #23.

I've never heard of #60, #59 nor #57. Much, anyway.

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Seen : 7/44
I'd never even heard of : 34/44
Movies that had been on my radar, but I haven't seen yet : 3/44
Films from my list : 3

#58 - My #23 - The Breaking Point (1950)
#61 - My #21 - Act of Violence (1949)
#67 - My #18 - The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

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The Naked City's a good movie and I did consider it for my ballot. Enjoyed Detective Story and also Panic in the Streets which I recently checked out. Need to see Kiss of Death and The Breaking Point.

Seen: 24/44

You say this like it's a bad thing. I've also got a lot of 'not seens' on this list, which to me is ideal. I'd probably be at my happiest if I ever came across a best of list where I'd seen none of them. It means there is this whole undiscovered ecosystem of movies I have yet to enter, when I'd been stupidly under the impression that I'd already seen everything


How exciting!

I'm always glad to see you post because I'm hoping with each reveal you'll score 1! You seem to have a real positive spirit, I like that...So here comes two more reveals, fingers crossed for you!

#56 Niagara (1953)

Director: Henry Hathaway
Production: Twentieth Century Fox
Cast: Marilyn Monroe, Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters
65 Points, 7 Lists

#55 They Live by Night (1948)

Director: Nicholas Ray
Production: RKO
Cast: Cathy O'Donnell, Farley Granger, Howard Da Silva
65 Points, 9 Lists

I haven't seen Niagara.

They Live By Night is very good, but it didn't make my ballot. A different Nicholas Ray film did.