Enter the world of film noir, a world of darkness, ambiguity, and moral corruption. Here, elevated train platforms tower above murky, narrow streets. Travel down these mean streets. lit intermittently by flashing neon lights. At any moment you may be swept up in a vortex of sordid crime.

Meet the cynical and obsessive heroes of film noir portrayed by actors like Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, James Cageny, Joan Crawford, and Bette Davis. You may encounter a gun-toting gangster, a femme fatale wrapped in fur, a detective with the brim of his hat turned down, or a desperate murderer lurking in the shadows of a doorway. In a walk-up room Alan Ladd smokes a cigarette in the early morning hours waiting for something ominous to happen.