El Leyton

Okay, this isn't traditional shadowy urban black and white film noir. In fact it's rural, sun-drenched, and in vivid, circus-like color. But the story and characters reek wonderfully of noir. It made me think of The Postman Always Rings Twice, though the plot is completely different. The three main characters are all absolutely unforgettable, beautifully painted against a gorgeous seaside backdrop and brought to raging life by great, great, great actors. Even the supporting characters are all unique, fully rounded real people despite limited screen time, which is a credit to the writing and directing. There is not one wasted moment, not one superfluous word of dialogue in El Leyton.

I picked this up on a whim at the public library and now I'm contemplating putting it on my all-time top ten list. Amazing.