Contents JAY SCOTT TEN YEARS LATER
Remembering the finest film writer who ever lived

words on the bottom
Roman Polanski's short films

MIDNITE MOVIES
At last, BLUE SUNSHINE is on DVD

RAY DENNIS STECKLER AND YOU
Part Four of our serial continues with GOOF ON THE LOOSE and THE LEMON GROVE KIDS

DISCOVERIES IN THE DARK
The rarest of the rare checks out two banned short films-
THE MAKING OF MONSTERS; SUPERSTAR: THE KAREN CARPENTER STORY

NOTES FROM THE UNDERGROUND
Robert Kramer's STARTING PLACE
-plus our usual columns-
SHORT TAKES
PRINT FILM
TAIL SLATE

Contents It seemed only fitting that the thirteenth issue would devote itself entirely to the dark realm of the enduringly popular category of film noir. Skot Deeming, David Faris, Simon St. Laurent and Greg Woods do a series of articles which explore the chronology of noir. From its roots in German Expressionism to the classic American period (roughly 1940 to 1959), and then showing its influence beyond with the works of Jean-Pierre Melville, and various independent productions, ESR #13 offers another look at the well-studied field of noir, without highlighting the usual titles.

After an introductory piece correlating the German Expressionism movement to American film noir, there is an article on the dark mini-budget noirs of Anthony Mann (STRANGE IMPERSONATION; DESPARATE; RAILROADED; RAW DEAL; T-MEN; HE WALKED BY NIGHT).

Then the lenghty midsection devoted to the classic period offers reviews of B-noirs, or lesser-remembered A pictures, with an accentuation on their visual attributes as opposed to their scripted themes. Here you will find explorations of : STRANGER ON THE THIRD FLOOR (1940), PHANTOM LADY (1944), DETOUR (1945), BLACK ANGEL (1946), BORN TO KILL (1947), CROSSFIRE (1947), DEAD RECKONING (1947), FEAR IN THE NIGHT (1947), THE LONG NIGHT (1947), THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI (1948), THE NAKED CITY (1948), THE PITFALL (1948), FOLLOW ME QUIETLY (1949), GUN CRAZY (1949), PANIC IN THE STREETS (1950), TRY AND GET ME! (1950), KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL (1952), THE NARROW MARGIN (1952), PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET (1953), THE BLUE GARDENIA (1953), JAIL BAIT (1954), PUSHOVER (1954), THE BIG COMBO (1955), KILLERS KISS (1955), KISS ME DEADLY (1955), THE CRIMSON KIMONO (1959)

'words on the bottom' studies four noir pictures by the great Jean-Pierre Melville: BOB LE FLAMBEUR (1955); LE DOULOS (1963); LE SAMOURAI (1967); UN FLIC (1972)

Our continuing series, 'Ray Dennis Steckler and You' fittingly arrives at the chapter in this gonzo genius' career when he made perhaps his most subdued pictures, the noir homage, BODY FEVER (1969).

In '49th Parallel', we examine John Paizs' cracked parody, CRIMEWAVE (1985).

'Notes from the Underground' explores Jon Jost's fascinating no-budget postmodern experiment, ANGEL CITY (1976).

And finally, we conclude with 'Print Film', offering reviews of essential books of film noir: Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir (Eddie Muller); Dark City Dames: The Wicked Women of Film Noir (Eddie Muller); Death on the Cheap: The Lost B Movies of Film Noir (Arthur Lyons); and Somewhere In the Night: Film Noir and the American City (Nicholas Christopher)