The Big Combo (1955)

Hard-boiled noir at its best: silly story, edgy lines as sweaty hat brims. The Big Combo (dir. Joseph Lewis) is almost all you can wish for in the genre. This is pre-Tarantino pulp with characters called Diamond and Brown. Diamond is the police lieutenant who is hunting down a big-time gangster, Brown. Diamond, in a state of self-rigtheous zeal, tries to get access to Brown through the latter's girlfriend Lowell, a troubled dame. You guess what will happen: the lieutenant gets obsessed with the girl and the gangster is a mere excuse. The plot introduces characters such as The Dead Wife, the Sad Swede Dreyer and a few thugs (and even a romantic underling-couple!). All this is enhanced by a jazzy soundtrack and stark images of violence, shadowy faces and fog. The obsessed detective driven by some secret desire, the sad gangster moll and the cruel, sadistic mobster  are staples in the genre. The Big Combo may not be a very original film, but it excels in tension. Yes, The Big Combo contains no sympathetic characters and its take on repression and stubborn conviction renders it into a creepy viewing experience.