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Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
Runtime: 1 hr 41 mins
Synopsis: The year is 1948, the place is Los Angeles, and Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins (Denzel Washington) is a black man who has just lost his job and is in dire need of money. So, despite having no experience as a private eye, Easy accepts an assignment from a seedy man (Tom Sizemore) to find the missing Daphne... The year is 1948, the place is Los Angeles, and Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins (Denzel Washington) is a black man who has just lost his job and is in dire need of money. So, despite having no experience as a private eye, Easy accepts an assignment from a seedy man (Tom Sizemore) to find the missing Daphne Monet (Jennifer Beals), the mistress of a powerful mayoral candidate. As Rawlins conducts his search, he unexpectedly becomes drawn into a complex racially-charged web of intrigue involving political machinations, double-crossings, blackmail, and mysterious deaths. With the aid of his trigger-happy friend Mouse (Don Cheadle), Easy must rely on his instincts and neophyte detective skills, not only to solve the case, but also to save his life. African-American director Carl Franklin (ONE FALSE MOVE) brings Walter Mosley's crime series to life with this dense thriller, aided greatly by Tak Fujimoto's sun-soaked photography and an electric soundtrack reflecting the music of the times. As Easy Rawlins, an everyman who finds himself an unwilling pawn in a dangerous game of mystery and murder, Washington delivers an intense performance. It is Don Cheadle, however, who steals the show, giving his hot-tempered Mouse a comic humanity that is at once menacing, hysterical, and unforgettable. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, Tom Sizemore, Jennifer Beals, Maury Chaykin
Story: Walter Mosley
Screenwriter: Carl Franklin
Producer: Gary Goetzman, Jesse Beaton
Composer: Elmer Bernstein
DVD Info
Release:
Nov 2, 2000
DVD Features:
- Region 1
- Keep Case
- Full Frame - 1.33
- Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
- Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
Additional Release Material:
- Audio Commentary - 1. Carl Franklin - Director
- Trailers - 1. Original Theatrical Trailers
- Screen Test - 1. Don Cheadle
Interactive Features:
- Interactive Menus
- Scene Selections
Reviews
In the aftermath of the Oscars, it now seems clear that Devil in a Blue Dress was one of the best films of 1995.
Carl Franklin's unusually creative studio movie, boasting superlative acting from Denzel Washington and particularly newcomer Don Cheadle, reinvents a genre and a bygone era, in this case, Los Angeles circa 1948.
Great, grand piece of modern noir, with a unique twist that rethinks the genre even as it honors its finest elements. Great performances all around.
A very complex and engrossing mystery, filled with wonderful period details.
...a throwback to the gumshoe tales of the thirties and forties.
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by: HAMMEROGOD 4/25/04


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