As I re-examined that list earlier in the month while spending time with a whole series of programming ideas, I felt that this proposed series should be larger in scope. What the Roxie series focuses on is the period that Dan unpacked from obscurity, covering a time frame that intersects with the early years of film noir.
Though it is unquestionably a long shot that an expanded series would be accepted and implemented by FNF, the purpose of the exercise to expand the time range of "spy noir" in both directions would be to demonstrate how the idea can totally support a ten-day presentation. If NC 18 can be seen as presenting a different aspect of film noir that needs to be accounted for in order to grasp the full range of "dark film's" aesthetic components, then "spy noir" has a similar place in such presentations and deserves a showcase by the organization with the most audience reach.
The following is a first cut, looking through many sources--from SPIONE to SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD, trying to keep it in the black & white realm (so no IPCRESS FILE...) and showing the increasing international fascination with clandestine operations. From this list, the films in bold type would be my initial impulse for such a festival, trying to "mind-meld" with those folk who'd be the front men for the whole shebang...folks are encouraged to leap in and make suggestions and corrections, etc., etc.
SPIONE (1928)
MATA HARI (1931)
SHANGHAI EXPRESS (1932)
I WAS A SPY (1933, UK)
THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1934, UK)
SECRET AGENT (1936, UK)
THE GENERAL DIED AT DAWN (1936)
MADEMOISELLE DOCTEUR (1937, France)
DARK JOURNEY (1937, UK) young Vivien Leigh
INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENT (1938)
GIBRALTAR (1938, France)
CONFESSIONS OF A NAZI SPY (1939)
MR. MOTO’s LAST WARNING (1939)
SPIES OF THE AIR (1939, UK)
NIGHT TRAIN TO MUNICH (1940, UK)
UNPUBLISHED STORY (1941)
DANGEROUSLY THEY LIVE (1942)
JOAN OF PARIS (1942)
NIGHTMARE (1942)
THE SECRET CODE (1942) serial
THE FALLEN SPARROW (1943)
ASSIGNMENT IN BRITTANY (1943)
CHINA (1943)
SECRET AGENT OF JAPAN (1943)
MINISTRY OF FEAR (1944)
THE HOUSE ON 92ND STREET (1945)
NOTORIOUS (1946)
I SEE A DARK STRANGER (1946, UK)
THE STRANGER (1946)
SECRET AGENT (1947, USSR)
QUE DIOS ME PERDONE aka MAY GOD FORGIVE ME (1948, Mexico) Maria Felix
SPY HUNT (1950)
FIVE FINGERS (1952)
THE THIEF (1952)
NO WAY BACK (1953, Germany)
UOMINI OMBRA aka SHADOW MEN (1954, Italy)
LES ESPIONS (1957, France)
LA CHATTE (1958, France)
NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)
LA NUIT DES ESPIONS (1959, France) so what if we’ve already shown it??
CIRCLE OF DECEPTION (1960, UK)
ME FAIRE ÇA A MOI (1960, France) Eddie Constantine
L’OEIL DU MONOCLE (1962, France) Paul Meurisse
THE MIND BENDERS (1963, UK)
36 HOURS (1964)
ALPHAVILLE (1965, France) Eddie for Eddie!
MORITURI (1965)
THE IPCRESS FILE (1965, UK)
THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD (1965, UK)
IICC (short for If I Counted Correctly...) that's 28 films, which likely needs to be cut down a bit further, but since I'm not going to be the one running the zoo, I'll leave the rest of the work to those who will stand and spew from the Castro stage.
As it stands, it preserves a good bit of the original vision of the Roxie proposal, demonstrating how espionage is solidly wedded to early noir. We get more "front end" in the 30s, and 10-12 films from post-WWII into the sixties to see how "spy noir" slowly decoupled itself from noir...
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