Love triangles in film noir are rarely about romance; they are battlegrounds for lust, betrayal, and fatal obsession. Torn between conflicting desires, characters become trapped in webs of deceit, often leading to murder or ruin. Noir’s cynical worldview transforms love into a dangerous transaction, where emotions are weapons and loyalty is expendable.

10 Love Triangle Noir Films:

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)

A drifter and a married woman fall into a deadly affair, conspiring against her unsuspecting husband.

Gilda (1946, Columbia Pictures)

A love-hate triangle unfolds between a gambler, his casino boss, and the boss’s alluring new wife.

Leave Her to Heaven (1945, Twentieth Century-Fox)

A woman’s obsessive love drives her to destroy anyone who threatens her relationship with her husband, including his own family.

Criss Cross (1949, Universal-International)

A man rekindles a dangerous romance with his ex-wife, unaware she’s plotting against him with her new gangster husband.

In a Lonely Place (1950, Columbia Pictures)

A troubled screenwriter’s love affair with his neighbor is tainted by suspicion and violence.

The Killers (1946, Universal Pictures)

A femme fatale manipulates two men into ruin and death over the lure of stolen money.

No Man of Her Own (1950, Paramount Pictures)

A pregnant woman assumes another’s identity and marries into wealth, but past entanglements threaten her new life.

Caught (1949, The Enterprise Studios)

A young woman trapped in a loveless marriage to a sadistic tycoon seeks escape with a kind doctor — but at what cost?

Clash by Night (1952, RKO Radio Pictures)

A restless woman marries a good-hearted man but is drawn into an affair with a volatile, cynical fisherman.

Human Desire (1954, Columbia Pictures)

A railroad worker becomes entangled with a manipulative woman and her violent husband, leading to deadly consequences.