Film Screenings
German Film Noir Night

Closing night films and jazz performance at Noir City Seattle.

Thu, 02/20/2020
6:00 PM SIFF Cinema Egyptian

Goethe Pop Up Seattle is partnering with SIFF to bring German classics to Seattle as part of the NOIR CITY film festival.
 
The Film Noir night starts with The Devil Strikes at Night (1957), which takes place in Hamburg during World War II. A barmaid is found dead and Willi Keun (Werner Peters) is quickly considered a suspect. The case seems to be closed, but the detective superintendent Axel Kersten (Claus Holm) is not yet convinced and seeks the real murderer. Afraid of a scandal, the authorities of the Third Reich do not accept the truth that contradicts with the propaganda of the regime. Both, the detective’s and the audience’s integrity and morality are challenged. Will Kersten be able to save Willi Keun’s life?
 
About the filmmaker:
 
Robert Siodmak, one of the greatest practitioners of Hollywood noir (Phantom Lady, The Killers, Criss Cross, et al) and also known for directing the silent movie People on Sunday, fled from the Nazis in 1933 and later returned to Germany in the 1950s to finish his career. The Devil Strikes at Night was the most powerful film of those later years and a subtle yet scathing payback to the Nazis who chased him from his homeland. Based on the true story of the murderer, Bruno Lüdke, Siodmak created a tense policier and psychological drama that explores the struggle of those who did not flee the Reich; a story of maintaining integrity and morality in the face of overwhelming corruption and evil.  
 
Make sure to attend the special pre-show performance from jazz band Dmitri Matheny Group and enjoy 1950s noir music with an international flavor. The performance starts at 05:15 PM.

More information and tickets available HERE 

The noir event ends with a screening at 8:30 pm of Black Gravel, a rediscovered and digitally restored classic by Helmut Käutner. The film takes place in a small village in rural postwar Germany that undergoes a nasty transformation when the American military decides it is the perfect spot for a missile base. It is an uncompromising depiction of a nation in the grip of bitter defeat, lawlessness, and lingering anti-Semitism.
 
More information and tickets available HERE 

This event is part of NOIR CITY. The 2020 edition of SIFF’s mini-festival takes place February 14-20, 2020 and features an array of classic films from around the globe.