Touch of Evil (1958)

"What does it matter what you say about people?"

Here I am finally discovering how great Orson Welles really was.

Summary:

A Mexican border town is rocked by a bomb planted in the boot of a car. Two lawmen arrive on the scene, and immediately find themselves in opposition to one another. What follows is a meditation on justice, murder, and the corruption of power.

Pros:

Orson Goddamned Welles: I didn't believe that Welles was Quinlan at first. Perhaps it's the prosthetics. Perhaps it's the intervening ten years between this film and The Third Man (1949). I'd like to think that Welles is just that good. That he's a chameleon. That he was a singular talent before and behind the camera. Touch of Evil routinely tops many essential noir lists, as well as essential movies lists. I can see why. Welles not only turns in a powerhouse performance as a lawman that's waded so far into corruption that he cannot tell the difference between right and wrong any more, but he also leads the film from behind the camera in a commandingly stylish fashion. He also rewrote the script. He managed it. He managed all of it.

Active Camera: The camera is a living entity, here. It swoops, and tracks, and pans with elegance. The opening single-shot tracking sequence is a marvel of tension and staging. Pure cinematic magic. Cinematographer Russell Metty chooses to place his camera at slight angles: shooting up or down, in lieu of basic face-on shots, and it lends the film an epic, dynamic feel. Metty also knows how to stage multiple actors in a single frame: establishing a depth of field and a keen sense of balance. The light and shadow are used to incredible effect: shadow drapes the actors' faces in pools of inky black. This film is, simply, gorgeous to look at.

Capital Noir: The pitch black pools of shadow are matched only by the cruel reality Welles brings to life with his script. It is a Shakespearean tragedy of a policeman buying into his own prodigious legacy. It looks like everything noir is supposed to look like. It sounds like noir. It's story is pitch-perfect muddy morality.

Jazz!: Henry Mancini's score is a bebop assault. It rings eerie, frantic, and melancholy on a moment's notice. There are times where it becomes ingrained, inseparable, from the action on screen. Mancini's music drives the emotion and the drama perfectly. Jazz is the perfect sound for noir, and Touch of Evil proves it.

Some Great Action Scenes: I find many old school films lacking when it comes to action scenes. They always feel stiff and staged. Touch of Evil features some very well-done sequences. There's the bar fight where Charlton Heston earns every ounce of his badass reputation by kicking the ass of every ass in the joint. Then there's the legitimately terrifying hotel murder: the lazily strobing lights and frenetic music bring one right to the edge of their seat. Metty keeps the film alive in between the action scenes, but really allows the film to soar when necessary.

Cons:

Problematic: Charlton Heston is straight up in brown face. That shit is insane.

In Conclusion:

This film is noir. I am embarrassed to have called myself a fan of the genre for so long without having seen it. But that's been rectified. And now I know the error of my ways.

Should You Watch It?

This is a must for fans of the noir genre. It is instructive as a piece of the evolution of American cinema, too. It is a lovely testament to a singular American talent. You should watch this movie. You absolutely should.

Miscellany:

- Janet Leigh's agent apparently declined this role on her behalf, due to the low salary offered. Until Welles sent her a personal letter, stating how excited he was to work with her. She called her agent and told him that working with Welles was well worth the pay cut.
- Welles spent hours every night getting put into prosthetics and makeup for the role of Quinlan.
- According to Welles, working on this film was some of the best fun he'd ever had in the business.
- Originally, Welles was only slated to act in this film, but Heston thought that he was being brought on as the director. To keep Heston happy, the producers gave Welles the director's chair. He then proceeded to change crucial elements of the story, giving himself a screenwriting credit to boot.
- Curtis Hanson cites this film as a major influence on L.A. Confidential (1997), which kickstarted this trip down the rabbit hole in the first place.
- Welles wrote Marlene Dietrich's part the night before filming began, and she appeared in this movie as a personal favor to him.
- There are three different versions of this film: the one initially released in 1958, marred by studio-mandated edits and reshoots directed by Harry Keller; a 108 minute cut released in 1976; and the final, definitive, cut released in 1998.
- This film cost $900,000 and was filmed in 39 days.
- Welles rehearsed with his actors for two weeks before filming began. He encouraged his actors to improvise and make character suggestions. He would frequently rewrite the script on his lunch breaks, which made memorizing lines incredibly difficult. Heston and Leigh have stated that working on this film was one of the most exciting and fulfilling experiences of their careers.