I Want To Live!

Film noir, a French word for “black film”, is a term used to describe dark crime dramas.  This week, we are assigned to watch an example of film noir, which was never on the top of my movie list before.  After browsing the IMDB website, I make up my mind to watch I Want To Live by Robert Wise.  In this old movie, Barbara Graham is a woman with poor moral standards, who has been sentenced for some “petty” crimes. Two men she knows murder an older woman. When they get caught they confess that Barbara is also a murderer.

I still clearly remember the final scenes, which lead up to Graham's execution.  As the audience, I can feel Graham's agony, despair and desperation through facial expressions and words when she finally loses the battle to save her life. Whether one sees Graham as a murderer or a pathetic victim of society, the dark reality of her story leaves a strong memory in my mind.