Film-Noir List
All films are from the books referenced below. They consist of films compiled by the most cited film-noir historians. Films are broken down into two categories as listed below:
1. Classic-noir: Films from the 40s and 50s (1-451)
2. Neo-noir: Films from the 60s to present (452-613)
Reference 1: Film-Noir - The Encyclopedia; Editor: Alain Silver, Elizabeth Ward, James Ursini, Robert Porfirio; Co-Editor: Carl Macek; 2010 Publication, New York; ISBN:978-1-59020-144-2
Reference 2: Encyclopedia of Film-Noir; Editor: Geoff Mayer, Brian McDonnell; 2007 Publication, London; ISBN:978–0–313–33306–4
"In this world, the streets are dark with something more than the night."
1. Classic-noir: Films from the 40s and 50s (1-451)
2. Neo-noir: Films from the 60s to present (452-613)
Reference 1: Film-Noir - The Encyclopedia; Editor: Alain Silver, Elizabeth Ward, James Ursini, Robert Porfirio; Co-Editor: Carl Macek; 2010 Publication, New York; ISBN:978-1-59020-144-2
Reference 2: Encyclopedia of Film-Noir; Editor: Geoff Mayer, Brian McDonnell; 2007 Publication, London; ISBN:978–0–313–33306–4
"In this world, the streets are dark with something more than the night."
- Raymond Chandler
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613 titles
- DirectorJoseph M. NewmanStarsDennis O'KeefeGale StormJeff ChandlerNewspaperman helps girl find her sister's illegitimate baby, gets mixed up in baby-adoption racket.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsLoretta YoungRobert CummingsWendell CoreyA beautiful psychology professor tries to hide a self-defense killing.
- DirectorBilly WilderStarsKirk DouglasJan SterlingRobert ArthurA frustrated former big-city journalist now stuck working for an Albuquerque newspaper exploits a story about a man trapped in a cave to rekindle his career, but the situation quickly escalates into an out-of-control circus.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsVan HeflinRobert RyanJanet LeighAn embittered, vengeful POW stalks his former commanding officer who betrayed his men's planned escape attempt from a Nazi prison camp.
- DirectorLaslo BenedekStarsJohn CassavetesRaymond BurrSara ShaneSongwriter falls in love with a crippled man's wife.
- DirectorVincent ShermanStarsRita HayworthGlenn FordAlexander ScourbyNightclub singer and her brother-in-law try to find her husband's killer.
- DirectorStuart HeislerStarsAlbert DekkerSusan HaywardFrances FarmerA mentally unstable man who has been kept in isolation for years escapes and causes trouble for his identical twin brother.
- DirectorOtto PremingerStarsRobert MitchumJean SimmonsMona FreemanAmbulance driver Frank Jessup is ensnared in the schemes of the sensuous but dangerous Diane Tremayne.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsHugh BeaumontAnn SavageRussell HicksWhen a reporter helps his girlfriend murder her rich husband, an innocent man gets the blame and faces execution.
- DirectorLewis AllenStarsAlan LaddPhyllis CalvertPaul StewartWhen ruthlessly dedicated postal inspector investigates the murder of a co-worker, he finds that the sole witness, a nun, has been targeted by the killers.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsCharles McGrawAdele JergensWilliam TalmanA well-planned robbery goes awry with tough cop Jim Cordell in pursuit of the thieves.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsSterling HaydenLouis CalhernJean HagenA major heist goes off as planned, but then double crosses, bad luck and solid police work cause everything to unravel.
- DirectorVincent ShermanStarsViveca LindforsDane ClarkVirginia MayoWhile recuperating from wartime back injuries at a hospital, veteran Bob Corey is visited on Christmas Eve by a beautiful stranger with an even stranger message.
- DirectorEugene FordeStarsJean RogersRichard TravisLarry J. BlakeDetectives try to solve the case of a murdered Los Angeles defense attorney.
- DirectorCharles F. HaasStarsSteve CochranMamie Van DorenRay DantonA detective is assigned to track down and capture a crazed serial rapist.
- DirectorBudd BoetticherStarsLucille BremerRichard CarlsonDouglas FowleyA well-known judge has become a fugitive from the police, with a large reward on his head. A reporter believes that the judge is hiding in a private sanitarium, so she seeks out a private investigator and asks him to pretend to be insane, so that he can get inside the sanitarium and look for the judge. The investigator is admitted to the asylum, and encounters many dangers while trying to prove that the judge is there.
- DirectorJacques TourneurStarsMerle OberonRobert RyanCharles KorvinA multinational group of train passengers become involved in a post-World War II Nazi assassination plot.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsMark StevensEdmond O'BrienGale StormProwl car cops on night duty romance a reluctant young woman who works for the department while in danger from a vengeful racketeer.
- DirectorHarry HornerStarsIda LupinoRobert RyanTaylor HolmesA mentally disturbed handyman on the run, for reasons even he doesn't understand, takes a job at the house of a lonely war widow in 1918.
- DirectorArch ObolerStarsEdmund GwennPhyllis ThaxterHenry H. Daniels Jr.A young woman has two distinct personalities, one of whom is evil and constantly gets her in trouble.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsDana AndrewsJoan FontaineSidney BlackmerA novelist aided by his future father-in-law conspires to frame himself for the murder of a burlesque dancer as part of an effort to ban capital punishment.
- DirectorKing VidorStarsBette DavisJoseph CottenDavid BrianResentful of her small-town life, a married woman schemes to run off with a rich businessman.
- DirectorJohn FarrowStarsRay MillandMaureen O'SullivanCharles LaughtonA magazine tycoon commits a murder and pins it on an innocent man, who then tries to solve the murder himself.
- DirectorJoseph H. LewisStarsCornel WildeRichard ConteJean WallaceA police lieutenant is ordered to stop investigating deadly crime boss Mr. Brown because he hasn't been able to get any hard evidence against him. He goes after Brown's girlfriend, who despises him, for information instead.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsGlenn FordGloria GrahameJocelyn BrandoTough cop Dave Bannion takes on a politically powerful crime syndicate.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsJack PalanceIda LupinoWendell CoreyHollywood actor Charles Castle is pressured by his studio boss into a criminal cover-up to protect his valuable career.
- DirectorJoseph LoseyStarsJohn Drew BarrymorePreston FosterJoan LorringA teenager comes of age while seeking revenge on the man who beat up his father.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsHumphrey BogartLauren BacallJohn RidgelyPrivate detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a wealthy family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail and what might be love.
- DirectorDon SiegelStarsRobert MitchumJane GreerWilliam BendixAn army lieutenant accused of robbery pursues the real thief on a frantic chase through Mexico aided by the thief's fiancee.
- DirectorIda LupinoStarsJoan FontaineIda LupinoEdmund GwennA man secretly married to two women feels the pressure of his deceit.
- DirectorRoy William NeillStarsDan DuryeaJune VincentPeter LorreWhen Kirk Bennett is convicted of a singer's murder, his wife tries to prove him innocent...aided by the victim's ex-husband.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsWilliam MarshallAdele MaraRicardo CortezA private detective is approached by a wealthy entertainment executive to stop a blackmail scheme against him. Although he hasn't decided to take the job, the blackmailers believe that he already has, and he is marked for murder.
- DirectorAllen BaronStarsAllen BaronMolly McCarthyLarry TuckerA hired killer from Cleveland has a job to do on a second-string mob boss in New York, but a special girl from his past and a gun dealer with pet rats get in his way.
- DirectorRobert GordonStarsChester MorrisConstance DowlingSteven GerayA mystery writer accused of murdering his publisher sets out to discover the real killer.
- DirectorJack BernhardStarsRobert PaigeLeslie BrooksRuss VincentA society reporter keeps herself in the headlines by marrying a series of wealthy men, all of whom die under mysterious circumstances.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsRobert MitchumBarbara Bel GeddesRobert PrestonUnemployed cowhand Jim Garry is hired by his dishonest friend Tate Riling as muscle in a dispute between homesteaders and cattleman John Lufton.
- DirectorGeorge MarshallStarsAlan LaddVeronica LakeWilliam BendixAn ex-bomber pilot is suspected of murdering his unfaithful wife.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsAnne BaxterRichard ConteAnn SothernA telephone operator ends up drunk and at the mercy of a cad in his apartment. The next morning she wakes up with a hangover and the terrible fear she may have committed murder.
- DirectorEdgar G. UlmerStarsJohn CarradineJean ParkerNils AstherIn Paris, an artist hires portrait models, and after he finishes their portraits, he strangles them.
- DirectorRobert RossenStarsJohn GarfieldLilli PalmerHazel BrooksA talented boxer's young career hits difficult terrain when an unethical promoter takes interest in him.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsLawrence TierneyPriscilla LanePhillip ReedAfter being fired for insubordination, homicide detective Mike Carter is hired as bodyguard by the owner of a local meat-packing plant where a meat inspector has been murdered.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsDana AndrewsJane WyattLee J. CobbThe true story of a prosecutor's fight to prove the innocence of a man accused of a notorious murder.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsRicardo MontalbanGeorge MurphyHoward Da SilvaMexican and American federal agents tackle a vicious gang exploiting illegal farm workers in southern California.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsClaire TrevorLawrence TierneyWalter SlezakA calculating divorcée risks her chances at wealth and security with a man she doesn't love by getting involved with the hotheaded murderer romancing her foster sister.
- DirectorJohn BrahmStarsGeorge MontgomeryNancy GuildConrad JanisDetective Philip Marlowe encounters a variety of characters while checking on why Leslie Murdock stole a rare doubloon from his mother.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJohn GarfieldPatricia NealPhyllis ThaxterAn otherwise moral captain of a charter boat becomes financially strapped and is drawn into illegal activities in order to keep up payments on his boat.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardVincente MinnelliStarsRobert TaylorAva GardnerCharles LaughtonFederal agent Rigby, in Central America to trace stolen plane engines, falls for the gorgeous wife of the chief suspect.
- DirectorJohn BoultingStarsRichard AttenboroughHermione BaddeleyWilliam HartnellIn Brighton in 1935, small-time gang leader Pinkie Brown murders a journalist and later desperately tries to cover his tracks but runs into trouble with the police, a few witnesses, and a rival gang.
- DirectorDavid MacDonaldStarsPatricia RocWill FyffeMaxwell ReedThe McFarishes and the Macraes are lifelong enemies living on a remote island in the Western Isles of Scotland. Mary Lawson is a Scottish orphan brought up in a convent who arrives on the weekly steamer to come and work as a servant to the Macraes. Mary is warned that she must have no dealings with the McFarish family but living a lonely life she encourages the friendship of Will McFarish, with tragic consequences.
- DirectorPhil KarlsonStarsRichard ConteDianne FosterKathryn GrantA retired mob accountant is drawn back in when his brothers, who have recently made a hit for the organization, decide to go to the authorities.
- DirectorJules DassinStarsBurt LancasterHume CronynCharles BickfordAt a tough penitentiary, prisoner Joe Collins plans to rebel against Captain Munsey, the power-mad chief guard.
- DirectorPaul WendkosStarsDan DuryeaJayne MansfieldMartha VickersDan Duryea and his cronies rob a fake spiritualist and then take it on the lam to Atlantic City.
- DirectorJohn CromwellStarsEleanor ParkerAgnes MooreheadEllen CorbyA gentle, naive, pregnant 19-year-old widow is slowly, inexorably ground down by the hardened criminals, sadistic guards, and matron at a woman's prison. Will she be the same person when her sentence is up?
- DirectorJohn FarrowStarsAlan LaddGail RussellWilliam BendixNeale and Pedro fly cargo between Chungking and Calcutta. After their buddy Bill is murdered, they investigate. Neale meets Bill's fiancée Virginia and becomes suspicious of a deeper plot while also falling for her charms.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsJames StewartRichard ConteLee J. CobbChicago reporter P.J. McNeal re-opens a decade-old murder case.
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsLon Chaney Jr.Patricia MorisonJ. Carrol NaishA doctor is not sure if he murdered his beautiful but wicked wife, and has his attractive nurse try to find the truth by hypnotizing him.
- DirectorCrane WilburStarsScott BradyJeff CoreyWhit BissellTwelve inmates plan a prison break from the Colorado State Penitentiary but one of them reluctantly joins the group.
- DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsGregory PeckRobert MitchumPolly BergenA lawyer's family is stalked by a man he once helped put in jail.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsJohn ForsytheJoan CamdenHarold J. KennedyA small town newspaperman's investigation into a local bookie operation turns up a web of organized crime.
- DirectorStanley HaynesStarsSally GrayMichael WildingStanley HollowayA dancer attempts to escape from the narrow conventions of society and from the fate foretold for her at her birth.
- DirectorQuentin LawrenceStarsPeter CushingAndré MorellRichard VernonA charming but ruthless criminal holds the family of a bank manager hostage as part of a cold-blooded plan to steal 97,000 pounds.
- DirectorMax OphülsStarsJames MasonBarbara Bel GeddesRobert RyanAn ambitious young LA department store model gets her wish of marrying a millionaire but she eventually discovers that rich life isn't always a happy one.
- DirectorTay GarnettStarsLoretta YoungBarry SullivanBruce CowlingAn invalid husband (Barry Sullivan) wrongly believes his wife (Loretta Young) and doctor (Bruce Cowling) are conspiring to kill him and outlines that suspicion in a letter, which causes a serious concern when he ends up dying anyway.
- DirectorMark RobsonStarsKirk DouglasArthur KennedyMarilyn MaxwellBoxer Midge Kelly rises to fame...mainly by stepping on other people.
- DirectorArthur RipleyStarsRobert CummingsMichèle MorganSteve CochranChuck Scott gets a job as chauffeur to tough guy Eddie Roman; but Chuck's involvement with Eddie's fearful wife becomes a nightmare.
- DirectorLewis AllenStarsAlan LaddDonna ReedJune HavocOn Chicago's South Side reporter Ed Adams finds the body of a dead girl. Her address book leads to a host of names of men frightened by her death but claiming never to have known her. Adams comes to know quite a lot, dangerously so.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsDeanna DurbinGene KellyRichard WhorfA young femme fatale-type woman realizes that the man she married is an incorrigible wastrel.
- DirectorAnatole LitvakJean NegulescoStarsJames CagneyAnn SheridanArthur KennedyDanny is a content truck driver, but his girl Peggy shows potential as a dancer and hopes he too can show ambition. Danny acquiesces and pursues boxing to please her, but the two begin to spend more time working than time together.
- DirectorIrving LernerStarsVince EdwardsLyle TalbotJohn ArcherA vicious killer escapes from San Quentin with a cannister of what he believes to be heroin but is actually a radioactive substance that threatens all Los Angeles.
- DirectorJohn H. AuerStarsGig YoungMala PowersWilliam TalmanJohnny Kelly, who plans on resigning from the police force and leaving his wife the next day, has a very eventful last night on duty.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsBarbara StanwyckRobert RyanPaul DouglasMae Doyle comes back to her hometown a cynical woman. Her brother Joe fears that his love, fish cannery worker Peggy, may wind up like Mae. Mae marries Jerry and has a baby; she is happy but restless, drawn to Jerry's friend Earl.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsBill WilliamsBarbara HaleRichard QuineJim Fletcher, waking up from a coma, finds he is to be given a court martial for treason and charged with informing on fellow inmates in a Japanese prison camp during WWII. Escaping from the hospital he tries to clear himself by enlisting the aid of Martha Gregory, widow of a service buddy he was accused of informing on. Helped also by Ted Niles, a surviving fellow prisoner, he gets closer to finding the answers he needs, and becomes ensnared in a grandiose scheme involving his Japanese ex-prison guard, $10,000,000 of US currency forged by the Japanese and a burgeoning crime network poised to wreak havoc throughout southern California.
- DirectorCurtis BernhardtStarsHumphrey BogartAlexis SmithSydney GreenstreetAn engineer trapped in an unhappy marriage murders his wife in the hope of marrying her younger sister.
- DirectorHenry LevinStarsGlenn FordBroderick CrawfordMillard MitchellA D.A. becomes the prison warden where he tries to help an inmate he prosecuted, because he believes his sentence was excessive.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsDick PowellWalter SlezakMicheline CheirelCanadian flyer Laurence Gerard finds that his wife has been murdered by a French collaborator. His quest for justice leads him to Switzerland and Argentina.
- DirectorTerence YoungStarsEric PortmanEdana RomneyBarbara MullenA man falls in love with a beautiful young woman and begins to suspect that he may have also loved her in a previous life.
- DirectorLewis GilbertStarsJames KenneyJoan CollinsBetty Ann DaviesThe life of a juvenile delinquent is threatened by his own incessant desire for trouble.
- DirectorIrving ReisStarsPat O'BrienClaire TrevorHerbert MarshallArt curator George Steele experiences a train wreck...which may not have actually happened. Is he cracking up, or the victim of a wicked plot?
- DirectorGerd OswaldStarsBarbara StanwyckSterling HaydenRaymond BurrKathy leaves the newspaper business to marry homicide detective Bill but is frustrated by his lack of ambition and the banality of life in the suburbs. Her drive to advance Bill's career soon takes her down a dangerous path.
- DirectorAndré De TothStarsGene NelsonSterling HaydenPhyllis KirkReformed parolee Steve Lacey is caught in the middle when a wounded former cellmate seeks him out for shelter.
- DirectorJoseph LoseyStarsStanley BakerSam WanamakerGrégoire AslanIn the UK, after pulling a racetrack robbery, repeat offender Johnny Bannion hides the loot in a farmer's field but the police and the local mob come looking for Johnny and the money.
- DirectorSamuel FullerStarsVictoria ShawGlenn CorbettJames ShigetaTwo detectives seek a stripper's killer in the Japanese quarter of Los Angeles, but a love triangle threatens their friendship.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsBurt LancasterYvonne De CarloDan DuryeaAn armored truck driver and his ex-wife conspire with a gang to have his own truck robbed on the route.
- DirectorRobert FloreyStarsJohn PayneSonny TuftsEllen DrewWar hero recovers from amnesia and is confronted by his criminal past.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsRobert YoungRobert MitchumRobert RyanA man is murdered, apparently by one of a group of demobilized soldiers he met in a bar. But which one? And why?
- DirectorRobert ParrishDick PowellStarsDick PowellRhonda FlemingRichard ErdmanEx-con Rocky Mulloy seeks the real culprit in the crime for which he was framed in a night world of deceptive dames and double crosses.
- DirectorFrank TuttleStarsEdmond O'BrienBrian DonlevyNatalie WoodA deranged man kidnaps the nubile daughter of a police captain.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsVictor MatureRichard ConteFred ClarkPolice Lieut. Candella, longtime friend of the Rome family, walks a tightrope in the case of cop-killer Martin Rome.
- DirectorJoseph H. LewisStarsVittorio GassmanBarry SullivanPolly BergenA fugitive is pursued by a lawman who is obsessed with his capture.
- DirectorMark StevensStarsMark StevensMartha HyerSkip HomeierViolent ex-cop Vic Barron comes to Ketchikan, Alaska seeking revenge on an old enemy.
- DirectorRudolph MatéStarsEdmond O'BrienPamela BrittonLuther AdlerFrank Bigelow, told he's been poisoned and has only a few days to live, tries to find out who killed him and why.
- DirectorVincent ShermanStarsJoan CrawfordDavid BrianSteve CochranA New York socialite climbs the ladder of success man by man until a life among rich gangsters gives her what she thought she always wanted.
- DirectorRobert FloreyStarsFaye EmersonZachary ScottRichard ErdmanA very romantic murderer has plans to seduce, marry and kill a beautiful woman for her wealth, but finds her younger sister to be even better prey.
- DirectorWilliam BerkeStarsRobert LoweryPhyllis BrooksCharles ArntJoe Beck leaves Central America so that he can return to Texas and collect a large inheritance, but he picks a dangerous ship on which to travel.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsCharlton HestonLizabeth ScottViveca LindforsGamblers who "took" an out-of-town sucker in a crooked poker game feel shadowy vengeance closing in on them.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsLucille BallClifton WebbWilliam BendixA secretary tries to help her boss who's been framed for murder.
- DirectorRobert SiodmakStarsOlivia de HavillandLew AyresThomas MitchellA man is found murdered, and witnesses are sure about the woman they saw leaving his apartment. However, it becomes apparent that the woman has a twin, and finding out which one is the killer seems impossible.
- DirectorDelmer DavesStarsHumphrey BogartLauren BacallBruce BennettA man convicted of murdering his wife escapes from prison and works with a woman to try to prove his innocence.
- DirectorRudolph MatéStarsWilliam HoldenNina FochLee J. CobbAn escaped psychopathic killer who takes the family and neighbors of police psychologist hostage reveals a recurring nightmare to the doctor.
- DirectorAndré De TothStarsMerle OberonFranchot ToneThomas MitchellA woman returns to the USA after a German U-boat sank her ship, and finds out that someone wants to kill her for her inheritance.