This blog entry is part of my “movie year countdown”. To read more about that check out my first Spout filmblog entry.
D.O.A.
Although this movie is good, it lives on it's premise. And the premise is fantastic. But the director didn't quite seem to know how to push the noir feeling that it needed
There were however many unexpected moments for me. Some of them were enthralling like some of the fight scenes. Some stuff was just plain laughably outrageous. For instance, the thing that everyone who sees this movie will probably remember, every time a beautiful woman enters the screen in one scene this goofy slide whistle plays. I'm not sure what the reaction to this would have been in 1950, but for anyone watching it today it will probably take them totally out of the movie and remind them this was something of another era.
The wild shots of all of the black jazz musicians playing for all of the white people who start going out of control is also memorable. It's almost like jazz music was some mysterious underground phenomena that had the potential to drive people into a demented frenzy, like it was totally out of control and almost dangerous.
The movie hardly feels like a noir at first, but starts to get there near the end.
Rating: 8/10