Category Archives: ET

The man who cheated himself

Lee J.Cobb is etched in our minds as the Juror #3 from Sidney Lumet’s ’12 Angry Men’. He is immortalized as a highly prejudiced and cynical individual, who wouldn’t give up his version of truth till the last minute. ‘The man who cheated himself’ is probably like an origins story, where all of his cynicism began 🙂
As a loving brother and a man desperate to win his lady love, and torn between the affections, he gives a brilliant performance. From the first shot, to the last, with his wry comment of ‘she got under my skin’, he holds your attention. Ably supported by other cast and crew, the film is a must watch for all the fans of noir genre.

Here’s an interesting tidbit about the producer Jack M. Warner

In 1958 Warner was dismissed from his position at Warner Bros. by his father. The two had become estranged after the elder Warner divorced his first wife Irma, Jack’s mother, in 1935. Jack was never reconciled to his father’s new wife Ann Page. The son learned only through announcements in the film industry’s trade press that he had lost his job. He later wrote a novel Bijou Dream based loosely on his relationship with his father, who died in 1978.

Source: Wikipedia

Too late for tears

By United Artists – Film Noir of the Week, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3417089

Through a fluke circumstance a ruthless woman stumbles across a suitcase filled with $60,000, and she is determined to hold onto it even it if means murder.

IMDB.com

The movie is engaging throughout, with enough twists and turns. What’s interesting is the take-off the film in the opening scene itself, where in we get a sense of the lead character’s motivation and the plot’s movement. Very rarely do we see this kind of speed in story telling.

Related links

Mubi.com
Body Heat