L.A. Noir
The City as Character
by Alain Silver and James Ursini
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Book Presentation:
Los Angeles has always been as much a star in film noir as any actor, be it Humphrey Bogart, Barbara Stanwyck, Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner or Jack Nicholson. In L.A. Noir: The City as Character renowned film historians Alain Silver and James Ursini explore the world of noir cinema in the context of Los Angeles. The book features dozens of noir and neo-noir landmark films from Double Indemnity, Criss Cross, Sunset Boulevard, Gun Crazy, The Big Heat, Kiss Me Deadly, and Touch of Evil in the classic period (1940-1960) to such neo-noir notables as Chinatown, L.A. Confidential, Mulholland Drive, and Pulp Fiction.
L.A. Noir illustrates how these noir films use L.A.'s diverse cityscape and architecture to convey a unique vision of urban corruption and existential fatalism, not only in the ever-changing, chaotic downtown of Bunker Hill, Main Street, and Chinatown, but in its affluent coastal communities (Santa Monica, Malibu) as well as its deceptively sunny suburbs (South Bay, San Fernando Valley). The authors deftly analyze the key films of noir while integrating them into the geography and history of this "dark city" which became such an important icon of noir literature and film.
L.A. Noir is profusely illustrated with approximately 150 photographs-many of them appearing in print for the very first time-including production stills from the movies discussed, archival photos of the locations from the films and new photographs of the locations today, chronicling the ever-changing cityscape of this noir character-Los Angeles.
About the authors:
Alain Silver is the author of The Samurai Film and has co-written fifteen other books, including Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles, and two screenplays. He has written numerous articles for the Los Angeles Times, DGA Magazine, Film Comment, and Photon. He has also produced nine independent features and over fifty soundtrack albums. Silver is a member of the Directors Guild of America and Writers Guild of America. He lives in Santa Monica, California.James Ursini has contributed to various publications including Cinema, Femme Fatales, Mediascene, and Photon. Together, they are the co-authors of eleven books, among them the Film Noir Reader series, Film Noir: An Encyclopedia Reference to the American Style, and The Noir Style. Ursini lives in Santa Monica, California.
Press Reviews:
"No one is better qualified to explore the L.A. noir connection than [the authors] who cover [it] with style and savvy." —Leonard Maltin, Entertainment Tonight
> Books with the same or similar title:
> From the same authors:
From the Moment They Met It Was Murder (2024)
Double Indemnity and the Rise of Film Noir
by Alain Silver and James Ursini
Subject: One Film > Double Indemnity
Movies Without Baggage (2022)
A Guide to Ultra-Low-Budget Filmmaking
by Alain Silver and Obren Bokich
Subject: Technique > Amateur cinema
De Niro (2009)
by James Ursini and Paul Duncan
(in English, French and German)
Subject: Actor > Robert De Niro
Elizabeth Taylor (2008)
by James Ursini
(in English, French and German)
Subject: Actress > Elizabeth Taylor
Mae West (2008)
by Dominique Mainon and James Ursini
(in English, French and German)
Marlène Dietrich (2007)
by James Ursini
(in English, French and German)
Subject: Actress > Marlene Dietrich
Whatever Happened to Robert Aldrich? (2004)
His Life and His Films
by Alain Silver and James Ursini
Subject: Director > Robert Aldrich
> On a related topic:
Film Noir and Los Angeles (2022)
Urban History and the Dark Imaginary
Thrillers, Chillers, and Killers (2025)
Radio and Film Noir
Three Faces Of Noir Curse Crime Cringe (2025)
Film Noir In The Public Domain Vol IV
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