2nd Annual Wheeling Film Noir Fest

Film noir is revolutionary. The cinematic style permeated the American psyche, leaving a permanent imprint on all genres produced today. The gritty characters in these films often inhabit a surrealistic world, and as they navigate danger and double crossers we escape into their realm and imagine how we might also evade similar perils.

Join us at the historic former Kaufman's Department Store building on May 23rd & 24th for two days of electrifying Film Noir programming.

Each of the films screened throughout the fest will be accompanied by its own guest presenter who will discuss a variety of subjects related to each film.

We'll offer a full concession stand serving a wide array of treats and drinks, available sun-up to sundown.

Each screening is $12

Info: Starring: Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Farley Granger

There are few cinematic psychopaths that rival Bruno Antony. His unsettling charm slinks through the film like a well tailored serpent, destroying the lives of those unlucky enough to be beguiled. Robert Walker’s performance of Bruno Antony is so exceptionally executed, it is hard to imagine him outside of the role. In true Hitchcock fashion where all things refined become a mess quickly, Antony maintains his chilled composure throughout the mayhem he creates, and his sadism magnifies as he dismantles a group of “good” people for his amusement.

Info: Starring: Ray Milland, Jane Wyman, Howard da Silva

New York City scribe, Don Birnam (Ray Milland), has a thirst for rye whiskey that derails his weekend vacation and ultimately threatens his entire existence. As he grapples his demons with a stark city skyline as his backdrop, Birnam stumbles into an illusionary world chock-full of fear.

Billy Wilder’s examination of an unrestrained alcoholic is one of the grittiest portrayals of addiction ever conjured. An intriguing detour from Wilder’s well established reputation as a comedic director, he drags us through the seedy pawn shops, taverns, and alleyways alongside a tormented soul, but manages to present us a glimmer of hope by the end.

Info: Starring: Peggy Cummins, John Dall, Berry Kroeger

When marksman Bart Tare (John Dall) meets sharpshooter Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins) in a carnival tent, their combined lifelong obsession with guns spawns a cross country robbery spree when their money runs dry. Based on the original story Deadly is the Female by the prolific crime writer, MacKinlay Kantor, this postwar portrayal of boy meets girl devolves into a calvacade of crime.

Info: Starring: Spencer Tracy, Sylvia Sidney, Edward Ellis

Wrongfully accused of kidnapping a child in a small town he is traveling through, Joe Wilson (Spencer Tracy) becomes public enemy number one to a rabid mob of townsfolk hellbent on revenge. At the mercy of an ornery sheriff, his lackey deputy, and provincial gossip, Wilson fights to clear his name from a J*il cell with help from his loyal lady, Katherine Grant (Sylvia Sydney), who comes face to face with belligerent locals with torches in hand.

As Frtiz Lang’s first American film, the final version of Fury was not what the director had originally envisioned, but paved his career in the Hollywood studios for several decades. After emigrating to the United States from Germany in the 1930s, his distinctive expressionism influenced filmmaking heavily throughout the mid century.

Info: Starring: Marilyn Monroe, Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters

Marilyn Monroe’s depiction of a double-crossing temptress on vacation at Niagara Falls with her distraught and reclusive mate, George Loomis (Joseph Cotten), was a major departure from her typecast as a ditzy comedic blonde. Monroe’s role as Rose Loomis allowed the actress to inhabit a deeply complex character navigating her life as a woman married to a veteran with PTSD who fantasized about a life free from instability and constraint. Niagara is a glimpse into the true range Monroe possessed, while still allowing the actress to light up every scene she appears in.

Info: Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Sylvia Sidney, Joel McCrea

In the slums of New York City a convergence of generational culture and class is observed through the eyes of the borough’s street kids. This wayward gang spends most of their time at the edge of the river committing petty crimes and antagonizing the new neighbors, a filthy rich family with a full staff running their waterfront palace. It isn’t until “Baby Face” Martin (Humphrey Bogart) revisits his old stomping grounds that long standing rivalries boil over and ghosts from the past emerge. An old gangster’s reminiscence about the streets he once controlled is bittersweet, and by the end we also hope the scenery never changes too much.

Info: Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Koyoko Kagawa

Kurosawa’s analysis of a kidnapping ransom in the heart of Midcentury Japan is a flawless portrayal of the intricate nature of a criminal investigation, from the dispatching of detectives to the tailing of the suspect. Prestigious executive Kingo Gondo (Toshiro Mifune) is about to embark on a business deal meant to generate a fortune when he is dragged into a ransom scheme designed by an unrepentant enemy leaving few clues behind. As investigators weave through the city and piece together elements of the crime, an underlying tension is detected as the disparity within the class system becomes more pronounced. High and Low is lesser known example of Akira Kurosawa’s unparalleled filmmaking techniques. Few directors of Film Noir could come close to replicating a movie of this caliber.

Info: Starring: Frances McDormand, John Getz, M. Emmet Walsh, Dan Hedaya

Blood Simple is the first feature produced by the Coen Brothers with an indie budget in central Texas. This pulp crime western noir perfectly encapsulates the laborious and foolhardy nature of violent crime. When hot-headed bar owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) gets suspicious of his wife Abby’s (Frances McDormand) daily whereabouts, he enlists the help of seedy private detective (M. Emmet Walsh) to trail her. While Marty understands the strange man he has hired is thoroughly unscrupulous, he underestimates just how dastardly the detective with become to achieve his own ends.

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