The Film Noir Files for September 2026

Welcome to The Film Noir Files, the noir series here at Shadows and Satin and over at Speakeasy, the blog authored by my pal Kristina, where each month we recommend a film noir feature for you to watch on TCM. We never know what the other has selected until we post, and part of the fun is trying to never pick the same movie! In all the years that I’ve had this blog – and I started it in 2013 – I’ve never written in depth about The Big Sleep. And I’m not going to start today! But what I AM going to do is select it as my Film Noir Files pick of the month. This meet cute with Gen. Sternwood kicks off the plot. The Big Sleep, which stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, is notorious for its labyrinthine plot that’s so convoluted that even writer Raymond Chandler – author of the book on which the film is based – had to admit that he wasn’t sure who killed one of the characters. Still, it’s a noir favorite – one of those where you have to kinda disregard the story and just go along for…