Directed by Irving Lerner • 1958 • United States
Starring Vince Edwards, Phillip Pine, Herschel Bernardi
Vince Edwards stars as a hired assassin whose latest “assignment” (Caprice Toriel) is about to testify against the mob. But this particular target is not so easy to get at. So he waits . . . and waiting gives the assassin what he needs least: time to think. Cited by Martin Scorsese as a B-movie favorite, MURDER BY CONTRACT has lean, efficient direction by Irving Lerner (CITY OF FEAR), complemented by the stark black-and-white cinematography of Lucien Ballard (THE WILD BUNCH).
Up Next in Columbia Noir
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Nightfall
Directed by Jacques Tourneur • 1956 • United States
Starring Brian Keith, Aldo Ray, Anne Bancroft
Directed by Jacques Tourneur from one of the masterful, despairing novels of David Goodis, NIGHTFALL is the tale of an innocent man trapped in a senseless and lethal web of seduction and crime. The... -
Strange Fascination
Directed by Hugo Haas • 1952 • United States
Starring Hugo Haas, Cleo Moore, Mona BarrieOne of a string of intriguing low-budget noirs directed in Hollywood by Czech actor turned gutter auteur Hugo Haas, STRANGE FASCINATION stars the filmmaker himself as a renowned concert pianist whose relatio...
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The Crimson Kimono
Directed by Samuel Fuller • 1959 • United States
Starring Victoria Shaw, Glenn Corbett, James ShigetaPulp maestro Samuel Fuller lends his slam-bang stylistic punch to this complex, fascinating noir that doubles as a trenchant social document of 1950s America. When a stripper is murdered in LA’s...
