The Martha’s Vineyard Film Society is hosting a three-week showcase of British noir films curated by award-winning cartoonist and film noir lover Paul Karasik.

For the last several years, Mr. Karasik has been highlighting the film genre for Islanders and delving into some of the deeper cuts. This year he decided to turn to England, showing Odd Man Out on March 4; Brighton Rock on March 11 and Obsession on March 18. All screenings start at 7:30 p.m. at the film center in Vineyard Haven. 

“The opportunity to see these classic, breathtakingly beautiful black and white films projected the way they were supposed to be seen in the intimacy of a movie theatre is special,” Mr. Karasik said.

The noir series has built up a following in the more than five years since Mr. Karasik started the winter showcase. He looks forward to finding new themes each year. 

“I try to choose films that not everyone has seen and that can come as a wonderful surprise,” he said. “If you think you’ve seen a lot of old movies, I’ll show something you haven’t seen that’s just a masterpiece.” 

Though a self-proclaimed non-expert on noir film, Mr. Karasik is always excited to share his love for the genre with others. 

“There’s something about those films that I am attracted to,” he said. “I think I have a sort of false nostalgia for the decades just prior to my birth.” 

He is excited for people to come together and experience the differences within the three-film lineup.  

“Each one is very distinct in its theme and setup,” he said. “[When selecting the lineup], I wanted all three of them to be beautifully photographed because it is an aesthetic experience to be able to sit in a theatre and see these things enormous on the screen and to get lost in the black and white and sultry grays of the film stock of the late ‘40s.”

A free glass of pinot noir and dark chocolate will be handed out at each screening. Tickets can be found at mvfilmsociety.com.