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  Average Rating for The Black Dahlia [2006] - 3 out of 5

  
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• The Black Dahlia [2006]

  Kashif Ahmed 16 April 2007

  

  Master filmmaker Brian De Palma's first period piece since 'Carlito's Way' is a grisly, but surprisingly unfocused, film noir, which gives new meaning to the word convoluted. Inspired by a true Hollywood murder, 'The Black Dahila' (not to be confused with Raymond Chandler's 'The Blue Dahila') is set in 1947 and follows hotshot cops / part-time pugilists Dwight 'Bucky' Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) & Leland 'Lee' Blanchard (Arron Eckhart) as they try to solve the brutal slaying of naïve, wannabe Hollywood actress Elizabeth Short; played in surreal 8mm 'casting couch' flashbacks by Mia Krishner.
  Penned by 'L.A. Confidential' scribe and leading hard-boiled author James Elroy, 'The Black Dahila' is one of the most unwieldy, elaborate, and if you haven't got your wits about you, downright incomprehensible movies ever made. Essentially a character study of our policeman protagonists and an evolving, subtle love triangle with an excellently cast, smouldering Scarlett Johansson at its centre. Stylistically, De Palma"s film ticks all the right boxes: from its labyrinthine plot, tough-guy detectives, femme fatales, cynical voice-over and jazz score, but its concern for the conventions of cinematic modernity / marketability, is often at odds with its desire to stick to traditional noir themes & production values. One wonders whether David Fincher's proposal to shoot this film as a three hour black & white reel would've been a better idea, or would that have faced the same genre incompatibility issues as Steve Sodenbergh's retro noir 'The Good German'?
  'The Black Dahlia' opens with a spectacular crane shot overlooking an epic street fight between drunk U.S. Naval officers and L.A. cops, briefly moves onto the murder case before showing us an authentically filmed 1940s boxing match between Bucky and Lee. We're gradually introduced to an American bourgeoisie family whose matriarch is none other than British stage legend Fiona Shaw (in an deliriously camp performance). And its here that 'The Black Dahlia's' much needed femme fatale saunters into frame, all credit to Brian De Palma for casting Hilary Swank, one of the most unlikely candidates for such a role: Hilary is excellent, and almost steals the movie from Scarlett, playing her seductress vamp to the hilt, and becoming as convincing and memorable a devil woman as Ann Savage in 'Detour' or Barbara Stanwick in 'Double Indemnity'.
  Brian De Palma's wish to tackle this story's plethora of subplots is commendable, but ultimately results in parts of the film feeling incomplete or rushed. In fact, I could've done with more facts on the case itself, rather than drawn out scenes of K.D Lang singing in a lesbian nightclub. A lesser director would've lost the thread early on, but De Palma's power to portray complex characters onscreen comes to the fore in his ability to keep 'The Black Dahlia' both a fascinating and baffling account of the seedier side of Hollywood. 'The Black Dahlia', an obvious companion piece to 'Hollywoodland', is a technically skilful, aesthetically pleasing and accomplished nod to the bygone classics of film noir.

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Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. The Black Dahlia weaves a fictionalized tale of obsession, love, corruption, greed and depravity around the true story of the brutal murder of a fledgling Hollywood starlet that shocked and fascinated the nation in 1947 and remains unsolved today. Two ex-pugilist cops, Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett), are called to investigate the homicide of ambitious silver-screen B-lister Betty Ann Short (Mia Kirshner) a.k.a. "The Black Dahlia" - an attack so grisly that images of the killing were kept from the public. While Blanchard's growing preoccupation with the sensational murder threatens his marriage to Kay (Scarlett Johansson), his partner Bleichert finds himself attracted to the enigmatic Madeleine Linscott (Hilary Swank), the daughter of one of the city's most prominent families - who just happens to have an unsavory connection to the murder victim... True crime meets urban legend as De Palma brings James Ellroy's The Black Dahlia to life.

Thriller based on the novel by James Ellroy. Elizabeth Short (Mia Kirshner) was a struggling actress looking to make a name for herself in 1940s Tinseltown. When police discover Elizabeth's body cut clean in half and with all of her organs missing, ex-pugilist detectives Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) are the men charged with cracking the case and apprehending the killer. As Blanchard's marriage to Kay (Scarlett Johansson) begins to suffer due to his obsession with the sensational crime, his partner Bleichert discovers a troubling link between the victim and the mysterious Madeleine Linscott (Hilary Swank), a prominent socialite and daughter of one of the town's most connected key players.