The Postman Always Rings Twice

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Answered Questions (4)

Greg John, no. It is short and gritty, but it's on the unbelievable side. Double Indemnity is pretty much the same story, more polished, more intense, but …moreJohn, no. It is short and gritty, but it's on the unbelievable side. Double Indemnity is pretty much the same story, more polished, more intense, but no, that isn't noir either. Hammet and Chandler? No, they are hard-boiled private eyes, but that's not noir either. Real Noir? Try Cornell Woolrich's "I Married a Dead Man.". Or Jim Thompson's "Killer Inside Me." Or David Goodis' "Down There", made into the Trauffaut film, "Shoot the Piano Player" (the French, you know, embraced American noir, at the time, and gave it a name, more than Americans, who were hooked on Erle Stanley Gardner in the 1940s and 1950s. Or Kenneth Fearing's "The Big Clock", made into a very good noir film. Or just find Otto Penzler's "Big Book of Noir" and find a favorite author and go from there. That's not to say "Postman" isn't good, as it is. But real noir came during and after WW2, imo. (less)
Joyce I, too, was puzzled by the title and was hoping there was something here to explain it - something I missed when reading the book. But, nope...nothing…moreI, too, was puzzled by the title and was hoping there was something here to explain it - something I missed when reading the book. But, nope...nothing.

So I Google'd it and found a blog online from the Library of Congress.

Apparently a reader had written Cain much the same - why this title?? The author responded that it came from the custom/tradition of the English and Irish letter carriers who "ring twice" when delivering mail - and Cain responded 'doubled as a metaphor for the delayed justice meted out to Frank and Cora, the killers, with “postman” standing in for “justice.” '(less)
Bill Jenkins This is a complicated question. Is the story telling as good as Steinbeck and Hemingway? Yes. Do they have the same styles? Absolutely not. Should we …moreThis is a complicated question. Is the story telling as good as Steinbeck and Hemingway? Yes. Do they have the same styles? Absolutely not. Should we revere Cain in the same manner as Steinbeck and Hemingway? Absolutely.(less)
Bill Jenkins This is the same kind of question as "Why did they cast Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher?" Answer: Someone thought they would gross more money.…moreThis is the same kind of question as "Why did they cast Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher?" Answer: Someone thought they would gross more money.(less)

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