Ben Hecht was a prolific screenwriter, but I didn't even realize he'd directed films. Judging on this movie, he was... OK. The direction certainly wasn't distracting or even heavy-handed. The real problem is actually the insidious script. A male dancer obssessed with a dance score and murder his lovers. The movie couldn't quite decide whether this was a drama or a comedy, with conflicting tone occurring scene after scene. As with many films written by Hecht, some of the dialog is hilarious -- "There are three sure things in white: surrender flags, coffin lining, and wedding cakes!" -- but they overshadow the dramatic scenes. I'm pretty clueless with regard to dances, but the choreography appears really cheesy and often induced laughters among the audience. The climax has the lead actor -- who was a real professional dancer -- dances maniacally in a bedroom, smashing into glass windows at least twice, before finally succeeding in breaking through them and plunging into his death. I quipped to my friend, wondering if he'd ever succed in breaking the windows. The unintended humor is even stronger than in The Madonna's Secret; this one has some truly witty comical dialogs.
May 18, 2009
#176: Specter of the Rose (1946)
Ben Hecht was a prolific screenwriter, but I didn't even realize he'd directed films. Judging on this movie, he was... OK. The direction certainly wasn't distracting or even heavy-handed. The real problem is actually the insidious script. A male dancer obssessed with a dance score and murder his lovers. The movie couldn't quite decide whether this was a drama or a comedy, with conflicting tone occurring scene after scene. As with many films written by Hecht, some of the dialog is hilarious -- "There are three sure things in white: surrender flags, coffin lining, and wedding cakes!" -- but they overshadow the dramatic scenes. I'm pretty clueless with regard to dances, but the choreography appears really cheesy and often induced laughters among the audience. The climax has the lead actor -- who was a real professional dancer -- dances maniacally in a bedroom, smashing into glass windows at least twice, before finally succeeding in breaking through them and plunging into his death. I quipped to my friend, wondering if he'd ever succed in breaking the windows. The unintended humor is even stronger than in The Madonna's Secret; this one has some truly witty comical dialogs.
