A Girl and a Gun: The Complete Guide to Film Noir on Video

by David N. Meyer

From Double Indemnity to La Femme Nikita, this comprehensive video renter's guide covers films both classic and modern, foreign and domestic. Each entry includes a concise plot summary and complete screen credits.

Genres: Film

303 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1998

About the author

Author of TWENTY THOUSAND ROADS: THE BALLAD OF GRAM PARSONS AND HIS COSMIC AMERICAN MUSIC
(Random House)

THE BEEGEES THE BIOGRAPHY
(Da Capo Press)

A GIRL AND A GUN: THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO FILM NOIR
(Avon Books)

THE 100 BEST FILMS YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF
(St. Martin's Press)

co-author of THE BOOK OF THE SUBGENIUS

under the pen name Lloyd St. Alcorn

HALBERD, DREAM WARRIOR

ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS

THE SERPENT MOUND

Reviews

[Jill H.]

My favorite genre of film is noir and this book covers 100 of the best noir films from the USA and France. The classic noir period lasted from 1941 to 1958 and includes such films as The Maltese Falcon, Gun Crazy, Night and the City, and Touch of Evil. Many were considered "B" films at the time and were made on a shoestring but over the years they have grown in reputation and have taken on cult status.(think Gun Crazy ). Granted there were some that rather surprised me by their inclusion but the author explained the noir characteristics of these films and I was convinced.

The author sometimes get rather carried away in his descriptions with psychological musings regarding the motivations of the characters. But it is not enough to affect the enjoyment of this book for the lover of noir films and will cause the film buff to go searching for some of these films. Truly a delight!

[Julio The Fox]

God bless David Meyer. This loving and savagely critical guide to film noir stands out for its brutal honesty in endorsing and dismissing noir giants: "CHINATOWN may well be the perfect movie". "DOA has the best idea ever for a suspense film, and the director proceeds to blow that idea". "For once critics and audiences agree: THE MALTESE FALCON marks the birth of film noir". (Julio Pino: I disagree. Bogart's Sam Spade does not live in an absurd world). THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE is terrible. The remake, with Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange, is even worse". DOUBLE INDEMNITY would be the classic noir were it not for the casting of Fred McMurray as Walter Neff". sad, but true. Meyer has a special eye for femme noir, and its reigning queen, Ida Lupino. Her star vehicle, ROAD HOUSE (no, not the Patrick Swayze monstrosity) and her direction of THE HITCHHIKER are twin peaks of noir.
Film noir fans: Rush to get your copy!

[Viktor]

Not a book that you'd read in one sitting, but rather one to have handy as a reference. I just finished Leonard Maltin's "151 Movies You've Never Heard Of " or whatever it's called, and felt the same way.

Great reference for finding info on some obscure stuff.

[John Weagly]

A great, great, great starter guide to film noir!

A few years ago, this book + a summer-long noir festival on Turner Classic Movies led to a life-long obsession.