Of all the quintessentially American genres, hardboiled crime fiction is the one that's lasted the longest, but in a strange twist of cultural fate, that longevity owes at least as much to the French as it does to the people here at home. The attraction to noir (they even gave it the name!) is pretty obvious: These are the stories of the American urban wasteland, born of the early- to mid-twentieth century cities, teeming with immigrants in bitter competition, ruled by corrupt political machines, manipulated by a dark underworld of gangsters. While the middle class could live in a comfortable world of increasing prosperity with the option of deluding themselves with happy, moral stories that reinforced that worldview, noir represented the popular dissent. Good doesn't always win, women aren't always virtuous, things are essentially bad and not subject to change, and heroes are frequently less than heroic. more ›

When we looked at tonight's SIFF Cinema schedule, what first caught our eye was the first part of the double feature: 10 Years of Rialto Trailers. Thinking it would be a great way to figure out which noir films we should see during the rest of the festival, and get a crash course in the genre, we decided to check it out. Plus, we love trailers. more ›