This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite
Starry Starry Noir: Rebels and Censors by Bernie Dowling analyzes the influence of censorship on 20th-century Hollywood film noir and provides a wide range of impacted directors, actors, and writers. It discusses the enforcement of the Hays Code, restricting portrayals of subjects like suicide, sexuality, and race, and details how these limits shaped films such as Dishonored Lady and Strange Illusion. Dowling talks about directors like Anthony Mann’s noir work and later shift to Westerns, Ida Lupino’s roles as actress and a rare turn as a female director, and the career transitions of actors such as Frank Lovejoy, William Talman, and Raymond Burr due to censorship and studio pressures. Dowling speaks on topics like Erich von Stroheim’s move from directing to acting and the adaptation issues faced by writers like Adele Comandini, all of which demonstrate censorship’s broad impact on film content and professional trajectories.
Starry Starry Noir: Rebels and Censors by Bernie Dowling is a fantastic resource, with strong, precise writing supported by an array of exceptional photography and visual elements that enhance the narrative, especially for readers like me who are new to the genre. The most interesting moment for me comes with a strange twist involving Akira Kurosawa’s The Men Who Tread on the Tiger’s Tail, which was banned by Japanese wartime censors for allegedly mocking samurai and then by American censors for supposedly glorifying them. Another is Robert Stevenson’s move from noir to Disney, effectively showing the apples-to-oranges shift because of “moral values.” Overall, this exhaustively researched book, the third in the Film Noir in the Public Domain series, is brilliant in both its comprehensive delivery and visual detailing. Very highly recommended.