Years ago, I watched films for actors. Then I watched films for directors. Now I increasingly find myself watching for cinematographers. My love for the cinematography of John Alton probably had just as much to do with my watching He Walked By Night as the direction by Anthony Mann. Much to my satisfaction, the team that gave us such classic film noir as T-Men (1947) and Raw Deal delivered once again in this film. A true crime police procedural, the film follows the Los Angeles police department as they try and track down a burglar and killer who was responsible for the death of a police officer. Complicating the investigation is the fact that the killer is both diabolically clever and resourceful, even going so far as to own a custom-made radio to keep track of police broadcasts. Mann's stripped-down, hard-boiled narrative style complements Alton's virtuoso hard-lighting cinematography. The entire film is excellent, but the last two sequences are particularly amazing. The first involves the police trying to surround the killer's house without him noticing. The entire sequence is silent except for the nervous whining and barking of the killer's pet dog. The suspense is as palpable as it is unnerving. Afterwards the killer leads the police on a chase through the Los Angeles sewer system. The claustrophobic, almost surreal cinematography during this sequence made me think of the similar climax from Carol Reed's The Third Man (1949). So imagine my surprise when I discovered that this chase scene predated its British counterpart by almost a year! Stylistically magnificent and visually dazzling, He Walked By Night may be the best collaboration between the team that helped define the film noir movement.
8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment