Paul C. Dobbs
@steadytiger.bsky.social
Living on Sydney Greenstreet
Haunted by Ida Lupino
Wants to be a Brontë
송강호는 내 부조종사다
Haunted by Ida Lupino
Wants to be a Brontë
송강호는 내 부조종사다
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
December 2, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
Posting a column I wrote when civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks died in 2005.
Today is the 70th anniversary of Mrs. Parks refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man.
I won a Michigan Press Association award for my column.
Treasured memories.
#RosaParks #CivilRights
Today is the 70th anniversary of Mrs. Parks refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man.
I won a Michigan Press Association award for my column.
Treasured memories.
#RosaParks #CivilRights
December 2, 2025 at 4:07 AM
Posting a column I wrote when civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks died in 2005.
Today is the 70th anniversary of Mrs. Parks refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man.
I won a Michigan Press Association award for my column.
Treasured memories.
#RosaParks #CivilRights
Today is the 70th anniversary of Mrs. Parks refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man.
I won a Michigan Press Association award for my column.
Treasured memories.
#RosaParks #CivilRights
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
WOMAN IN THE DUNES (Hiroshi Teshigahara, 1964). Who knew that a Japanese film featuring two people shovelling sand (in a world of shifting sands) could be so beautiful, sensual, haunting and unnerving? I thought this was extraordinary.
(Seen on 35mm at the Prince Charles.) #FilmSky
(Seen on 35mm at the Prince Charles.) #FilmSky
December 1, 2025 at 10:03 PM
WOMAN IN THE DUNES (Hiroshi Teshigahara, 1964). Who knew that a Japanese film featuring two people shovelling sand (in a world of shifting sands) could be so beautiful, sensual, haunting and unnerving? I thought this was extraordinary.
(Seen on 35mm at the Prince Charles.) #FilmSky
(Seen on 35mm at the Prince Charles.) #FilmSky
Elisha Cook Jr. He's in my top two desert island pics, The Maltese Falcon and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. In at the birth of noir with Stranger on the Third Floor. Unforgettable in Shane. The Killing. Electra Glide in Blue. The Outfit. I Wake Up Screaming. Messiah of Evil. Just an insane filmog
December 1, 2025 at 9:10 AM
Elisha Cook Jr. He's in my top two desert island pics, The Maltese Falcon and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. In at the birth of noir with Stranger on the Third Floor. Unforgettable in Shane. The Killing. Electra Glide in Blue. The Outfit. I Wake Up Screaming. Messiah of Evil. Just an insane filmog
Next week sorted
November 29, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Next week sorted
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
so my journal article on Mike Leigh's Mr Turner has been published
(although annoyingly there is a formatting problem in the title that I have asked to be rectified):
journals.openedition.org/ebc/16973
(although annoyingly there is a formatting problem in the title that I have asked to be rectified):
journals.openedition.org/ebc/16973
Spitting Image: Authenticity, Embodiment and Self-reflexivity in Mi...
The turn of the century has seen a boom in cultural production looking back to the 19th century and particularly the Victorian era. Yet, many scholars have been keen to distinguish between those no...
journals.openedition.org
November 29, 2025 at 10:30 AM
so my journal article on Mike Leigh's Mr Turner has been published
(although annoyingly there is a formatting problem in the title that I have asked to be rectified):
journals.openedition.org/ebc/16973
(although annoyingly there is a formatting problem in the title that I have asked to be rectified):
journals.openedition.org/ebc/16973
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
#Noirvember is for Chase Scenes part2, from what else: THE CHASE!
This scene uses eye movements, very particularly modulated pacing, and stark light/shadows, to drive the tension and keep us guessing.
shotzero.substack.com/p/art-of-the...
This scene uses eye movements, very particularly modulated pacing, and stark light/shadows, to drive the tension and keep us guessing.
shotzero.substack.com/p/art-of-the...
Art of the Chase: THE CHASE
These tense scenes from The Chase (1946) shows Scotty (Robert Cummings) framed for the murder, and trapped by dirty cops seeking mob justice.
shotzero.substack.com
November 28, 2025 at 11:26 PM
#Noirvember is for Chase Scenes part2, from what else: THE CHASE!
This scene uses eye movements, very particularly modulated pacing, and stark light/shadows, to drive the tension and keep us guessing.
shotzero.substack.com/p/art-of-the...
This scene uses eye movements, very particularly modulated pacing, and stark light/shadows, to drive the tension and keep us guessing.
shotzero.substack.com/p/art-of-the...
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
Yesterday we looked at how the earlier part of this scene used mirrors, but check out the transition at 24 seconds! [stills below]
The way it crossfades between Cody (James Cagney) and his Ma (Margaret Wycherly) clearly shows them to be cut from the same cloth / kind of psychopathy.
1/2
The way it crossfades between Cody (James Cagney) and his Ma (Margaret Wycherly) clearly shows them to be cut from the same cloth / kind of psychopathy.
1/2
November 28, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Yesterday we looked at how the earlier part of this scene used mirrors, but check out the transition at 24 seconds! [stills below]
The way it crossfades between Cody (James Cagney) and his Ma (Margaret Wycherly) clearly shows them to be cut from the same cloth / kind of psychopathy.
1/2
The way it crossfades between Cody (James Cagney) and his Ma (Margaret Wycherly) clearly shows them to be cut from the same cloth / kind of psychopathy.
1/2
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
First watch: Umberto D. (1952, dir. Vittorio de Sica). Eschewing a straightforward narrative about poverty for one about a middle-class pensioner who has fallen into debt, the film was not well received at the time and considered to have marked the beginning of the end for Italian neo-realism. 1/4
November 28, 2025 at 10:16 AM
First watch: Umberto D. (1952, dir. Vittorio de Sica). Eschewing a straightforward narrative about poverty for one about a middle-class pensioner who has fallen into debt, the film was not well received at the time and considered to have marked the beginning of the end for Italian neo-realism. 1/4
Introduce yourself with 6 concerts you've been to :
Thin Lizzy (my first, 1982. My ears rang for days. In fact they haven't stopped)
BB King
John Lee Hooker
Tom Waits
Throwing Muses
Patti Smith
Thin Lizzy (my first, 1982. My ears rang for days. In fact they haven't stopped)
BB King
John Lee Hooker
Tom Waits
Throwing Muses
Patti Smith
Introduce yourself with 6 concerts you've been to :
Thin Lizzy
Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show
10cc
Roger Waters
B. B. King
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Thin Lizzy
Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show
10cc
Roger Waters
B. B. King
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
Introduce yourself with 6 concerts you've been to :
The Blue Nile
Kate Bush
Prince
The B-52s
Sex Pistols
The Cult
The Blue Nile
Kate Bush
Prince
The B-52s
Sex Pistols
The Cult
November 28, 2025 at 3:41 AM
Introduce yourself with 6 concerts you've been to :
Thin Lizzy (my first, 1982. My ears rang for days. In fact they haven't stopped)
BB King
John Lee Hooker
Tom Waits
Throwing Muses
Patti Smith
Thin Lizzy (my first, 1982. My ears rang for days. In fact they haven't stopped)
BB King
John Lee Hooker
Tom Waits
Throwing Muses
Patti Smith
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
If you want some good news this morning, I showed my three boys the PM doing the six/seven thing and now they have all stopped doing it.
November 27, 2025 at 7:03 AM
If you want some good news this morning, I showed my three boys the PM doing the six/seven thing and now they have all stopped doing it.
When Strangers Marry (1944). Before he was electrocuting audiences or whatever, William Castle directed this neat little noir, Kim Hunter reprising her ingenue in NYC role from The Seventh Victim. She’s in a jaunty beret chasing down a mystery again, but no complaints; ye can’t have too much of that
November 27, 2025 at 6:03 AM
When Strangers Marry (1944). Before he was electrocuting audiences or whatever, William Castle directed this neat little noir, Kim Hunter reprising her ingenue in NYC role from The Seventh Victim. She’s in a jaunty beret chasing down a mystery again, but no complaints; ye can’t have too much of that
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
#Noirvember #12
잃어버린 자 (Der Verlorene, 1951)
전후 독일의 난민 수용소에서 일하는 의사가 과거의 지인과 마주쳐 전시의 기억을 떠올린다. 〈M〉으로부터 이십 년 후 마침내 독일로 돌아간 피터 로르는 미국 필름 누아르에서 배운 바를 십분 살려 개인과 국가가 뒤얽혀 저지른 과오의 기억에 사로잡힌 채 망연한 전후 독일인의 초상을 그려냈으나 독일 관객들은 받아들이지 않았고 실망한 로르는 미국으로 돌아가 다시는 연출을 시도하지 않았으니, 누구보다도 독일인들의 손해가 막심하지 않았는지.
잃어버린 자 (Der Verlorene, 1951)
전후 독일의 난민 수용소에서 일하는 의사가 과거의 지인과 마주쳐 전시의 기억을 떠올린다. 〈M〉으로부터 이십 년 후 마침내 독일로 돌아간 피터 로르는 미국 필름 누아르에서 배운 바를 십분 살려 개인과 국가가 뒤얽혀 저지른 과오의 기억에 사로잡힌 채 망연한 전후 독일인의 초상을 그려냈으나 독일 관객들은 받아들이지 않았고 실망한 로르는 미국으로 돌아가 다시는 연출을 시도하지 않았으니, 누구보다도 독일인들의 손해가 막심하지 않았는지.
November 26, 2025 at 12:14 PM
#Noirvember #12
잃어버린 자 (Der Verlorene, 1951)
전후 독일의 난민 수용소에서 일하는 의사가 과거의 지인과 마주쳐 전시의 기억을 떠올린다. 〈M〉으로부터 이십 년 후 마침내 독일로 돌아간 피터 로르는 미국 필름 누아르에서 배운 바를 십분 살려 개인과 국가가 뒤얽혀 저지른 과오의 기억에 사로잡힌 채 망연한 전후 독일인의 초상을 그려냈으나 독일 관객들은 받아들이지 않았고 실망한 로르는 미국으로 돌아가 다시는 연출을 시도하지 않았으니, 누구보다도 독일인들의 손해가 막심하지 않았는지.
잃어버린 자 (Der Verlorene, 1951)
전후 독일의 난민 수용소에서 일하는 의사가 과거의 지인과 마주쳐 전시의 기억을 떠올린다. 〈M〉으로부터 이십 년 후 마침내 독일로 돌아간 피터 로르는 미국 필름 누아르에서 배운 바를 십분 살려 개인과 국가가 뒤얽혀 저지른 과오의 기억에 사로잡힌 채 망연한 전후 독일인의 초상을 그려냈으나 독일 관객들은 받아들이지 않았고 실망한 로르는 미국으로 돌아가 다시는 연출을 시도하지 않았으니, 누구보다도 독일인들의 손해가 막심하지 않았는지.
November 26, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Guilty Bystander (1950) is a Criterion Blackout Noir, and you do wonder how much of it Zachary Scott will remember when it’s all over. He’s after his missing son, but still on a right old bender, stoically declining drinks here, greedily chugging them there, fumes coming off him through the screen
November 24, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Guilty Bystander (1950) is a Criterion Blackout Noir, and you do wonder how much of it Zachary Scott will remember when it’s all over. He’s after his missing son, but still on a right old bender, stoically declining drinks here, greedily chugging them there, fumes coming off him through the screen
Scott Walker on the cover of No Regrets, shirt off, chugging a tin of Newkie Brown
November 24, 2025 at 11:08 AM
Scott Walker on the cover of No Regrets, shirt off, chugging a tin of Newkie Brown
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
Bad Day At Black Rock (1955) A train stops in a podunk town & a stranger steps off. They don't care too much for strangers round there
Spencer Tracy is the one-armed man who, almost despite himself, is going to get to the bottom of things, assuming that he doesn't get killed in the process
1/11
Spencer Tracy is the one-armed man who, almost despite himself, is going to get to the bottom of things, assuming that he doesn't get killed in the process
1/11
November 24, 2025 at 12:25 AM
Bad Day At Black Rock (1955) A train stops in a podunk town & a stranger steps off. They don't care too much for strangers round there
Spencer Tracy is the one-armed man who, almost despite himself, is going to get to the bottom of things, assuming that he doesn't get killed in the process
1/11
Spencer Tracy is the one-armed man who, almost despite himself, is going to get to the bottom of things, assuming that he doesn't get killed in the process
1/11
Peter Pan (1953). Was going to use this in a tweens class I have to do, but I’m glad I watched it through first. A sordid work of racist caricatures & violent sexual jealousy. Tinker Bell is as gaudy and treacherous as any noir tramp. Think I’ll play it safe with something from Disney’s woke period
November 23, 2025 at 9:44 AM
Peter Pan (1953). Was going to use this in a tweens class I have to do, but I’m glad I watched it through first. A sordid work of racist caricatures & violent sexual jealousy. Tinker Bell is as gaudy and treacherous as any noir tramp. Think I’ll play it safe with something from Disney’s woke period
I've been listening to this practically since it came out (big thanks to parents there) and I still can't get over it. The lyrics are unbearably sad on paper, and even more so coming through those golden pipes. Peak 70s production too. A masterpiece
youtu.be/YarvI9eCa8Q?...
youtu.be/YarvI9eCa8Q?...
Goodbye To Love
YouTube video by The Carpenters - Topic
youtu.be
November 22, 2025 at 6:35 AM
I've been listening to this practically since it came out (big thanks to parents there) and I still can't get over it. The lyrics are unbearably sad on paper, and even more so coming through those golden pipes. Peak 70s production too. A masterpiece
youtu.be/YarvI9eCa8Q?...
youtu.be/YarvI9eCa8Q?...
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
Horrors are merely described but not seen, dead sled dogs the only corpses on show, and James Arness's shadowy planet trekking space carrot is largely unseen; Nyby/Hawks lets the audiences imaginations do the heavy lifting and it works a treat. My Letterboxd review... #FilmSky boxd.it/bN3sxd
A ★★★★½ review of The Thing from Another World (1951)
Christian Nyby's (side-eye...) sci-fi classic; 87 delicious Hawksian minutes, with not an ounce of fat on display. It's all there; dialogue has never overlapped as entertainingly as this, Kenneth Tobe...
boxd.it
November 21, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Horrors are merely described but not seen, dead sled dogs the only corpses on show, and James Arness's shadowy planet trekking space carrot is largely unseen; Nyby/Hawks lets the audiences imaginations do the heavy lifting and it works a treat. My Letterboxd review... #FilmSky boxd.it/bN3sxd
- He wanted to kill you
- It would have hurt less that way
Framed (1947), a Criterion Blackout Noir. The jaw-dropping opening gets its hooks into you toot sweet. It looks like trucker noir, almost becomes The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, then settles into classic sucker-getting-played-by-bad-girl
- It would have hurt less that way
Framed (1947), a Criterion Blackout Noir. The jaw-dropping opening gets its hooks into you toot sweet. It looks like trucker noir, almost becomes The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, then settles into classic sucker-getting-played-by-bad-girl
November 21, 2025 at 8:31 AM
- He wanted to kill you
- It would have hurt less that way
Framed (1947), a Criterion Blackout Noir. The jaw-dropping opening gets its hooks into you toot sweet. It looks like trucker noir, almost becomes The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, then settles into classic sucker-getting-played-by-bad-girl
- It would have hurt less that way
Framed (1947), a Criterion Blackout Noir. The jaw-dropping opening gets its hooks into you toot sweet. It looks like trucker noir, almost becomes The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, then settles into classic sucker-getting-played-by-bad-girl
Reposted by Paul C. Dobbs
Un autre @zachweinersmith.bsky.social pour la route ?
November 15, 2025 at 5:27 PM
Un autre @zachweinersmith.bsky.social pour la route ?
“Three miles out of town and six feet down. All alone. With nobody to lie to.”
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950). Michael Atkinson called Barbara Payton childlike, yet “the most chillingly dangerous of noir actresses.” You can see what he means. She’s fragile as glass until she isn’t. Then she’s lethal
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950). Michael Atkinson called Barbara Payton childlike, yet “the most chillingly dangerous of noir actresses.” You can see what he means. She’s fragile as glass until she isn’t. Then she’s lethal
November 20, 2025 at 8:02 AM
“Three miles out of town and six feet down. All alone. With nobody to lie to.”
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950). Michael Atkinson called Barbara Payton childlike, yet “the most chillingly dangerous of noir actresses.” You can see what he means. She’s fragile as glass until she isn’t. Then she’s lethal
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950). Michael Atkinson called Barbara Payton childlike, yet “the most chillingly dangerous of noir actresses.” You can see what he means. She’s fragile as glass until she isn’t. Then she’s lethal
There's confidence, then there's thinking you know more about looking good than Gene Simmons
Ridiculous.
Gene Tierney by Frank Powolny.
November 20, 2025 at 5:43 AM
There's confidence, then there's thinking you know more about looking good than Gene Simmons