Small-time jewel thief Leo Martin is deserted by his partners-in-crime, club owner Gus Loman and driver Hatchett, when the robbery they are committing goes wrong. After serving his prison sentence, Leo emerges with an intricate plan for revenge. Leo implicates Loman, as well as his amoral boss, Gregory Lang, for murder -- but Inspector Rogers suspects Leo.
01 May Appointment with Crime (1946)
Hands Off
For me, noir is a very specific form. It is as pervasive and important an invention as Jazz. The thing that distinguishes it is a main character who is put through the wringer in circumstances that would never occur if there were not us ghosts watching and manipulating reality.
It had a long incubation period in the 30s with much experimentation, then a brief period of pure noir bracketed by Welles’ projects. Along the way are other experiments; this is one that failed. Here we have our average joe caught up in events. But we learn he is a petty crook to begin with, and when things go wrong he plots to get even.
The experiments here are:
— he is not completely an innocent and not afraid to harm others.
— the control of events in the film is neither with him or us (until a final irony on the last few seconds). Nor does it alternate.
— the bad guys here are stereotypically gay.
So mark this one up to a British experiment with this new US-generated noir idea. Experiments like this that fail are important in defining the vocabulary we use, perhaps more than what works.
Posted in 2015
Ted’s Evaluation — 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.
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