Full of so much divine writing - the dialogue and the descriptions, not to mention vivid characters:Marlowe of course, the PI almost masochistic in his determination to do the right thing; Vivian, sexy, smart and harsh; Carmen, psychotic and constantly nude; General Sternwood, dying in his chair with that great intro scene (we want to see him again but when you see him again it's not worth it and you go 'there was no point to that we may as well have just had him in one scene'); the principled-or-is-he gangster Eddie Mars; the not-very-smart blackmailer Joe Brody; Geiger, the bisexual blackmailer; Carol, his violent, swear-happy lover (who doesn't appear in many adaptations); Agnes, the luckless woman; Mrs Eddie Mars, the lover of Reagan, caught up in a vicious crew; Regan, the soldier of fortune described but never met; Owen Taylor, the chauffeur whose murdered famously Chandler didn't know; the super killer Canino (a worthy threat)/
Some of the plotting is bodgy - Chandler really should have made it clear who killed Owen, and also the character of Harold Young, Agnes' feller, felt added on. And there was no resolution with the Eddie Mars character.
There's an unpleasant strand of homophobia, which one guesses was typical of the period. But great atmosphere and characterisation, even if you do get the feel Chandler is making it up as he goes along.
Sunday, November 04, 2018
Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Book review - Moto#1 - "No Exit" by John P Marquand (1936)
The first Mr Moto novel, not very long. Written by Marquand, who once had a strong reputation but seems to be little read these days. He's a good writer - a relaxed, skilled style, a little like Maugham. Very easy to read, and I like the more internationalist aspect of it.
The story is about an American pilot, a one time war hero turned drunk (so an actual decent role for a hero) who goes to Japan for a job which falls through. Secret agent Mr Moto offers him a gig basically spying on America for Japan - this book is a fascinating historical document because it's all about the rivalry between the US and Japan in the Pacific and their growing empires.
There's a mystery girl, a Russian (who I expected to die but lives), a dead body on a ship, a crisis of confidence for the hero who decides to be good, a rival force in the from of a smooth Chinese gangster who is an enemy of Moto, a hidden formula for oil as the macguffin.
Marquand has a gift for action and suspense, like the scenes on the boat - the book could have done with more of them. The drunken hero gives extra meat. Moto pops in at various intervals - it's not his story but he is a memorable character.
The story is about an American pilot, a one time war hero turned drunk (so an actual decent role for a hero) who goes to Japan for a job which falls through. Secret agent Mr Moto offers him a gig basically spying on America for Japan - this book is a fascinating historical document because it's all about the rivalry between the US and Japan in the Pacific and their growing empires.
There's a mystery girl, a Russian (who I expected to die but lives), a dead body on a ship, a crisis of confidence for the hero who decides to be good, a rival force in the from of a smooth Chinese gangster who is an enemy of Moto, a hidden formula for oil as the macguffin.
Marquand has a gift for action and suspense, like the scenes on the boat - the book could have done with more of them. The drunken hero gives extra meat. Moto pops in at various intervals - it's not his story but he is a memorable character.
Script review - "Laura" (1944) by Jay Drantler, Ring Lardner Jnr, Betty Reinhardt, Samuel Hoffstein
A happy accident because many of the people involved in this tried to repeat the success and could never quite do it. There was a strong source novel, true, but a lot of work was done on the script - this version for instance that I read was full of "additional scenes" and "replacement pages".
The script has three aces - the character of Waldo Lydecker (brilliantly scripted and later realised by Clifton Webb - better than Laird Cregar would have been because he was more spartan, severe), the fact that Mark the detective falls for dead Laura (the character is more interesting on the page than Dana Andrews could realise), and the fact that Laura is still alive.
It's a very well thought out mystery, with Waldo, Shelby and Ann being key suspects with Diane Redfern being the joker in the pack.
Interesting psychologically too - Waldo seemingly gay (or impotent?) obsessed with Laura, Laura liking them dumb and hot (Vincent Price probably gave the wrong impression), Laura a proto feminist who wants to work. All the improvements/new pages improve things - though the detective is quite casual about interrogating suspects in front of each other! (Does make for better drama).
The script has three aces - the character of Waldo Lydecker (brilliantly scripted and later realised by Clifton Webb - better than Laird Cregar would have been because he was more spartan, severe), the fact that Mark the detective falls for dead Laura (the character is more interesting on the page than Dana Andrews could realise), and the fact that Laura is still alive.
It's a very well thought out mystery, with Waldo, Shelby and Ann being key suspects with Diane Redfern being the joker in the pack.
Interesting psychologically too - Waldo seemingly gay (or impotent?) obsessed with Laura, Laura liking them dumb and hot (Vincent Price probably gave the wrong impression), Laura a proto feminist who wants to work. All the improvements/new pages improve things - though the detective is quite casual about interrogating suspects in front of each other! (Does make for better drama).
Tuesday, October 30, 2018
Movie review - "Widows" (2018) ***1/2
That old TVseries had such a great central idea you wonder why it hasn't been remade before now. Steve McQueen goes for a bigger audience and has plenty of names in the cast. Viola Davis is perfect as the lead and Elizabeth Debecki and Michelle Rodgriguez excellent as her fellow "gang members". I did feel Rogridguez's character could have used a bit more meat on her - maybe another scene with the mother in law or that fellow widower she kissed. They could've dropped one of those Debecki-Lukas Haas scenes for that. Cynthia Ervio is fantastic.
Actually there is a bit of repetition in the film - a lot of on the nose dialogue. Often watching it I kept thinking "you could cut that bit out... and that". Colin Farrell is in character acting mode but occasionally has a moment where you forget it. Daniel Kaluuya is very scary as an enforcer but did we really need three quite long scenes where we see him doing some scary enforcing? At times you feel McQueen is more interested in the guys than the girls. Brian Tyree Henry is very good.
The heist is exciting and the montages good. There are constant moments of freshness in the handling. The film never entirely took off the tarmac for me.
Actually there is a bit of repetition in the film - a lot of on the nose dialogue. Often watching it I kept thinking "you could cut that bit out... and that". Colin Farrell is in character acting mode but occasionally has a moment where you forget it. Daniel Kaluuya is very scary as an enforcer but did we really need three quite long scenes where we see him doing some scary enforcing? At times you feel McQueen is more interested in the guys than the girls. Brian Tyree Henry is very good.
The heist is exciting and the montages good. There are constant moments of freshness in the handling. The film never entirely took off the tarmac for me.
TV review - "Ozarks - Season 1" (2017) ****
Gripping, binge-y drama - I've watched a bunch of pilots but this is one I just wanted to keep watching. It's a bit Breaking Bad ish but it has it's own drive in part because the whole family get involved relatively quickly. Jason Bateman is the financial adviser who launders for the mob and winds up in the Ozarks - which I'd vaguely heard of, and I'm curious if tourism has increased since this show.
Excellently acted - Laura Linney brings it - with memorable characters such as the burgeoning crime lord 19year old who could still turn good, and the psychotic gay FBI agent who uses his body in investigations. Beautifully shot. My main gripe is the use of characters killing others with one quick head shot - this trope is getting tired fast (and surely not that true to life). Jason Bateman's character is such a prick!
Excellently acted - Laura Linney brings it - with memorable characters such as the burgeoning crime lord 19year old who could still turn good, and the psychotic gay FBI agent who uses his body in investigations. Beautifully shot. My main gripe is the use of characters killing others with one quick head shot - this trope is getting tired fast (and surely not that true to life). Jason Bateman's character is such a prick!
Movie review - Chan#30 - "Black Magic" (1945) **
The third Chan film for Monogram is the third that teams Sidney Toler and Mantam Moreland - maybe the studio realised Toler was so dull he needed Moreland's energy. Chan doesn't have a son here but he has a daughter.
This actually gets off to a good start with a spookey seance sequence but soon bogs down into flat handling.It's a shame because the story is solid and Toler a little more animated than usual. The ending sequence is strong. With the world of fake seances and a decent script a good director could've really made something of this but Phil Rosen couldn't do it.
This actually gets off to a good start with a spookey seance sequence but soon bogs down into flat handling.It's a shame because the story is solid and Toler a little more animated than usual. The ending sequence is strong. With the world of fake seances and a decent script a good director could've really made something of this but Phil Rosen couldn't do it.
Movie review - Chan #28 - "Charlie Chan in the Secret Service" (1944) **
20th Century Fox dropped the Charlie Chan series but Mongram thought there were still a few pennies to be had and picked up the series. Production values and quality inevitably dropped though this has a serviceable script - it's about the murder of a scientist in an old dark house who was working on a U boat.
Unfortunately Sidney Toler is back as Chan. It's been a while since I saw a Chan film and forgot how much I didn't like him - he's bored, flat, uninvolving.
Comic relief comes from Chan's two Americanised children and a comic black butler (played by the very talented Mantan Moreland). The story is actually pretty good - solid mystery. It's done in by poor handling.
Unfortunately Sidney Toler is back as Chan. It's been a while since I saw a Chan film and forgot how much I didn't like him - he's bored, flat, uninvolving.
Comic relief comes from Chan's two Americanised children and a comic black butler (played by the very talented Mantan Moreland). The story is actually pretty good - solid mystery. It's done in by poor handling.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)