If “Sin City’s” $28 million box office take means anything, it means that film noir is back.

But you don’t have to wait for Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller to get back to the drawing board. You can check out some old classics to satisfy your appetite.

KISS ME DEADLY (1955)

Oh please, Hammer, don’t hurt ‘em!

That’s Mike Hammer, not that fool in the parachute pants. He’s a trashy detective, more likely to give a broad a slap in the face than to pick up the tab.

After picking up a sexy young hitchhiker, Hammer is run off the road. He awakens tied up in a drug-induced state. He witnesses the young hitchhiker being tortured.

After release, he tells the law nothing – it’s Hammer who will find the killers and the MacGuffin (Alfred Hitchcock’s term for an object of desire that advances the plot of a mystery).

For 1955, “Kiss Me Deadly” is as raw as it gets. Don’t let the date fool you: It is not tame. Ralph Meeker is the ultimate noir hero – a dirty, despicable Hammer who thinks more for himself and cares less about the world around him.

THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)

This is considered by many the first true film noir.

In this classic, Humphrey Bogart gave us his Sam Spade, a detective who’s been parodied in too many films, nearly as many as the infamous Sherlock Holmes. He’s a fast talker who can rattle off what happened at a crime scene faster than a lead pipe to the head.

Women who surround Spade tell him things like, “You always think you know what you’re doing, but you’re too slick for your own good!”

A femme fatale, a black bird MacGuffin and a classic anti-hero – if you call yourself a movie buff without having seen “The Maltese Falcon,” think again.

THE THIRD MAN (1949)

“The Third Man” is one of the top three films ever made – one of the most superbly shot and scripted movies of all time. Orson Welles’ surprising moment ranks as one of the greatest cinematic moments.

Holly Martins travels to post-World War II Vienna to meet old friend Harry Lime. Upon arrival, he finds that Lime has been murdered. To track down the killers, Martins baits them with particular women. He needs to find the mysterious “third man” who was present at the scene of Lime’s accident.

PAYBACK (1999)

So many roll their eyes and wonder how Brian Helgeland’s directorial debut could sit with the classics.

“Payback” is a film for those looking for a recent example of film noir. It borrows the concepts and characters of past films. It even borrows from Frank Miller’s “Sin City.”

Mel Gibson plays a man known only as Porter. He and his partner in crime steal $140,000 from the Chinese mafia. Before they split the cash, his partner shoots him in the back, leaving him for dead. He lives and tracks down his $70,000 – killing anyone he needs to.

No, “Payback” is not as well executed as the classics, but it’s a great example of a recent film noir and provides a filthy good time.