As the nights draw in, High Contrast Cinema bring a fatalistic film noir classic from 1946 back to the big screen.

 

The Killers, featuring the film debut of Burt Lancaster opposite a smouldering Ava Gardener, is based on a short story by Ernest Hemingway, and one of the rare adaptations of the legendary writer's work that he approved of.

 

Featuring plenty of noir staples - a femme fatale, a flashback structure, atmospheric visuals evoking a shady underworld - it's arguably director Robert Siodmak's finest entry into the genre, and with reliable support from Edmond O'Brien it remains as thrilling as it was 78 years ago.