27. Film Noir scepticism (part 2), with Sheldon Hall

Following on from the first part last week, Sergio and Sheldon Hall reunite for a second bout of Film Noir scepticism. How well does Sergio stand up to Sheldon's stinging and relentless criticism?

The genres being considered include Westerns, Horror, Science Fiction and the work of Alfred Hitchcock. 

To listen to the first part of the podcast, visit:

• Apple buff.ly/wDl4xnB
• Spotify buff.ly/34bRrLu
• YouTube buff.ly/QyLHaCo

The titles being considered, in chronological order, include:

THE SEVENTH VICTIM (Robson, 1944)

WHISPERING SMITH (Fenton, 1948)

ROPE (Hitchcock, 1948)

WINCHESTER 73 (Mann, 1950)

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (Siegel, 1956)

VERTIGO (Hitchcock, 1958)

Sheldon Hall is an Emeritus Fellow at Sheffield Hallam University, UK. A former film journalist and lecturer, he is the author of Zulu: With Some Guts Behind It (2005/2014) and Armchair Cinema: A History of Feature Films on British Television, 1929-1981 (2024), co-author of Epics, Spectacles, and Blockbusters: A Hollywood History (2010), and co-editor of Widescreen Worldwide (2010) and Film Critics and British Film Culture: New Shots in the Dark (2025). In addition, he has contributed chapters and articles on British and American film history to numerous books and journals and interviews to many Blu-ray special editions of films including, most recently, Sirk in Germany (1934-35), The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), Black Tuesday (1954), H.M.S. Defiant (1962) and Juggernaut (1974)