Adam writes me funny little reviews sometimes. Here’s one of “The Black Dahlia,” which we both watched on our respective Friday nights. I used to write for the Columbia, Missouri Vox entertainment rag, so Adam is making a joking reference to his efficiency apartment in Iowa City and playing on words.
As Adam Feeney, of the Iowa City Box, wrote of “The Black Dahlia”:
“While the plot plot was complicated, following along wasn’t this reviewer’s main problem. The problem was, the fast-paced labyrinth of plot twists seemed to be calculated to keep the viewer from thinking too much about the fact that what’s going on is highly contrived. This is particularly true during the final act’s rapid fire piecing together of the plot’s puzzle, where Director Brian DePalma exposes key plot points with the urgency of a father pointing out to his children important landmarks as they cruise by them on the highway. The tone is insistent enough for the viewer to take notice, but definitive enough to discourage the viewer from asking to stop and look around some more. When the words ‘The End’ flashed across the screen, it betrayed a lack of confidence. They might as well have put the words: ‘That’s it, the whole story has been told, no questions remain’ on the screen instead.
The good thing is, the trick generally works. It’s hard not to like strolling through the film’s depiction of post-war LA as a neon adult playground, with sex-bombs waiting to explode at every corner. You won’t find yourself shaking your head incredulously at the plot until after you’ve finished taking in DePalma’s brilliant tips of the hat to the long bird’s-eye-view crane shots of ‘A Touch of Evil’ or the incandescent table-top love making of ‘The Postman Always Rings Twice.’ ‘The Black Dahlia’ gives viewers the feeling that they are watching the kind of film they like. It is only after the film is over that they may question whether it was actually this film that they liked.”
Hmm, I was curious about his picture, but not curious enough to rent it. Thank god for the even-handed criticism of the Iowa City Box.
Bryan
February 8th, 2007
If I can stop just one ill-advised rental, then, by God, it has all been worthwhile.
Adam
February 9th, 2007