Posters for today’s line-up at NOIR CITY Chicago

NOIR CITY Chicago

Music Box Theatre

Sunday, Aug 27th

All films introduced by Eddie Muller

2:30PM    HIGH SIERRA

A FILM BY: Raoul Walsh

WRITTEN BY: John Huston, W. R. Burnett (novel)

STARRING: Ida Lupino, Humphrey Bogart, Alan Curtis

Humphrey Bogart is memorable in his first romantic antihero role as outlaw Roy “Mad Dog” Earle, plotting one last heist for unexpectedly sentimental reasons. Ida Lupino is the hard-as-nails dame who loves him; Joan Leslie is the young girl who could redeem him. Walsh directs this archetypal set-up with his patented cinematic brio, bristling with dynamic action. Remade multiple times, but this is the timeless classic.

Technical Information

Production Year: 1941

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

Run Time: 100 mins

Format: 35mm

4:45PM     PLUNDER ROAD

A FILM BY: Hubert Cornfield

WRITTEN BY: Steven Ritch

STARRING: Gene Raymond, Jeanne Cooper, Wayne Morris

From the awesome rain-drenched opening as a crew of hooded robbers heist a huge haul of gold bullion from a train, this film never stops moving—smashing down the interstate as gang-leader Gene Raymondand his truck-driving cohorts (Wayne Morris, Elisha Cook Jr. and screenwriter Steven Ritch) try to get away with the score of a lifetime. Breathless, pulse-pounding excitement, a low-budget cross between THE WAGES OF FEAR and Melville’s LE DEUXIEME SOUFFLE.

Technical Information

Production Year: 1957

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

Run Time: 72 mins

Format: 35mm

6:30PM     THUNDERBOLT & LIGHTFOOT

A FILM BY: Michael Cimino

WRITTEN BY: Michael Cimino

STARRING: Clint Eastwood, Jeff Bridges, George Kennedy

Before the accolades for THE DEER HUNTER and the controversy of HEAVEN'S GATE, Michael Cimino made one of Hollywood’s most offbeat heist films. Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges play the title characters, a war veteran turned professional thief and a footloose drifter who fall in together. But Thunderbolt’s old running buddies (George Kennedy and Geoffrey Lewis) are hot on the trail of the loot from their last job, and it may require a new robbery to get rid of them. From its wildly memorable opening to its gut-wrenching climax, the film takes viewers on a unique ride.

Technical Information

Production Year: 1974

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

9:00PM    

BLUE COLLAR

A FILM BY: Paul Schrader

WRITTEN BY: Paul Schrader, Leonard Schrader

STARRING: Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel, Yaphet Kotto

Paul Schrader’s directorial debut is one of the most politically savvy films of the 1970s—if not ever. Three Detroit autoworkers—Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel, and Yaphet Kotto—are so fed up with their dead-end jobs they decide to rip off the safe inside their own union office. When the robbery doesn’t go quite as planned, solidarity is only the first casualty. What starts as a buddy-comedy veers into the heart of American darkness. Pryor is, of course, funny as hell—but he also gives his finest dramatic performance in this seething, angry film that’s as timely and relevant as ever.

Technical Information

Production Year: 1978

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English