Mirage (1965)

Mirage (1965) is an amnesia corporate crime nuclear threat hunted man paranoia thriller film noir, usually called a neo noir by the time we have come to examine the 1960s and its use of the style.

Yes, even though Mirage (1965) was made by Edward Dmytryk in the 1960s it rolls with the full flavour of all iconic and classic film noir, from the paranoiac lost in the city, to the hats and hoods of a mysterious underworld. Great motor cars and docu-noir style street action, a dream-like quality, and mystery intimate quick flashback visions as Gregory Peck pieces the cliches together, with the unique addition of Walther Matthau.

The Web (1947)

The Web (1947) is a fast-moving entertaining late-early period and slightly preposterous but fun film noir filler, with Ella Raines, Edmond O'Brien, Vincent Price and William Bendix, so that is certainly a stern and select noiresque collection of faces to do the actin'.

The Web (1947) is in effect a Private Investigator film noir (P.I. Noir) although the character played by Edmond O'Brien is supposed to be a lawyer, although he functions entirely as a P.I,. being hired to be a bodyguard, carrying and using a gun, hanging with his coat collars up in alleyways, and more and more traditional and common P.I. behaviours.

He doesn't get down to none legal work, that is for sure. Other than the top and tail styling back of his maligned blue collar character, played by Tito Vuolo, with typical Vuoloism.

Riffraff (1947)

Riffraff (1947) is a  flavoursome Panamanian-set P.I. adventure oil executive nightclub mystery film noir with Pat O'Brien committed to the hard-bittten style, atheistically prosecuting the style for all the grimy practise it is worth.

The question of who came first, Dan Hammer or Mike Hammer, is one that warrants investigation. Both characters made their debut in 1947, but the more pressing question is: which of the two left a more significant mark on American pop culture?

Dan Hammer, the protagonist of the film Riffraff, is a character who, despite having several commendable qualities, has largely faded into obscurity. The film, set in Panama, features Pat O’Brien as Dan Hammer, a suave and resourceful man who knows the ins and outs of the town. 

Station West (1948)

Station West (1948) is a private eye cynical male lead morally ambiguous rugged frontier Western tale of deceit, violence and heists, and is likely a star case of the strangely elusive and debatable category that the cineastes and afficionados refer to as film noir Western, or Western film noir.

Snappy, moody and splashing a wagon load of Sedona scenery, Station West is an earnest and honest item of op class Americana from the days when film noir and westerns were the absolute staples of 

Sidney Lanfield, director, is not best known for film noir although he did direct the 1939 The Hound of the Baskervilles, a classic of more than just one canon, and comedy and romance with a little bit of musical might describe his work. The closest effort to a spy film within his range might well have been The Lady Has Plans (1942), a comedy spy thriller with Ray Milland and Paulette Goddard.

The Girl Hunters (1963)

The Girl Hunters (1963) is a barely coherent lost classic Mickey Spillane Mike Hammer curiosity P.I. outré grilled steak big city hard nosed hard boiled  hard sidewalk and newsstand pounding snogga neo film noir blandishment from the 1960s, the non-standard issue cereal-box-reciting acting style creation of the entire all American Hammer oeuvre.

Infamous as the moment when Mickey was Mike, The Girl Hunters (1963) rocks the city and ransacks the style, tuning into the weirdness of the new era of the 1960s, rooted in habits that resonate from the vaudeville years even before the Depression.

My Gun Is Quick (1957)

My Gun Is Quick (1957) is a Mike Hammer late period P.I. violent woman-thrashing chase and murder deception thuggery exploitation noir, which barely carries the name film noir staggering out of the 1950s, yet probably capturing some of the maddened spirit of the early 40s noir as it inadvertently and rather ogrishly does so.

My Gun Is Quick is a Mike Hammer adventure that defies expectations and stands strong despite numerous challenges. Originating from the mind of Mickey Spillane, the film navigates the inherent issues of its creator's style, its largely unknown cast and crew, and the general dismissiveness of its existence. However, like the curate's egg, parts of it are quite good.

I, The Jury (1953)

I, The Jury (1953) is a violent sexified-narcotic Mike Hammer exploitation shocker Private Eye thriller film noir, in fact it was the first violent Mike Hammer exploitation shocker Private Eye thriller film noir.

Mike Hammer is explosively portrayed by newcomer Biff Elliot who walks into shot and examines the dead body of his one-armed pal, some crude jokes are made and then Hammer brutally attacks a journalist, smashing him into a rack of plates. This is as solid a character introduction as was ever made.

While not a great film nor a great effort at a film, I, The Jury (1953) is one of these movies that seems responsible for some of the truer of film noir's tropes and visions.

Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947)

Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947) is a Cy Endfield Bowery Boys comedy P.I. film noir pastiche murder spiritualist romp with Teala Loring and Betty Compson.

In early 1946, director Cy Endfield began working for Monogram Pictures, a studio known for producing low-budget B-films. Monogram, established in the early 1930s, found greater success in the late 1940s under the leadership of president Steve Broidy. 

The studio’s philosophy was to keep production costs low, focusing on well-known but not top-tier actors. Broidy once candidly remarked that some audiences preferred "stale bread" over "fresh bread," reflecting the studio's aim to cater to a specific segment of the movie-going public.