Posted on 01/08/2020 11:44:35 AM PST by simpson96
"What we’re doing is a means to an end. Now you agree with the end, don’t you? Well then you must agree with the means. You can’t have one without the other."
Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964) is the story of a mentally unstable woman (played by Kim Stanley) who believes that she communicates with the dead. Her hubris demands that she control and improve her fate, so she turns to crime as a means of satisfying her goals.
Myra’s plan, which she believes is the idea of her dead child, Arthur, is worked out matter-of-factly to the finest detail: have her husband (Richard Attenborough) kidnap the daughter of a wealthy industrialist, and then hold her for ransom. At some point during the kidnapping, Myra will contact the family and reveal, in her capacity as a Medium, vital information about the child’s whereabouts. To add to this bizarre situation, she isn’t committing a crime for monetary gain. According to Myra, this will authenticate her powers as a Medium and she will become a celebrity as “Arthur wants me to be recognized for what I am.”
The house used for the film is integral to the story’s macabre mood and deserves mention. Director Byran Forbes recalled seeing a house with a turret that he thought would be perfect for the film, and he drove around until he found it. The house located at 41 Marryat Road, Wimbledon was coincidentally owned by a woman who knew Kim Stanley very well. Forbes said he chose it for its turret, and there’s a good shot of the turret (where the previous owner committed suicide) reflected in a puddle as the credits roll.
SEANCE ON A WET AFTERNOON (1964) — Opening Credits
(Excerpt) Read more at noiroftheweek.com ...
Good info
Have you checked out Classic Reel on Roku?
$3 per month no commercials and a whole lot if good Noir and war flicks.
not nior, but if you get aa chance to watch ‘the champ’ with Wallace beery- it’s a great movie- the remake was ok with john voit, but kinda sappy- just watched both this week-
When I ask for a Medium I always end up with a Large!
da...da..bing!
Got a million of’em!
I’ll be here all week in the Naugahyde Room at the New Hornswoggle Holiday Inn! Com on down!
Kim Stanley looked a little like Angie Dickinson.
I am not exactly sure what “Film Noir” is but I think of Hitchcock or Bogart.
Great movie with a brilliant score by John Barry.
There once was a spiritualist that robbed a bank and then escaped successfully and was on the run from the cops. The only really identifying feature they had to go on was she was a dwarf.
The headline of the newspaper read: “Small Medium at Large”.
Great movie with a brilliant score by John Barry.
noir is the French word for ‘dark’ or ‘black’
Film Noir tinfoil. The choice is yours.
Love it!
Can I borrow?
That’s a groaner I can use to entertain my friends or drive them away!
has to do with using creative dramatic lighting (which made scenes look a little more mysterious, or sinister looking-), and also subject matter- usually there were ‘Femme Fatales’ and a detective seeking them or protecting them-
It’s both a look and a feel that makes it film Noir-
There was an episode of “Smallville” which was done in the Film Noir style. One of the best episodes.
It would be my pleasure! :)
“Small Medium at Large”
LOL
I’m a Noir junky- love the look and feel of the movies-
Black and white film, guys moving in the shadows, dark circles under their eyes, wearing big shoulder suits with lumps of .38 Specials or 1911 .45’s in shoulder holsters. And Fedoras. Don’t forget the Fedoras. Women are “Dames”, “Broads”, or “Darlings”. Teen girls are “Kids” and off limits. Cars are three speed manual on the column. Different and in some ways better age.
They are good stuff, and rarely disappoint.
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