ItĀ“s a shame.
There are not so many bogart-bacall films (4) and this one is just lame. There are some good moments but overall it doesĀ“nt work in any ways other than an oportunity to watch two noir stars working a noir movie.
The Worst: The plot. You start thinking itĀ“s mysterious and then you discover itĀ“s just plain stupid. Every character is stapled to each other without any grace. All the thrilling situations are boring or just laughable.
The Just Bad: The acting. Bogart looks as if he was just passing by through the movie. Perhaps he knew his character was nonsensical but he could have made a little effort. The secondary characters were all as lame and stupid and most of them were played by not so good, uninspired, too constricted or just plain bad actors (Moorehead excluded).
The Wrong: The first third of the movie was shot in a POV style. It didnĀ“t work but I guess itĀ“s ok to fail trying something new in 1947. The thing itĀ“s they should have noticed it didnĀ“t work and then change it so it only last ten minutes or so but they didnĀ“t care and IĀ“m sure Bogart didnĀ“t want to make any extra work for this movie.
The Good: Bacall looks gorgeous as always and itĀ“s the only one who tries to make this movie watchable. Her character is as stupid as any of the rest (perhaps the most stupid, mind you!) but she tries anyway to make it interesting. When she is in the screen you may believe that the movie is worth something, she isnĀ“t most of the time though.
Dark Passage (1947) Reviews
Dark Passage
Posted : 12 years, 5 months ago on 28 November 2011 04:01Say what you want about the plotās lack of plausibility, and how the filmmakers implored a trick thatās more interesting than successful, but Dark Passage proves that good olā fashioned star power could make even the creakiest of vehicles immensely watchable. When Bogie and Bacall are allowed to share the screen their erotic charge, smokes-and-alcohol noir glamour and general movie star wattage help mend the sutures of Dark Passageās less than stellar parts.
After the runaway success of their previous pairings, To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep, one couldnāt blame Warner Brothers for wanting to rush out something else starring the real-life couple. And Dark Passage has a sufficiently pot boiler of a noir script: Bogart plays a man who has recently escaped from prison, on the run from the law and looking for anyone to help him out on his quest to clear his wrongly accused name, he runs into Bacall, tough and independent as ever. The plot does dip into moments of strained credibility quite frequently, but the odd assortment of supporting players keeps it consistently engaging.
The first third of the film is filmed in first-person. Itās an interesting technique to approach the subject matter with, but the visual trickery is never completely successful. It always possesses the aura of the filmmakers trying to show off rather a vital and necessary tool for telling the story. Either that, or Bogart insisted on having a relatively short amount of time on-set since he doesnāt show his face until the final third. The second act sees his character undergo plastic surgery to elude the police and the conspiracy surrounding him. Weāre treated to a mute, bandaged character for a substantial amount of time. The big reveal doesnāt pack much punch, but itās nice to finally see the charisma and anti-heroic magnetism in Bogartās face.
San Francisco is always a welcome site in a noir film, and the gothic architecture and mist-soaked atmospherics help bolster the filmās problematic execution. Dark Passage is enjoyable, and a watchable diversion, but it never reaches the heights of The Big Sleep (a classic and great example of the Bogie-Bacall pairing) or The Maltese Falcon (another classic and a great example of a San Francisco-based noir). It dips and drags, but itās never truly awful.
After the runaway success of their previous pairings, To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep, one couldnāt blame Warner Brothers for wanting to rush out something else starring the real-life couple. And Dark Passage has a sufficiently pot boiler of a noir script: Bogart plays a man who has recently escaped from prison, on the run from the law and looking for anyone to help him out on his quest to clear his wrongly accused name, he runs into Bacall, tough and independent as ever. The plot does dip into moments of strained credibility quite frequently, but the odd assortment of supporting players keeps it consistently engaging.
The first third of the film is filmed in first-person. Itās an interesting technique to approach the subject matter with, but the visual trickery is never completely successful. It always possesses the aura of the filmmakers trying to show off rather a vital and necessary tool for telling the story. Either that, or Bogart insisted on having a relatively short amount of time on-set since he doesnāt show his face until the final third. The second act sees his character undergo plastic surgery to elude the police and the conspiracy surrounding him. Weāre treated to a mute, bandaged character for a substantial amount of time. The big reveal doesnāt pack much punch, but itās nice to finally see the charisma and anti-heroic magnetism in Bogartās face.
San Francisco is always a welcome site in a noir film, and the gothic architecture and mist-soaked atmospherics help bolster the filmās problematic execution. Dark Passage is enjoyable, and a watchable diversion, but it never reaches the heights of The Big Sleep (a classic and great example of the Bogie-Bacall pairing) or The Maltese Falcon (another classic and a great example of a San Francisco-based noir). It dips and drags, but itās never truly awful.
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