trailer:
You can watch it online here.
Slant Magazine gives it 4 out of 4 stars and calls it "one of Ray’s smartest and most devastating masterpieces." The Guardian gives it 5 out of 5 stars and calls it a "noir classic". The New Yorker has a glowing review.
Roger Ebert gives it 4 out of 4 stars and says,
"In a Lonely Place" has been described by the critic Kim Morgan as "one of the most heartbreaking love stories ever committed to film," and love is indeed what it's really about. It has the look, feel and trappings of a film noir, and a murder takes place in it, but it is really about the dark places in a man's soul and a woman who thinks she can heal them.Empire Online gives it 5 out of 5 stars and says, "Bogart outdoes himself". Rotten Tomatoes has a critics rating of 97%.
Posts
I don't think I've heard of this. And I don't think this is a true film noir. It's called film noir because it's filmed in black and white, but film noir is a down and out guy taken in by a woman that's no good.
ReplyDeleteAh, we would have fun discussing film :) "Film noir" -I think, anyway- can have more to do with atmosphere than with the presence of a femme fatale. I enjoy discussions on film and genre. :)
DeleteNot according to my friend Andy who taught the subject at Emerson College. I had described Richard Widmark's "Kiss of Death" as film noire and got taken back a peg 😊
DeleteHe's entitled to his opinion. Of course he is. But those of us willing to do a bit of research to support a different view are entitled to defend it ;) Just a few examples: 1) http://www.filmnoirfoundation.org/filmnoir.html : "To this day the debate goes on as to whether “noir” is a film genre, circumscribed by its content, or a style of storytelling, identified by its visual attributes. The debate — in which there is no right answer — is only one of the things that keeps noir fresh for succeessive generations of movie lovers." and 2) at Britannica https://www.britannica.com/art/film-noir : "Defining the genre- Controversy exists as to whether film noir can be classified as a genre or subgenre, or if the term merely refers to stylistic elements common to various genres. Film noir does not have a thematic coherence: the term is most often applied to crime dramas, but certain westerns and comedies have been cited as examples of film noir by some critics. ... Other critics argue that film noir is but an arbitrary designation for a multitude of dissimilar black-and-white dramas of the late 1940s and early ’50s." and 3) the British Film Institute has a clever infographic of all the possible noir elements https://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/infographic-what-makes-film-noir and declares Double Indemnity as the only film that has them all lol. They say they only considered 100 films because outside of those there was too much controversy over what actually constituted film noir.
DeleteAnd whether or not neo-noir is even a thing, whether or not there's a year past which nothing can be noir, whether or not it's a genre at all, etc. are all fair game for discussion.
So like I said, opinions are all over the place even among the pros, and I'm good exploring the possibilities and watching the people (like your friend Andy) with strong opinions argue them. All the film reviews I saw of In a Lonely Place classified it as noir.
It sounds like a good movie.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the majority on this one :) I think it's good, too.
DeleteI haven't seen the film but I always get a kick out of how old films were advertised. Suspense grows with every word... across the big screen. Happy rest of your weekend. Hugs-Erika
ReplyDeleteAt least you can tell what the film is about. These days after I watch a film trailer I'm not knowing much more than I knew from the title alone lol
DeleteWith such great and rave reviews, I guess I'll watch it.
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy it. Bogart and Grahame and Ray made a great team :)
DeleteThanks for sharing - another film added to my very long list! Have a great week, Valerie
ReplyDeleteThis one's worth bumping up the queue a bit. Especially as cooler weather sets in and night comes earlier :)
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