ASK EDDIE - April 6 2023

FNF prez Eddie Muller responds to film noir fan questions fielded by the Foundation's Director of Communications Anne Hockens. In this episode, we discuss the selection process for the Oscar’s “In Memoriam” presentation, season two of Perry Mason, Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave, the impact of the studio system’s treatment of talent on film noirs, “transitional” film noir and more. We wind things up answering two possibly divisive questions, who is the toughest male protagonist in noir and what is the best film noir. On the cat front, Emily and Charlotte are background players.
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This week’s questions:
1. What do you think of the methodology used by the Academy to determine inclusions for the In Memoriam during the Oscars' broadcast, and is it possible to submit names for inclusion?
- Pete from sunny Sydney, Australia.
2. Given how hard it was to find the elements to restore Detour, what are the odds of rescuing films from a now defunct independent movie company?
- Michael Johnson, Post Falls, Idaho
3. We thought "El vampiro negro" was great. About a half hour into it, we spotted a brief shot of Chicago (the Wrigley Building, the Michigan Ave. Bridge, two buses with "Chicago" on the sides, and a Schlitz sign!). Do you know what happened?
- Donna and David, in Chicago
4. Just looking for your thoughts on season two of “Perry Mason” on HBO.
- Kathy
5. Have you seen “Decision to Leave”, South Korean director Park Chan-wook's acclaimed new neo-noir?
- Kathleen from Chicago
6. In your book “Dark City”, you link the Hollywood studio system to the rise and flourishing of film noir in the 40s. Of course, the films were produced out of that system, but I think you are claiming more, that the moods and substance of noir films were (in part) generated out of the studio system and how it treated actors, directors, writers, and others. Could you say more about that?
- Mike
7. Can you recommend other film noir movies that are shot on location? If there aren’t that many film noirs shot on location, you can recommend non-noir but from the same time-era (1930-1960s).
- Iisakki, Finland
8. Are there any female-led detective noirs from the classic noir period (think “The Maltese Falcon” or “Murder, My Sweet” but with a female detective)? What about after the classic noir period?
- Ryan from Studio City adjacent (aka Valley Village, CA)
9. I have a two-part question about Gloria Grahame:
What did you think of her Oscar winning performance in "The Bad and the Beautiful"? And, Eddie, are you happy or sad that you watched the Gloria Grahame performance you said you were "saving" to watch in "Man on a Tightrope"?
- Marjorie from the poor part of Connecticut
10. The femmes fatale are constantly discussed and are the proper focus of the genre. What I’d like to know is how Ann Shirley got from P.E.I. to Bay City? How did the spunky orphan from Green Gables wind up on the west coast, being raised by a policeman? How did she find her way into LA journalism and falling in with Philip Marlowe?
- Eric
11. Do you think there is such thing as transitional film noir? Or do you think anything from 1960 onwards is simply neo-noir?
- Brett Lambert, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
12. What did you think of gene hackman in remake of “The Narrow Margin?”
- Alan, San Anselmo, Ca.
13. Eddie, you’ve mentioned that you’ve watched films several times. Is there, in your or Anne’s opinion, an optimal number of times a film should be watched to truly appreciate its many facets?
- Your Henchman contributor, TB, Costa Mesa, CA
14. Simple question: in your opinion, who is the toughest male protagonist in the history of classic American film noir? My definition of toughness would be a character who is not intimidated by anybody, so my nominee would be Jeff Bailey from “Out of the Past”.
- Joe, Hermosa Beach, CA
15. What is the best film noir? This is a difficult question to answer, as there are many great film noirs that could be considered the best. Some of the most highly acclaimed films in this genre include “The Maltese Falcon” (1941), “Double Indemnity” (1944), “Out of the Past” (1947), and “Touch of Evil” (1958).
- Brian from Toronto