Christian Film Analysis: Exploring Film Noir's Themes and Messages

Exploring Film Noir's themes and messages

Pastor Jay discusses classic film noir movies

Film Noir collections from Film Chest Media Group and Kit Parker Films

Restored and remastered films in high definition

It's time now for the Classic Cinema Rewind with Pastor Jay. I'll see you back at the hut. Oh boy. Hey, doggie. Now join Pastor Jay as we rewind the tape. And enjoy some classic cinema. Classic Cinema fans, this is Pastor Jay here with you once again on the Classic Cinema Rewind. And we thank you for joining us today. Today we're talking an interesting subject because today, as this is being released, is November the 30th. And November the 30th is the final day of November, but more importantly, it is the final day of Noir-vember. Now, many of you are probably saying that if you don't know what noir is, film noir is a cinematic term that was used to describe a stylish type of drama, crime drama, that kind of had a kind of moody feel and a mysterious way about it. And it dealt with a lot of different interesting crimes and different things like that. So it was a really kind of interesting thing. And they had a very unique way to shoot things. These were films shot on a very, very small budget but done very well and shot in ways to hide the low budget with shadows and different things. It was done so well. And film noir is really, really cool. So in November, there came up a thing to do Noirvember, and it was a month to celebrate all the different noir films. Well, today we're going to talk to you about some of those film noir films that we have in our collection. We're going to talk about our favorite ones in a little bit, but we're first going to talk to you about some of those collections and things that we have added to our library and some really cool ones. First off, we want to talk to you about some things from Film Chest Media Group. Now, Film Chess Media Group has one of the largest libraries of films across the board, and they've been digitizing in high definition, restoring and making these things look really spectacular. And they've done a two-set of dark film mysteries, or film noirs, if you will. And the first one is this one. Now, if you're listening on the podcast, you can't see the packaging, but you can check out the video. But those of you that are watching the video, you can see what we're talking about right here. But anyway, we'll try to describe it a little bit for you, for those of you that are listening on the podcast, the audio version. This film noir here collection, the Dark Film Mysteries Volume 1, is really cool. It's a three-disc set, and it's kind of a bluish and black cover. Very, very cool. And on this, it's got kind of a real weathered look, which I really like. It almost looks like the DVD cover looks like it's been destroyed, but actually it's made that way to kind of give it that weathered look, which is really, really cool. Anyway, but this is very cool. On this collection, you get three discs filled with amazing films. You get Scarlet Street. Scarlet Street, of course, is with Edward G. Robinson, a very, very tremendous actor. You get Woman on the Run, Ann Sheridan. You get Quicksand with Mickey Rooney. Very cool. Love that film. Detour. Very cool. Inner Sanctum. Very nice. Kansas City Confidential another really interesting film that kind of deals with well I don't want to give anything away I think all these are public domain so you can actually watch these online for free but these look tremendous the next one is The Stranger tremendous film really very awesome one that anybody should check out It's got Orson Welles and Edward G. Robinson again on this one. Very cool. Fear the Night is on here. The Strange Woman is on here with Hady Lamar, which is really, really good. Another Edward G. Robinson film. I love Edward G. Robinson. And this one is The Red House. We'll talk about that in a little bit. And then The Strange Love of Martha Ivers. Very, very cool collection of films. Love it. These films are, like I said, been restored in very, very high quality. These discs are in blue with white background. Very, very cool. But there's no stacking on these discs, which is really cool. A lot of people hate that stacking of the discs because they're harder to get out. They come with their own trays. Very, very cool. and there's like a booklet that tells you all about every episode or every movie. Very awesome. I shouldn't say a booklet, actually. I should say a one-page thing. But anyway, it gives you all the information on it. Very, very cool. This collection is probably, I won't say it's the best of the two, although it probably is. Both of them have their charm. But this one is really spectacular The second one which is Dark Film Mysteries Volume 2 is also a 3 set This one has a red and black cover and it got the same weathered look as you can see those of you that are watching on the video. Those of you that are listening, you can't see that. But anyway, it's got still that weathered look, which is really awesome. On this, you get DOA, which is a tremendous film. if you've never seen DOA that is so it's heart pounding it's a man that is going to die very very soon because he's been poisoned and he has to find the killer before he passes away it's just intense, it's very very good I love that film also on this is Impact Club Paradise, The Hitchhiker another really good film Pitfall, Hollow Triumph, Strange Illusion, Cause for Alarm, Suddenly. We'll talk about suddenly in a little bit as well. He Walked by Night. They Made Me a Criminal, which is very, very cool. That's a very good addition to this collection, too, because that has the dead-end kids in it. And if you've never known who the dead-end kids are, definitely search that out. find that out. They're a bunch of kids that get into trouble and try to solve mysteries. It's really, really cool. And then Port of New York. Very cool releases there. Now, these of course came to us from Film Chess Media Group. We appreciate them so much for this. Very awesome releases. Same kind of thing with this collection as with the other one. You get your discs like that, and your booklet, or your page, if you will. So very, very cool stuff, and that is the Dark Film Mysteries. Now, beyond that, this one came, these collections here came from, let's see, Kit Parker Films and Mill Creek Entertainment. They kind of collaborated to do this. Three collections. Amazing stuff. We're going to start off with volume one. We're doing a quick just tell you what's in these so that you can maybe search these out if you want these. Very, very cool. I love this on Blu-ray. Very cool stuff. They come in their own these are stacked. One on top of the other. three discs, so two are stacked, one is not. But in this collection, you get some really cool ones. You get Address Unknown, you get Escape the Fog, you get The Guilt of Janet Ames, you get The Black Book, and we're trying to, okay, and you get Johnny Allegro, a very cool film. Also, you get 7-1-1 Ocean Drive, The Killer That Stalked New York, Assignment Paradise, and The Miami Story. So all these film laws are on this collection here. And let me tell you, these look really spectacular. They've been restored and remastered, and they really look good. They've got that film grain to them that is really cool, but they're done in high definition, which is restored in high definition and look spectacular. This one is an amazing set. The second one is this collection here. The first one has a blue and black background, and then the second one has a red and black background, if you will, and very cool stuff. This one has bait, the crooked web, the night holds terror. You got footsteps in the fog. You have cell 2455 death row. You got Five Against the House. Really cool film. I like that one. You got New Orleans. You got Spin the Dark Web. You got Rumble on the Docks. So a very, very cool bunch of films there as well. Also the same type of thing. Three discs set. You got two stacked, one not, but still very cool. Love that. All right. Then finally, you got this one. This one's green and black with the logo. Very, very cool. It's a Blu-ray and some very, very cool episodes on this. You got Shadow on the Window, The Long Hair, Pick Up Alley, The Tijuana Story, She Played With Fire, Man on a String, The Case Against Brooklyn, and The Crimson Kimono. Very, very cool. So these are all film noirs as well. And same thing here, three disc set, and they are like that. Very, very cool. So I do definitely suggest picking up some of these. Very, very cool stuff. These are our suggestions from ones that have sent to us that we got to check out. And you can check out the full reviews of all of these at classiccinemamagazine.blogspot.com. We're going to come back in just a moment after these messages with some suggestions of our favorite film noirs right after this. Free movies and TV produced by Pastor Jay at classiccinemamagazine.blogspot.com or at youtube.com slash therealpastorjay. All right, thanks for staying with us here on Classic Cinema Rewind. This is the final day of Noirvember, a month when we celebrate film noirs. Well, we've got some really, really cool stuff that we have been adding to our library. And one we want to talk about that we just added, and we added this very, very cool. So we go to big lots and different stores and every so often they have a free coupon or a off coupon if you will And that that you spend You get back So basically something becomes free Well, this is one that we added to our collection free. Very cool. It's a film noir. It is Double Indemnity. Very, very cool little film. This has three of my favorites in it. Fred McMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson. Very, very cool. Now, this Blu-ray set is very awesome because not only do you get your Blu-ray, which is very cool. You get your Blu-ray, and they're like, you know, standard Blu-ray, of course, but very, very cool. but there is something that is really awesome that comes with this special collection is this, Universal Archive. And it is like, now if you're watching the video, you can see these. If not, well, you can search out the video or, you know. But anyway, in this, they come with lobby cards. These are the different, like, posters and the different things that promoted the movie. This one is pretty cool, pretty standard looking one. Double Indemnity with all three actors on the card. Very cool. The second one is a sort of a, this is an alternate ending gas chamber still from Double Indemnity. Very awesome, and I like that. All right. Also, a couple more lobby cards that they had. Um, this one is very cool. This is a double indemnity, Fred McMurray, uh, Robert Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson. And that is very cool. Uh, them all together, well, uh, Edward G. Robinson and, uh, Fred McMurray there, uh, in the forefront. Very, very cool. And then more of a, uh, standard kind of, uh, poster card, if you will. Uh, one that was, uh, sort of like, uh, painted, uh, uh, like with Barbara Stanwyck and Fred McMurray in an embrace. Very, very cool. So these come in this special collection, and I was so excited when I got the $5 coupon and this was there. I was like, you have got to be kidding me, so I picked it up and got it for free. But this is a very, very good film. Also, this release, if you ever see this release, It is the Blu-ray release of Double Indemnity. It's the 70th anniversary edition. Pick this up because it is a limited edition version, but beyond this is you get the original film, but you get also the TV movie that they did with Richard Crenna, who played Luke McCoy on The Real McCoys. So you not only get this film, You get all kinds of bonus features, documentaries, commentaries, all kinds of stuff. We even get an introduction by Robert Osborne, which is very, very cool. But then you get the 73 movie, TV movie, Double Indemnity as well. So very, very cool. I'm glad we got to add that to our collection. Now, for our final thing we want to talk about today, we want to talk about two of our favorite film noirs. I've watched a lot of film noirs over my life and there's two that stick out to me as my favorite they are found on the Dark Film Mysteries collections that we talked about just earlier on but I kind of like them in what I got here and so first we're going to talk about is this one this is Edward G. Robinson in The Red House this is on Blu-ray and DVD from HD Cinema Classics this is a very very good release they restored The Red House into high definition and it looks absolutely spectacular I don't know there's something about this film The Red House that just I don't know it's so moody which is kind of what film noir is film noir is moodiness, but it has such an eerie moodiness about it that it's so good. You're often, through this whole film, Edward G. Robinson plays a crippled man who is trying to protect his daughter from the outside world and trying to keep everybody away from the Red House. Now why does he try to keep everyone away from the Red House? Well, that is the mystery that is in there in this film and that reveals at the end and it is so cool. Edward G. Robinson, I won't say this is his greatest role he ever did, but for me it's one of them. It really is. I love this film. I think he is eerie. He has got a loving side to him. And he's also kind of creepy in a lot of ways. And that is really cool. so I just love this film this is probably one of my favorites that he ever did and I love it this release is very very cool because you get the DVD and the Blu-ray but beyond that you get the lobby card like the little poster it's actually a postcard that you could send to somebody but I'm not going to do that I'm going to keep that. I just love this. There's just something about these that these are very, very cool, and I love this. And The Red House is probably one of my favorite films that Edward G Robinson ever did and I do highly suggest that one to anybody that loves classic film noir Alright, now the final one I want to talk about today is this film. This film kind of has a special place in my heart because this is a film that my dad told me about. And he said, you need to watch that. We were in North Carolina living at the time. I was either a junior or senior in high school or just graduated high school. I can't remember exactly, but it was something like that. My dad, we had a time when the local channels was playing the old films. They were playing this film. and early in the morning, my dad said, watch that, watch that when it comes on. So I watched it and I fell in love with it. It was spectacular. And ever since then, I continually watch it and it is something special to me. And that film is very simply, suddenly. This is Frank Sinatra. Now, Frank Sinatra played a lot of films in his career. He was basically known for being a singer, but he was a great actor as well. Played in many musicals over his career and then transferred into dramatic presentations and different things like that, such as The Manchurian Candidate, which is another great film that he was in, and many different films. But this one, to me, is still the best. Now, those of you that are watching the video, you can see I've got two copies of the film. There's actually another one because it is on the Dark Film Mysteries, what is it, Volume 2? Yeah, Volume 2, Dark Film Mysteries. So we actually have, I guess that would be three versions. No, we have four versions. Yeah, because we got a double feature that has suddenly with the man with the golden arm, which is another great Frank Sinatra film. But anyway, we're not talking about that one. But Suddenly is very cool. This one is the high-definition Blu-ray DVD combo pack. Very, very cool. Again, from HD Cinema Classics. Very cool. Love that. This film is, again, one of my favorites. This is restored in high-definition and really looks spectacular. I have to say, this thing looks absolutely stunning. But beyond that, I also have this version. Now, there are a lot of film purists that will scream bloody murder at me. This is the colorized version. Okay, I know I'm going to get flack for this because film historians and people will say, It was not supposed to be seen in color, and I agree. It's not, but I enjoy it in color. I think for a different take on it sometimes, because sometimes watching a film in the same presentation over and over and over can get old. So if you can see it in a different way sometimes, it brings a different feel to it sometimes. and so that's why I like to watch it in color sometimes just to kind of bring a different feel to it. And I have to say this is from Legend Films and Legend Films really did a tremendous job with the colorization. It's not that bad. So it is very, very good. So I like those. Those are my suggestions as two of my favorite film wars. What's some of yours? Well, let us know in the comments. We would love to hear from you. All right. We'll be right back after this with Final Thought and say goodbye. Read reviews of the latest DVDs, Blu-rays, TV shows, and so much more at classiccinemamagazine.blogspot.com. Well, we want to thank you for joining us today for the final day of Noirvember. Yeah, it's been an interesting month, and hopefully you've been watching some of those noir films. If not, well, do it. It doesn't have to be Noirvember to watch a good film noir. A lot of these are in the public domain, and you can watch them right on the Internet for free. Royalty free. Awesome. Very cool. So definitely go check those out. Until we see you next time, this is Pastor Jay reminding you that if you want to see a great film, check out a classic. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at TheRealPastorJay. That's all our social media accounts for all things Classic Cinema Magazine. Be sure to go to ClassicCinemaMagazine.blogspot.com every single day as we post something new every day. And until we see you next time with another podcast, this is Pastor Jay reminding you, get out and check out a film noir. You're going to be shocked at how awesome they really are. We'll see you next week. Bye. work at www.incompetech.com. Come here! Hey! Oh, no, you don't. No, you don't. No, stay right there. Keep it. Hey, George! Stay! Laura! Join us next time for more classic cinema on the classic Cinema Rewind with Pastor Jay. Thank you.

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