Jealousy. Manipulation. Murder. And a man who never stood a chance.

The Great Flamarion is a compact 1945 film noir from director Anthony Mann, made before the filmmaker became famous for the psychologically complex westerns that would define much of his later career.

Erich von Stroheim plays Flamarion, a cold and solitary sharpshooter performing a dangerous stage act with a married couple, Connie and Al Wallace. Away from the spotlight, Connie begins drawing Flamarion into something far more dangerous than anything happening on stage.

What follows is less a conventional crime mystery than a study of manipulation and obsession. The audience can see the trap taking shape. Flamarion cannot — or perhaps simply does not want to.

Mary Beth Hughes gives Connie the charm required to make the story work, while von Stroheim turns the seemingly controlled Flamarion into an increasingly tragic figure. Dan Duryea completes a triangle in which affection, jealousy and self-interest become almost impossible to separate.

At barely eighty minutes, the film wastes little time. Its theatrical settings, shadows and fatalistic structure contain many of the ingredients that made American film noir so distinctive.

And there is another reason to watch it today: films like The Great Flamarion are remarkably easy to lose in an age of endless streaming menus. It may not be the noir title an algorithm puts in front of you.

That is exactly why we did.

Why you’ve GOTTA.WATCH it: A forgotten slice of 1940s noir — dark, economical and driven by one spectacularly destructive love triangle.

Title: The Great Flamarion
Year: 1945
Duration: 78 min
Category: Films
Genre: Film Noir, Crime, Drama
Country: United States
Language: English
Director: Anthony Mann
Starring: Erich von Stroheim, Mary Beth Hughes, Dan Duryea