Everyone seems to know what film noir is, but scholars and critics cannot agree on any definition. Some go so far as to insist that there is no such thing. What is Film Noir? claims that this confusion arises from the fact that film noir is both a genre and a period style, and as such is unique in the history of Hollywood. The genre, now known as "neo-noir," continues into the present, while the period, which began in the early 1940s, had expired...

"This critical survey examines the relationships between horror and film noir. Included are the films based on popular horror/mystery radio shows, the works of Val Lewton, and Alfred Hitchcock's stories. Also discussed are gothic and costume horror noirs; the noir of recent films; and film noir aspects of the Hannibal Lecter movies and other serial-killer thrillers"--Provided by publisher.

Despite a career spanning over forty years, filmmaker Alan Rudolph has flown largely under the radar of independent film scholars and enthusiasts, often remembered as Robert Altman's prote̹ge̹. Through a reading of his 1985 film Trouble in Mind, Caryl Flinn demonstrates that Rudolph is long overdue for critical re-evaluation. Exploring Trouble in Mind's influence on indie filmmaking, Rudolph's dream-like style, and the external political influences...

Examines the social, political, and popular culture of America in the period between VJ Day and the start of the Korean War, discussing the country's anxieties and insecurities at the onset of the Red Scare and the Cold War.

While awaiting execution in prison, Stan 'Tookie' Williams, founder of the L.A. Crips street gang, denounces the lifestyle that landed him behind bars. Determined to stop violence, he begins writing anti-gang books for children, earning him critical acclaim - and four Nobel Peace Prize nominations.

Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction has been hailed by critics and audiences worldwide as a film that redefined cinema. Tarantino delivers an unforgettable cast of characters, including a pair of low-rent hitmen, their boss's sexy wife, and a desperate prizefighter, in a wildly entertaining and exhilarating blend of crime-thriller-drama-comedy that is completely original and entirely unforgettable.

A dark story about a Nazi who has escaped to a small town in America and established a new identity as a prep school teacher. He begins to crack as he is stalked by a famous Nazi hunter. The war crimes detective is determined to expose him, even if it means endangering the Nazi's innocent wife.

"A mix of interrelated stories: a Mexican policeman finds himself and his partner caught in an often deadly web of corruption; a pair of DEA agents work undercover in a sordid and dangerous part of San Diego; a wealthy drug baron living in upscale, suburban America is arrested and learns how quickly his unknowing and pampered wife takes over his business; and the U.S. President's new drug czar must deal with his increasingly drug-addicted teenage...

Death Wish: A family man becomes a vigilante killer when his family is violently attacked by robbers. Die Hard 2 : Die Harder: New York detective John McClane has just arrived in Los Angeles to spend Christmas with his family. As he waits for his estranged wife's office Christmas party to break up, German terrorists occupy the building, and John wages a one-man war to stop them. The Fifth Element: Two hundred and fifty years in the future, life...

Walter Neff is a smooth talking insurance salesman who meets the very attractive Phyllis Dietrichson when he calls to renew her husband's automobile policy. The couple are immediately drawn to each other and have an affair. They scheme together to murder Phyllis' husband for life insurance money with a double indemnity clause. Unfortunately, all does not go as planned. Barton Keyes is the wily insurance investigator who must sort things out.