Foster Hirsch's first book, before THE DARK SIDE OF THE SCREEN and the many others that have followed it, was (like Bob's) originally a graduate school thesis: his bio-filmography of Joseph Losey. That helps to explain his motivation for (and effectiveness in) obtaining the pre-European phase of Losey's career. IIRC Foster was among the first writers to stand up for Losey's version of M, which went through a period of deep obscurity that actually exceeded what befell THE PROWLER (and one of my personal faves, THE LAWLESS, which took until 2018 to be re-screened as part of Elliot Lavine's "Dark Side of the Dream" series at the Roxie).
That's a pitch-perfect summary, Carl--with only one correction required: the former mastermind of the Blackboard actually spelled his first name with a "c"--Dark Marc (Dolezal). And a look at this page--which is still indirectly aligned to the Blackboard--will remind you how long ago it was when the "Danger & Despair Knitting Circle" was a prominent presence in film noir evangelism.
http://www.noirfilm.com/Screenings.htm
Click on the links to see the energy level for noir that flickered out in the wake of the first wave of home video exploitation in latter part of the 2000s. It's a different ballgame now...
Responses