If you’ve got a bottle of whiskey, a ceiling fan lazily revolving above you, and a good eye for trouble (especially when it comes sauntering through your office door), then have we got a swell guide for you: the 100 best film noirs of all time!
To put together this rogues gallery, we kept it lean and hard-boiled: American-made movies from the 1940s and 1950s, with each rated after at least 10 reviews. And to get the know-all on noir, we’ve invited film writer and Noirvember creator Marya E. Gates to share an introduction.
Film noir now has many interpretations. Initially coined by Italian-born French film critic Nino Frank, he used the term to describe a wave of American films made in the 1940s with dark themes and highly stylized cinematography. Although some of these films began appearing during the war years, mainly adaptations of crime novels from the 1920s and 1930s from writers like Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, and Raymond Chandler. But it was in the post-World War II years that these films thrived, tapping into a malaise that began during the Great Depression and lingered as an even greater world weariness crept into a society that had witnessed the worst of humanity.
Many of the filmmakers who shaped this movement in the Hollywood studio system of the ’40s were European émigrés like Fritz Lang (Scarlet Street), Billy Wilder (Double Indemnity), Edgar G. Ulmer (Detour), Robert Siodmak (The Killers), Michael Curtiz (Mildred Pierce), and Jacques Tourneur (Out of the Past). These filmmakers brought with them aesthetics more aligned with continental film techniques including German expressionism, as well as a more psychological approach to storytelling that was expressed in both the script-writing and visual composition of their films.
Whether film noir is a genre, an era, a tone, or a movement is hotly debated. My favorite definition comes from the czar of Noir himself, Eddie Muller (host of TCM’s weekly program Noir Alley, and the Film Noir Foundation president) who refers to noir as “suffering with style.” In these films, characters go through the ringer. A hapless man falls victim to a cunning femme fatale. A police detective becomes disillusioned by the corruption all around him. An ex-con finds himself drawn into that one last job.
For the sake of this list, we’ve highlighted the top-reviewed films from the classic film noir era, roughly defined as starting in 1940 and ending in 1959. On this list you’ll find some of the most definitively noir films of the era. They’ve not only stood the test of time, but influenced the art of cinema as a whole. Among the Certified Fresh films on this list are some of my all-time favorites, like Otto Preminger’s Laura. This 1944 adaptation of the novel by Vera Caspary features an iconic and alluring performance by Gene Tierney as the title character, a Manhattan advertising exec whose mysterious murder brings together cynical detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews), playboy Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price), and caustic newspaper columnist Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb) with tragic results. It also became a major inspiration for David Lynch and Mark Frost’s landmark television series Twin Peaks.
What are some other films on this list that I recommend seeking out whether you are a film noir newbie or a seasoned fan? Alexander Mackendrick’s Sweet Smell of Success, starring Burt Lancaster as a powerful newspaper columnist and Tony Curtis as an unscrupulous press agent, is as insightful about the decay of American media as it ever was. Nicholas Ray’s In A Lonely Place, starring Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame, may not be the most faithful adaptation ever made (and you should absolutely read the book by Dorothy B. Hughes), but Ray’s poison pen letter to the Hollywood machine and toxic masculinity still stings today. True crime-inspired The Hitch-Hiker also takes a stark look at masculine violence, and includes some knockout location work in Lone Pine, California from actress-turned-director Ida Lupino.
For femme fatales, few are more depraved than Peggy Cummins as the heat-packing Annie Laurie Starr in Joseph H. Lewis’s Gun Crazy. Unless, of course, it’s Tierney again in the Technicolor noir Leave Her To Heaven from director John M. Stahl.
If you’re a fan of the decidedly not-so-noir To Have and Have Not, then check out a much more faithful adaptation of the Hemingway novel: Curtiz’s The Breaking Point, starring John Garfield as a charter boat captain in way over his head. Richard Fleischer’s train-set The Narrow Margin features the best performance from genre mainstay Marie Windsor. Roy Ward Baker’s Don’t Bother To Knock will have you re-examining everything you think you know about Marilyn Monroe as a dramatic actress. Dick Powell’s take on Philip Marlowe in Edward Dmytryk’s Murder, My Sweet gives Bogie in The Big Sleep a run for his money. Fred Zinnemann’s Act of Violence features a truly terrifying performance from star Robert Ryan and captures the lost beauty of L.A.’s Bunker Hill like no other. And Phil Karlson’s low-budget wonder Kansas City Confidential, starring John Payne and Coleen Gray, served as a major inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s debut Reservoir Dogs.
You can trace the impact of the films on this list throughout the history of cinema, whether it is in the noir movements in countries like Japan and France (Akira Kurosawa’s Stray Dog and Louis Malle’s Elevator to the Gallows were produced in this period), Nordic noir (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), the neo-noir films of early Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver), Christopher Nolan (Memento), and Michael Mann (Thief), the erotic thrillers of the 1980s and 1990s (Body Heat, Bound), and up to Best Picture Oscar-nominated films like Guillermo del Toro‘s re-imagining of Nightmare Alley. The cinematic light from these dark films continues to pulsate in the very heart of this thing we call the movies.
#1
Adjusted Score: 109835%
Critics Consensus: A psychologically complex portrait of obsession, Laura is also a deliciously well-crafted murder mystery.
#2
Adjusted Score: 109917%
Critics Consensus: Alfred Hitchcock’s earliest classic — and his own personal favorite — deals its flesh-crawling thrills as deftly as its finely shaded characters.
#3
Adjusted Score: 115975%
Critics Consensus: Suspenseful, labyrinthine, and brilliantly cast, The Maltese Falcon is one of the most influential noirs — as well as a showcase for Humphrey Bogart at his finest.
#4
Adjusted Score: 115188%
Critics Consensus: This atmospheric thriller is one of the undisputed masterpieces of cinema, and boasts iconic performances from Joseph Cotten and Orson Welles.
#5
Adjusted Score: 114668%
Critics Consensus: Arguably the greatest movie about Hollywood, Billy Wilder’s masterpiece Sunset Boulevard is a tremendously entertaining combination of noir, black comedy, and character study.
#6
Adjusted Score: 106605%
Critics Consensus: Sweet Smell of Success boasts a top-notch cast, sharp direction, atmospheric cinematography, and an appropriately jazzy score, making it one of the best noir crime thrillers ever made.
#7
Adjusted Score: 107527%
Critics Consensus: A provocative premise and inventive set design lights the way for Hitchcock diabolically entertaining masterpiece.
#8
Adjusted Score: 102898%
Critics Consensus: An intriguing, wonderfully subversive blend of art and commerce, Kiss Me Deadly is an influential noir classic.
#9
Adjusted Score: 103626%
Critics Consensus: Stylish and gripping, Detour offers further proof that a patsy and a femme fatale often add up to a satisfying story.
#10
Adjusted Score: 114058%
Critics Consensus: A dark, tautly constructed adaptation of James M. Cain’s novel — penned by Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler — Double Indemnity continues to set the standard for the best in Hollywood film noir.
#11
Adjusted Score: 107403%
Critics Consensus: Director Billy Wilder’s unflinchingly honest look at the effects of alcoholism may have had some of its impact blunted by time, but it remains a powerful and remarkably prescient film.
#12
Adjusted Score: 109977%
Critics Consensus: Broderick Crawford is spellbinding as politician Willie Stark in director Robert Rossen’s adaptation of the Robert Penn Warren novel about the corrosive effects of power on the human soul.
#13
Adjusted Score: 107105%
Critics Consensus: A perfect match of screenplay, director, and leading man, The Big Sleep stands as a towering achievement in film noir whose grim vitality remains undimmed.
#14
Adjusted Score: 103059%
Critics Consensus: Led by extraordinary performances from Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame, In a Lonely Place is a gripping noir of uncommon depth and maturity.
#15
Adjusted Score: 103287%
Critics Consensus: Sublime direction from Hitchcock, and terrific central performances from Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant make this a bona-fide classic worthy of a re-visit.
#16
Adjusted Score: 103214%
Critics Consensus: An expertly crafted noir with more on its mind than stylishly staged violence, The Killing establishes Stanley Kubrick as a filmmaker of uncommon vision and control.
#17
Adjusted Score: 108092%
Critics Consensus: Artistically innovative and emotionally gripping, Orson Welles’ classic noir is a visual treat, as well as a dark, sinister thriller.
#18
Adjusted Score: 105661%
Critics Consensus: Cruel, dark, but undeniably effective, Diabolique is a suspense thriller as effective as Hitchcock’s best work and with a brilliant twist ending.
#19
Adjusted Score: 99839%
Critics Consensus: Simply and sturdily constructed, The Hitch-Hiker consistently derives genuine terror from a chillingly plausible scenario.
#20
Adjusted Score: 103259%
Critics Consensus: Featuring Robert Mitchum’s formidable performance as a child-hunting preacher, The Night of the Hunter is a disturbing look at good and evil.
#21
Adjusted Score: 100095%
Critics Consensus: Anchored by a wistful Robert Mitchum, Out of the Past is an exemplary noir steeped in doom and sensuality.
#22
Adjusted Score: 99519%
Critics Consensus: Spearheaded by an excellent Kirk Douglas, Ace in the Hole is an incisive and sardonic satire that, much like its opportunistic hero, never lets moral compunction get in the way of a good story.
#23
Adjusted Score: 97806%
Critics Consensus: Powerfully acted and satisfyingly dark, Pickup on South Street is a Cold War noir that moves confidently to the rhythm of city street life.
#24
Adjusted Score: 99919%
Critics Consensus: Well-acted and strikingly filmed, Gun Crazy (Deadly Is the Female) delves into the darkness of human nature with noir-fueled B-movie flair.
#25
Adjusted Score: 100602%
Critics Consensus: Rita Hayworth carries Gilda on the sheer strength of her screen presence, rendering the film’s somewhat middling story almost irrelevant.
#26
Adjusted Score: 94705%
Critics Consensus: Tied together by a powerhouse performance from Joan Crawford, Mildred Pierce blends noir and social drama to soapily intoxicating effect.
#27
Adjusted Score: 98439%
Critics Consensus: Playing against type with Nightmare Alley, Tyrone Power and Edmund Goulding deliver some of their best work in a carnival-set noir unafraid to showcase true despair.
#28
Adjusted Score: 91468%
Critics Consensus: Spellbound‘s exploration of the subconscious could have benefitted from more analysis, but Alfred Hitchcock’s psychedelic flourishes elevate this heady thriller along with Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck’s star power.
#29
Adjusted Score: 94171%
Critics Consensus: Leave Her to Heaven suffers from a surfeit of unlikable characters, but the solid cast — led by an outstanding Gene Tierney — makes it hard to turn away.
#30
Adjusted Score: 92850%
Critics Consensus: Energetic and inventive, The Lady from Shanghai overcomes its script deficiencies with some of Orson Welles’ brilliantly conceived set pieces.
#31
Adjusted Score: 104957%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#32
Adjusted Score: 104801%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#33
Adjusted Score: 103790%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#34
Adjusted Score: 105318%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#35
Adjusted Score: 102384%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#36
Adjusted Score: 102063%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#37
Adjusted Score: 101620%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#38
Adjusted Score: 101480%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#39
Adjusted Score: 101230%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#40
Adjusted Score: 101325%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#41
Adjusted Score: 101447%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#42
Adjusted Score: 101212%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#43
Adjusted Score: 100989%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#44
Adjusted Score: 100989%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#45
Adjusted Score: 101254%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#46
Adjusted Score: 100944%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#47
Adjusted Score: 100872%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#48
Adjusted Score: 101066%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#49
Adjusted Score: 100922%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#50
Adjusted Score: 100350%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#51
Adjusted Score: 100657%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#52
Adjusted Score: 100974%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#53
Adjusted Score: 100889%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#54
Adjusted Score: 100659%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#55
Adjusted Score: 100889%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#56
Adjusted Score: 102800%
Critics Consensus: Raoul Walsh’s crime drama goes further into the psychology of a gangster than most fear to tread and James Cagney’s portrayal of the tragic anti-hero is constantly volatile.
#57
Adjusted Score: 101579%
Critics Consensus: The Asphalt Jungle is an expertly told crime story with attention paid to the crime and characters in equal measure.
#58
Adjusted Score: 102127%
Critics Consensus: Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall are at the mercy of Edward G. Robinson’s menacing gangster — and so is the audience in this enthralling chamber piece.
#59
Adjusted Score: 101506%
Critics Consensus: Not even notorious studio meddling can diminish the craft and tantalizing suspense of Suspicion, a sly showcase for Joan Fontaine’s nervy prowess and Alfred Hitchcock’s flair for disquiet.
#60
Adjusted Score: 101304%
Critics Consensus: The sins of World War II reemerge in an idyllic American setting in this diabolically effective noir, buoyed by Orson Welles’ virtuosic direction and performance.
#61
Adjusted Score: 100649%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#62
Adjusted Score: 99425%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#63
Adjusted Score: 98146%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#64
Adjusted Score: 98120%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#65
Adjusted Score: 97949%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#66
Adjusted Score: 95821%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#67
Adjusted Score: 95791%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#68
Adjusted Score: 95754%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#69
Adjusted Score: 96008%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#70
Adjusted Score: 96719%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#71
Adjusted Score: 93877%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#72
Adjusted Score: 94632%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#73
Adjusted Score: 95210%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#74
Adjusted Score: 94568%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#75
Adjusted Score: 93256%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#76
Adjusted Score: 93369%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#77
Adjusted Score: 96318%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#78
Adjusted Score: 93565%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#79
Adjusted Score: 91474%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#80
Adjusted Score: 93845%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#81
Adjusted Score: 90635%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#82
Adjusted Score: 92475%
Critics Consensus: The Postman Always Rings Twice spins a sultry web of mystery with a gripping adaptation of a classic noir tale.
#83
Adjusted Score: 91572%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#84
Adjusted Score: 91268%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#85
Adjusted Score: 91722%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#86
Adjusted Score: 91739%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#87
Adjusted Score: 89914%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#88
Adjusted Score: 89093%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#89
Adjusted Score: 89936%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#90
Adjusted Score: 87170%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#91
Adjusted Score: 87388%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#92
Adjusted Score: 86833%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#93
Adjusted Score: 86904%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#94
Adjusted Score: 86455%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#95
Adjusted Score: 86003%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#96
Adjusted Score: 85887%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#97
Adjusted Score: 83944%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#98
Adjusted Score: 84369%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#99
Adjusted Score: 84410%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#100
Adjusted Score: 81817%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.