Noirsville Bonus Noir TV - Fallen Angels (1993-1995)

Episode 4 - The Frightening Frammis - Directed by Tom Cruise, written by Jon Robin Baitz (teleplay), Howard A. Rodman (teleplay) based on the short story by Jim Thompson.

The episode stars Isabella Rossellini (Blue Velvet (1986), Siesta (1987), Wild at Heart (1990)) as Babe Lonsdale, Bill Erwin as Chick , Peter Gallagher as Mitch Allison, Nancy Travis as Bette Allison, Joe Viterelli (Bullets Over Broadway (1994)) as Ugollino, Jean Speegle Howard as Dolly and John Reilly as Martin Lonsdale.

Night. Mitch Allison is dishevled and walking along a desert highway. The headlights of a car crest a hill and sweep down upon him. As the car gets closer, Mitch has to dive to the side to avoid getting hit. We get Mitch's story in flashback.

Mitch Allison (Peter Gallager)

He tells us that he stole 25,000 bucks from his con-artist wife. It took her a couple of months to swindle the cash and it takes Mitch Allison from Catskill a night in the sack the wear her out enough to skip out of the hotel room in the morning while she's out like a light.

Dolly (Jean Speegle Howard) and Chick (Bill Erwin)

Mitch catches a train twords Vegas, and playing poker with a sweet old couple, manages to lose it all to them. The old couple are a couple of card sharps. Mitch threatens them and is thrown off the train.

As he's stumbling across the Mojave Desert along a highway he gets picked up by two more con artists Babe and Martin Logsdale. Babe and Martin have got a hold of 50,000 dollars worth of Travelers checks but need a man who matches the ID on the drivers license to trun them into cash. That man is Mitch.

Babe (Isabella Rossollini) and Mitch

Of course it all goes noirsville when both Bette and a mob hitman Ugolino (Joe Viterelli) converge on Mitch.

Noirsville

Ugollino (Joe Viterelli)

Bette Allison (Nancy Travis)

A fun episode though cut a bit short from the original Jim Thompson short story. 7/10