Original list developed by Herb Kane from a Home Theatre Forum Thread  

UPDATED on October 12, 2008

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FILM NOIR....

(listing and DVD review/comparison links)

Perhaps the beauty of 'Film-Noir' is its lack of limitation, and its problematic nature of strict classification. Translated literally as "Black Cinema (or film)" and so defined by French critics post WW2 to describe the increasing trend of American crime dramas shot with murky, shadowy grays often with anti-hero protagonists. Plot devices of amnesia, recent ex-convict characters, flash-back (remembered) narratives, femme fatales, shared guilt, pathos, classic nemesis and occasional obtuse camera angles are only a few of the recognizable stylistic norms building the distinguishing keys of Film-Noir. Most often plots were derived from the hard-boiled pulp fiction novels of the era. More of a theme or mood than a 'genre' - the Noir appeal spawned many contemporary imitations - 'Tech-Noir (Blade Runner), Neo-Noir (Taxi Driver) etc. This list is only what we observe to be 'Classic Noir'.

Gary Tooze

It’s been more than five years since Herb Kane posted this list at Home Theater Forum and there have been a lot of releases and slowly the list gets filled up by companies in the U.S. and outside. Since film noir was defined late in the 1950’s, there are many opinions of what films should be considered as part of the genre. This list includes many crime dramas, mysteries, thrillers that makes people wonder what they are doing on this list. We tried to include the complete noir filmography of the period - mid-1930’s to mid-1960’s. To highlight films considered quintessential film noir, look for picture next to film's titles. The quintessential list was put together combining the 250 quintessential noirs listed by They Shoot Dark Pictures website and titles that have been listed as film noir in at least 8 of 10 sources in a film noir list at Sidney's Film Noir Page bringing the total to 281 films) .

Gregory Meshman

NOTE: Current DVD Releases are BOLD and DVD Reviews/Comparisons are hyperlinked!

Click 1st letter of film title:

  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

A
Abandoned (1949) - Universal
Accomplice (1946) - PRC
Accused of Murder (1954) - Republic (Color)

Accused, The (1948) - Republic (1948) - Universal
Ace in the Hole (1951) - DVD Criterion (Paramount) US
...aka The Big Carnival
Across the Bridge (1957) - DVD Shanachie/Koch US
Across the Pacific (1942) - DVD Warner Brothers US
...aka Aloha Means Goodbye
Act of Murder, An (1948) - Universal
...aka Live Today for Tomorrow
Act of Violence (1948) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Adventures of Jane, The (1949) - ? DVD R2 UK
Affair in Havana (1957) - Allied Artists
Affair in Reno (1957) - Republic
Affair in Trinidad (1952) - DVD R2 UK  SONY US
Al Capone (1959) - Warner Brothers
Alias John Preston (1955) - DVD-R Sinister Cinema US
Alias Nick Beal (1949) - Paramount
Alimony (1949) - DVD Alpha (Eagle Lions) US
All My Sons (1948) - Universal
All Night Long (1961) - Rank Organization DVD R2 UK
All the King's Men (1949) - DVD Columbia US
Amazing Mr. X, The (1948) - DVD Image US
...aka The Spiritualist
Among the Living (1941) - Paramount
Angel Face (1952) - DVD Warner Brothers (RKO) US
Angela (1955) - 20th Century Fox
Angels Flight (1965) - Crown
Angels Over Broadway (1940) - DVD Columbia OOP US
Angels with Dirty Faces - (1938) DVD Warner Brothers US
Another Man's Poison (1952) - DVD Image OOP US
Any Number Can Win (1963) - DVD Image OOP US
...aka Mélodie en sous-sol
Apology for Murder (1945) - DVD 'Ann Savage Boxset' US
Appointment in Honduras (1953) - DVD VCI US
Appointment with a Shadow (1957) - Universal
Appointment with Crime (1946) - British National Films
Appointment with Danger Paramount
Arch of Triumph (1948) -DVD R2 Ger/Sp **DVD LionsGate**  US
Argyle Secrets, The (1948) - Eronal Productions
Armored Car Robbery Warner Brothers DVD R2 Sp Fr
Arnelo Affair, The (1947) - MGM
Arson Inc. (1949) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
Asphalt Jungle, The (1950) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Assassin for Hire (1951) - ?
Assigned to Danger (1948) - Eagle Lion
Autumn Leaves (1956) - Columbia DVD R2 Sp
Aventurera (1950) - DVD Cinemateca/Facets US

B
Baby Face (1933) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Baby Face Nelson (1957) - UA
Backfire (1950) - Warner Brothers
Backlash (1947) - 20th Century Fox
Bad and the Beautiful, The (1952) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Bad Blonde (1953) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
...aka The Flanagan Boy
Bait (1954) - Columbia
Band of Outsiders (1964) - DVD Criterion US
...aka Bande à part
Bang, You're Dead (1954) - British Lion
...aka A Game of Death
...aka Game of Danger
Bank Raiders, The (1958) - Rank
Barrier of the Law (1954) - Produzioni Rossano Brazzi
...aka La Barriera della legge
Basketball Fix, The (1951) - DVD Alpha US
Beast of the City, The (1932) - MGM
Beast with Five Fingers, The (1946) - Warner Brothers
Beat Generation (1959) - MGM
Beat the Devil (1953) - DVD Platinum US / DVD Alpha US
Beautiful Stranger (1954) - UA
...aka Twist of Fate
Bedelia (1946) - Eagle Lion
Bedevilled (1955) - MGM (Color)
Bedlam (1946) - DVD Warner Brothers (RKO) US
Before I Wake (1956) - Roxbury
...aka Shadow of Fear
Behind Green Lights (1946) - DVD-R Reel (20th Century Fox) US
Behind Locked Doors (1948) - DVD Kino US
Behind the High Wall (1956) - Universal
Below the Deadline (1946) - Monogram
Berlin Express (1948) - RKO DVD R2 Fr / Sp
Bête humaine, Le (1938) - DVD Criterion US
...aka The Human Beast
Betrayal from the East (1945) - RKO
Between Midnight and Dawn (1950) - Columbia
Beware, My Lovely (1952) - RKO
Bewitched (1945) - MGM
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956) - RKO
Beyond the Forest (1949) - Warner Brothers
Beyond This Place (1959) - Allied Artists
...aka Web of Evidence
Big Bluff, The (1955) - DVD St Clair Vision US
Big Boodle, The (1957) - UA
Big Caper, The (1957) - UA
Big Chance, The (1957) - Rank
Big Chase, The (1954) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
Big Clock, The (1948) - DVD Universal US
Big Combo, The (1955) - DVD Image OOP US / Geneon US
Big Deadly Game (1954) - see Deadly Game US
Big Fix, The (1947) - PRC
Big Frame, The (1952) - Royal-RKO
...aka The Lost Hours
Big Heat, The (1953) - DVD Columbia US
Big House, U.S.A. (1955) - UA
Big Knife, The (1955) - DVD MGM US
Big Night, The (1951) - UA **DVD Optimum**  UK
Big Operator, The (1959) - MGM
...aka Anatomy of the Syndicate
Big Punch, The (1948) - Warner Brothers
Big Shot, The (1942) - Warner Brothers
Big Sleep, The (1946) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Big Steal, The (1949) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Big Tip Off, The (1955) - Allied Artists
Big Town (1947) - Paramount
...aka Guilty Assignment
Bigamist, The (1953) - DVD Alpha (The Filmakers Inc) US
Bitter Harvest (1963) - Rank DVD R2 OOP UK
Black Angel (1946) - DVD Universal US
Black Book, The (1949) - DVD Alpha (Eagle Lion) US
...aka Reign of Terror
Black Fury (1935) - Warner Brothers
Black Glove, The (1954) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
...aka Face the Music
Black Hand (1950) - MGM
Black Legion (1937) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Black Magic (1949) - UA
Black Memory (1947) - Ambassador
Black Orchid (1953) - General Film Distributors
Black 13 (1953) - 20th Century Fox
Black Tuesday (1954) - UA
Black Widow, The (1951) - Hammer
Black Widow (1954) - DVD 20th Century Fox US (Color)
Blackmail (1947) - Republic
Blackmailed (1951) - ?
Blackout (1950) - Eros Films DVD R2 UK
Blackout (1954) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
...aka Murder by Proxy
Blanche Fury (1947) - Rank DVD R2 UK (Color)
Blast of Silence (1961) - DVD Criterion (Universal) US
Blind Alley (1939) - Columbia
Blind Alibi (1938) - RKO
Blind Corner (1963) - Universal **DVD R2 UK **
...aka Man in the Dark
Blind Date (1958) - Paramount
...aka Chance Meeting
Blind Spot (1947) - Columbia
Blonde Alibi (1946) - Universal
Blonde Bandit, The (1950) - Republic
Blonde Ice (1948) - DVD VCI US
Blue Dahlia, The (1946) - Universal DVD R2 UK
Blue Gardenia, The (1953) - DVD Image US
Blue Lamp, The (1950) - Eagle Lion DVD R2 UK
Blue Parrot, The (1953) - Monarch
Bluebeard (1944) - DVD All Day Ent. US
Blueprint for Murder, A (1953) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Blues in the Night (1941) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Bob le Flambeur (1955) - DVD Criterion US
Body and Soul (1947) - DVD Republic US
Body Snatcher, The (1945) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Bodyguard (1948) - RKO DVD R2 Sp
Bond of Fear (1956) - Eros Films DVD R2 UK
Bonnie Parker Story, The (1958) - Albany Prod. DVD R2 UK
Boomerang! (1947) - DVD 20th Century Fox US CAN
Border Incident (1949) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Borderline (1950) - DVD Roan US
Bordertown (1935) - Warner Brothers
Born to Be Bad (1950) - RKO DVD R2 Sp Fr
Born to Kill (1947) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Boss, The (1956) - UA
Boys in Brown (1949) - Granada DVD R4 Australia
Brain Machine, The (1955) - RKO
Brainstorm (1965) - Warner Brothers
Brasher Doubloon, The (1947) - 20th Century Fox
Brass Monkey (1948) - Televista DVD US
Breakdown (1952) - DVD Alpha OOP US
Breaking Point, The (1950) - Warner Brothers
Breaking Point, The (1961) - Falcon Pictures
...aka The Great Armored Car Swindle
Bribe, The (1949) - MGM
Brighton Rock (1947) - ABPC Ltd. DVD R2 UK
Brighton Strangler, The (1945) - RKO
Brother Orchid (1940) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Brothers, The (1947) - Universal
Brothers Rico, The (1957) - Columbia Pictures
Brute Force (1947) - DVD Criterion US
Bullet for Joey, A (1955) - DVD MGM (UA) US
Bullets Or Ballots (1936) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Bullets for O'Hara (1941) - Warner Brothers
Bunco Squad (1950) - RKO
Burglar, The (1957) - Columbia
Bury Me Dead (1947) - DVD VCI US

C
C-Man (1949) - DVD Alpha (Laurel Films Inc.) US
Cage of Gold (1950) - Rank Organization
Caged (1950) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Cairo (1963) - MGM
Calculated Risk (1963) - ?
Calcutta (1947) - Paramount
Call Northside 777 (1948) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Calling Bulldog Drummond (1951) - MGM
Calling Homicide (1956) - Allied Artists
Candles at Nine (1944) - DVD-R Sinister Cinema US
Canon City (1948) - Eagle Lion
Cape Fear (1962) - DVD Universal US
Captive City, The (1952) - UA
Capture, The (1950) - DVD Alpha (RKO) US
Cargo to Capetown (1950) - Columbia
Caribbean Mystery (1945) - 20th Century Fox
Carnival (1946) - Granada
Carnival of Crime (1962) - DVD BCI Eclipse US
...aka Socia de alcoba
Carnival Story (1954) - DVD Roan US / DVD Alpha US
Case of the Baby-Sitter (1947) - DVD VCI US
Case of the Frightened Lady (1940) - British Lion DVD R2 UK
...aka The Frightened Lady
Cast a Dark Shadow (1957) - Madacy (Eros) US
Cat Girl (1957) - AIP
Cat People (1942) - DVD Warner Brothers (RKO) US
Caught (1949) - MGM DVD R2 Fr / **DVD R2 UK
Cause for Alarm! (1951) - DVD Roan US / DVD Alpha US
Chain of Evidence (1957) - Allied Artists
Challenge, The (1960) - DVD Koch US
... It Takes a Thief
Champ for a Day (1953) - Republic
Champion (1949) - DVD Republic US
Chance Meeting - see Blind Date
Chase, The (1946) - DVD VCI US
Chase a Crooked Shadow (1957) - Warner DVD R2 UK
Chicago Calling (1952) - UA
Chicago Confidential (1957) - UA
Chicago Deadline (1949) - Paramount
Chicago Syndicate (1955) - Columbia
Chinatown at Midnight (1949) - Columbia
Christ in Concrete (1949) - DVD All Day Ent. US
...aka Give Us This Day
Circle of Danger (1951)- DVD-R Sinister Cinema US
Christmas Holiday (1944) - Universal DVD R2 UK
Circumstantial Evidence (1936) - DVD Alpha US
Circumstantial Evidence (1945) - 20th Century Fox
City Across the River (1949) - Universal
City for Conquest (1940) - DVD Warner Brothers US
City of Chance (1940) - 20th Century Fox
City of Fear (1959) - Columbia
City of Missing Girls (1941) - DVD Alpha US
City of Shadows (1955) - Republic
City Streets (1931) - Paramount
City That Never Sleeps (1953) - Republic
Clash by Night (1952) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Classe tous risques (1960) - DVD Criterion US
...aka The Big Risk
Clay Pigeon, The (1949) - RKO DVD R2 Sp
Cloak and Dagger (1946) - DVD Artisan US
Cloudburst (1951) - UA
Clouded Yellow (1951) - Columbia DVD R2 Sp
Code of Scotland Yard (1947) - British Lion DVD R2 UK
...aka The Shop at Sly Corner
Code Two (1953) - MGM
Come Back, Little Sheba (1952) - DVD Paramount US
Come Fill the Cup (1951) - Warner Brothers
Come On, The (1956) - Allied Artists
Commare secca, La (1962) - DVD Criterion US
...aka The Grim Reaper
Company She Keeps, The (1951) - RKO
Compulsion (1959) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Confession, The (1955) - Allied Artists
...aka The Deadliest Sin
Confidential Agent (1943) - Warner Brothers
Conflict (1945) - Warner Brothers
Contraband (1940) - DVD Kino US
Convicted (1950) - Columbia
Cop Hater (1958) - UA
Corbeau, Le (1943) - DVD Criterion US
...aka The Raven
Cornered (1945) - Warner Brothers DVD R2 It / Sp
Corridor of Mirrors (1948) - Universal
Cosh Boy (1952) - Lippert Pictures
...aka The Slasher
Cottage to Let (1941) - Eros Films DVD R2 UK
...aka Bombsight Stolen
Counterblast (1948) - DVD Mill Creek US
...aka Devil’s Plot
Cover Girl Killer (1959) - Eros
Cover-Up (1949) - DVD Geneon (UA) US
Crack-Up (1946) - RKO
Crashout (1955) - Republic
Crime Against Joe (1956) - UA
Crime in the Streets (1956) - Allied Artists
Crime, Inc. (1945) - DVD Alpha (PRC) US
Crime of Passion (1957) - DVD MGM US
Crime School (1938) - Warner Brothers
Crime Wave (1954) - DVD Warner Brothers US
...aka The City Is Dark
Crime Without Passion (1934) - Paramount
Crimes at the Dark House (1940) - DVD Alpha US VCI US
Criminal, The (1960) - DVD Anchor Bay US
Criminal Court (1946) - RKO DVD R2 Sp
Crimson Kimono, The (1957) - Columbia
Crisis (1950) - MGM
Criss Cross (1949) - DVD Universal US
Crooked Circle (1957) - Republic
Crooked Way, The (1949) - DVD Geneon (UA) US
Crooked Web, The (1955) - Columbia
Crossfire (1947) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Crossroads (1942) - MGM
Crossroads to Crime (1960) - ?
Crow Hollow (1952) - Allied Artists
Cruel Tower, The (1956) - Allied Artists
Cry Danger (1951) - RKO
Cry in the Night, A (1956) - Warner Brothers
Cry of the City (1948) - 20th Century Fox DVD R2 UK
...aka The Chair for Martin Rome
Cry of the Hunted (1953) - MGM
Cry Terror! (1958) - Warner Brothers
Cry Tough (1959) - UA
Cry Vengeance (1954) - Allied Artists
Cry Wolf (1947) - Warner Brothers
Customs Agent (1950) - Columbia

D
D.O.A. (1950) - DVD Image US / DVD Roan US
Daisy Kenyon (1947) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Damned Don't Cry, The (1950) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Dancing with Crime (1947) - Paramount
Danger Signal (1945) - Warner Brothers
Danger Zone (1951) - DVD Alpha (Lippert) US
Dangerous Crossing (1953) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Dangerous Female (1931) - DVD Warner Brothers US
...aka The Maltese Falcon (original version)
Dangerous Intruder (1945) - PRC
Dangerous Passage (1944) - DVD Alpha US
Dangerous Profession, A (1949) - RKO
...aka The Bail Bonds Story
Dante's Inferno (1935) - 20th Century Fox
Dark City (1950) - Paramount
Dark Corner, The (1946) - DVD 20th Century Fox US
Dark Man, The (1951) - VCI
Dark Mirror, The (1946) - Universal DVD R2 Fr / Sp
Dark Mountain (1944) - DVD Alpha US
Dark Odyssey (1961) - DVD Image (OOP) US
Dark Passage (1947) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Dark Past, The (1948) - Columbia DVD R2 Sp
Dark Secret (1949) - ?
Dark Tower, The (1943) - Warner Brothers
Dark Waters (1944) - DVD Image US
Date with Death (1959) - MCP
Date with the Falcon, A (1941) - RKO DVD R2 Finland
Daughter of Darkness (1948) - Paramount DVD R2 UK
David Harding, Counterspy (1950) - DVD Alpha US
Daybreak (1939) - see Jour se lève, Le US / UK
Daybreak (1947) - Universal
Dead End (1937) - DVD MGM US
Dead of Night (1945) - DVD Anchor Bay (Eagle Lion) US
Dead Reckoning (1947) - DVD Columbia US
Deadline at Dawn (1946) - RKO
Deadline USA (1952) - 20th Century Fox
Deadly Game (1954) - DVD VCI (Lippert) US
...aka Big Deadly Game
...aka Third Party Risk
Deadly Nightshade (1953) - General Film Distributors
Dear Murderer (1947) - Universal DVD R4 Australia OOP
Death in Small Doses (1957) - Allied Artists
Death of a Cyclist (1955) - DVD Criterion US
...aka Muerte de un ciclista
Death of a Salesman (1951) - Columbia
Death of a Scoundrel (1956) - RKO
Deception (1946) - DVD Warner Brothers US
Decoy (1946) - DVD Warner Brothers (Monogram) US
Deep Valley (1947) - Warner Brothers
Defiant Ones, The (1958) - DVD MGM US
Delayed Action (1954) - General Film Distributors
Delo N. 306 (1956) - Mosfilm DVD R0 Ru (No English)
...aka Case No 306
Delo Rumyantseva (1955) - Lenfilm DVD R0 Ru (No English)
...aka The Case of Sergei Rumyantsev
Depraved, The (1957) - UA
Desert Fury (1947) - Paramount DVD R0 Australia / R2