Welcome to the world of film noir

Underworld: It's such an atmospheric and apt description for the world of crime. In the popular imagination a shadowy criminal underworld lurks beneath our daylight world, perhaps down only a single flight of stairs.
Tauranga Film Society welcomes you to the cinematic world of film noir, a term coined by a French critic (literally black film) to describe post-war Hollywood's dark and foreboding crime thrillers - filled with femme fatales, mood lighting, and double-crosses galore.
The American's didn't have a monopoly on crime, or a monopoly on film noir either. The French created their own unique version and there's no better place to start than with Touchez pas au Grisbi (Hands of the Loot), screening 6.20pm, Wednesday, June 15 at Rialto Cinema.
What makes Touchez so much fun is director Jacques Becker's subversion of American conventions. Forget the dark trenchcoats and fedoras pulled low. His gangsters may live in an underworld, but it's in full view of law abiding citizens, and these criminals are expert at blending in.
Here's the set-up: two ageing gangsters, Max and Riton, have pulled a gold heist - heavy enough to permanently retire from a life of crime. The only problem is, their underworld confederates include circling sharks - with such sharp teeth, dear - ready for the slightest whiff of stolen gold.
Enter a femme fatale, or in Riton's case a dance club girl who's threatening to ditch him, and soon their secret isn't a secret any more ... If one word sums up the themes of Touchez it would be secrets. To survive, these criminals must keep their activities secret not only from the law abiding world, but from each other as well. And the most risky secrets of all exist in their own interior world of emotions and friendship. This is the real underworld of Touchez.
Director Jacques Becker created a tantalising film which slowly unveils its characters, giving us glimpses of who they are, rather than laying them out in big capital letters.
Take Max: An urbane older man, with nightclub girl attached, and as he cautions Riton about his own high maintenance girl, he's grossly dismissive of women in general. But we soon discover Max is quite the ladies' man, and the mutual affection from these other women is genuine: He's the sort of guy you can trust. On the other hand he won't hesitate to slap a dame who's in the way. We later discover Max has a wealthy, elegant mistress, kept secret from his closest acquaintances.
Becker reveals his characters in subtle ways and often the smallest gestures are most revealing. A special moment is the playful flick on his wrist from Max's mistress as they sit together in the gangster cafe. It's during the final few frames of the film, when she's in public with him for the first time and is almost certainly unaware of his criminal connections. Max is glum over the lost gold and death of a close friend. Her playful little gesture suddenly alters our conception of their relationship.
And in the final 10 minutes there's a double-cross, shootout, car chase and conflagration. It's a crime thriller after all.
Tauranga Film Society presents films every second Wednesday at Rialto Cinema. Ask at the Rialto counter for the 2011 programme, or contact Neale: neale@orcon.net.nz