Posted by
Emmett of the Unblinking Eye on Saturday, September 16, 2006 3:24:56 PM
You can always tell a
Brian De Palma movie. His style is distinctive and extremely visual, and when it works, as it did in
Phantom of the Paradise (one of my all-time favorite movies),
Carrie,
Scarface and
The Untouchables, it
really works. Unfortunately, when it doesn't -- like in
Bonfire of the Vanities and
Mission to Mars -- it's almost unwatchable. But it is never, ever boring.
Which brings us to "
The Black Dahlia", De Palma's latest work starring
Josh Hartnett,
Aaron Eckhart,
Hillary Swank and
Scarlett Johansson.
The Black Dahlia murder in 1947 Los Angeles was, and remains, one of the great unsolved murders in American history, partially because of the starlet-found-dead angle, partly because of the circumstances of her death, and mostly because it's, well, Los Angeles in the 40's. Hartnett and Eckhart play boxers and cops who team up in warrants follow the
Zoot Suit Riots (a marvelously filmed sequence). Eckhart has a long term, although admittedly odd, relationship with Johansson, and the three are soon inseparable. Only when Hartnett and Eckhart become involved in the investigation of the Black Dahlia murder do things begin to unravel.
The movie is stylish, lavishly designed, wonderfully filmed (there's always something going on in the background) and well-costumed. It even has a special appearance by
William Finley, the lead in
Phantom of the Paradise, in a brief but crucial role. What it lacks, unfortunately, is a coherent plot. The last half hour of the movie loses its focus, and with it, much of the audience.
What distinguishes
The Black Dahlia from
Hollywoodland, both of which deal with Los Angeles and the film industry in the middle of the 20th Century is that the Dahlia actually has a point of view. It has a culprit, it has a motive (sorta) and at least it tries to reach a conclusion. Three factors that
Hollywoodland sorely lacks.
Is it worth your $10? I wish it were. But its array of disturbing images and its lack of a coherent plot cannot be cured by its well-cast and well-directed cast or by De Palma's flair as a director. So wait for the DVD. And buy it.