Act of Violence: Fred Zinnemann

People use the term film noir too casually these days.  It seems that all a film needs to be declared a neo-noir is heavy shadows, brooding voice-overs, and certain character archetypes.  But film noir isn't really a style. Oh, most of the great film noir are heavily stylized. But true film noir is a state of mind, a psychological underpinning, and a weary, cynical view towards the world.  That is why Act of Violence, a film without any private eyes or voice-overs, truly deserves to be labeled as a film noir.  It dives into one of the most powerful psychological injuries ever inflicted on America: World War Two.  At its center are two men.  The first is Frank Enley, a returning war hero who survived a year as a prisoner of war under the Nazis. He has since spent his time as a loving family man diligently working to improve the California community of Santa Lisa where he lives with his wife Edith and young child.  The other man is Joe Parkson. Joe was Frank's best friend while in the army. Well...they were friends, at least until Frank became an informer for the Nazis, betrayed an attempted prison escape, and watched as several soldiers under his command were savagely killed by attack dogs.  It doesn't help that Joe was the only soldier who survived the escape. Now Joe hunts Frank across California seeking vengeance for his treachery.  The film is comprised largely as a game of cat-and-mouse and Frank tries to avoid Joe.  But eventually Frank makes the poor decision of trying to hire a hitman to take care of Joe once and for all. But Frank's guilt catches up with him.  So the hunted becomes the hunter, desperately trying to find Joe to prevent him from getting killed.  This is a fabulous film.  Watch how three time Academy Award winning cinematographer Robert L. Surtees transforms the bright, sunny suburbs of California into nightmarish city slums and back alleys reflecting Frank's inner psyche. This is a haunting, powerful film that deserves the title of film noir much more than many other films that have been given that label.

9/10