It meticulously resembles a 60 year-old Hollywood artifact, but with a contemporary cynicism.
The Black Dahlia (2006)
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Reviews Counted:179
Fresh:61
Rotten:118
Average Rating:4.9/10
Consensus: Though this ambitious noir crime-drama captures the atmosphere of its era, it suffers from subpar performances, a convoluted story, and the inevitable comparisons to other, more successful films of its genre.
Rated: 15 [See Full Rating] for strong violence, some grisly images, sexual content and language.
Runtime: 2 hrs 2 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:15-09-2006
Synopsis: Based on the novel by James Ellroy, Brian De Palma's THE BLACK DAHLIA stars Josh Hartnett and Aaron Eckhart as a pair of LAPD detectives assigned to the most notorious murder in Hollywood history.... Based on the novel by James Ellroy, Brian De Palma's THE BLACK DAHLIA stars Josh Hartnett and Aaron Eckhart as a pair of LAPD detectives assigned to the most notorious murder in Hollywood history. De Palma takes things slow, spending a good 20 minutes establishing the relationship between Buddy Bleichert, Lee Blanchard, and their mutual love Kay (Scarlett Johanssen), before introducing the 1947 murder after which the film is named. In the haunting screen-tests left behind after her mysterious death, aspiring actress Elizabeth Short appears to want fame so badly she'll do anything to get it. Her pornographic film appearances, and a rumored affair with narcissist heiress Madeleine Linscott (Hillary Swank), provide just two clues in a sea of confusion. THE BLACK DAHLIA crams every subplot from Ellroy's novel into two hours, but only connects them towards the end of the movie. The screen-tests featuring a sadly desperate Elizabeth Short (Mia Kirshner) are captivatingly filmed in gritty black-and-white. These scenes succeed in showing the industry ugliness most likely behind Elizabeth's death, while the rest of the film self-consciously strives to be noir through elaborate set design, dramatic camera angles, and narration taken straight from the book. If De Palma's goal was to make us examine our own voyeuristic fascination with murder, particularly the gruesome murder of a beautiful young woman, then he succeeds, because throughout a film invested in so many different storylines, Short's remains the most interesting one. [More]
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Hilary Swank, Aaron Eckhart
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Hilary Swank, Aaron Eckhart, Mia Kirshner, Rose McGowan, Fiona Shaw, Jemima Rooper, John Kavenagh, Pepe Serna, Troy Evans, Gregg Henry
Director: Brian De Palma
Director: Brian De Palma
Story: Josh Friedman
Producer: Rudy Cohen, Art Linson, Moshe Diamont
Composer: Mark Isham
Studio: Universal Pictures
Reviews for The Black Dahlia
The Black Dahlia revels in its stylish noir production, even though it gets lost in the maze of its zigzagging plot lines.
Ghost World: Keith Uhlich on The Black Dahlia for Reverse Shot's Brian de Palma symposium.
The Black Dahlia turns out to be something of questionable structural integrity, pieced together from old movies.
At no time does the film turn into a satisfying mystery where the audience feels compelled to guess along with our racing detectives.
Frustrating but fascinating, with moments that refuse to be shrugged off
De Palma's lamentable decision to reign in his wild directorial flourishes certainly doesn't do the film any favors...
After two hours of meandering, convoluted indulgences and loose ends, 'The Black Dahlia' reveals a kinder, gentler Brian De Palma. He should be a good guy to have around.
An over cooked ham of a film, overstuffed with vampish performances and a narrative far too convoluted for its own good
The story is all over the place, leaving viewers with a complicated and disjointed picture that touches on interesting points without fleshing any of them out.
features amazing production design and a fascinating story at first, the film does eventually fall apart at the end.
Until it derails while heading into its final turn, The Black Dahlia represents Brian De Palma's most assured moviemaking in at least a decade.
Kay is less a character than an image of the Dahlia's opposite (the blond/beige look versus the dark-haired/black-dressed look being your first clue).
The Black Dahlia is both a studious new entry to the genre and a schizophrenic parody of it.
Forty-five minutes in, I was already glancing at my watch and wondering why the only lively actress in this film was playing the dead girl. Go figure.
The movie, like the case, has some loose ends and some compelling moments.
With fall and its promise of better movies on the horizon, this movie, like "Hollywoodland," could have been among the most exciting of the new season. That neither is true for either movie isn't exactly encouraging.
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