THE BLACK DAHLIA

[Moviefan1234]

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Release Date: September 15, 2006

Studio: Universal Pictures

Director: Brian De Palma

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Mia Kirshner, Mike Starr, Fiona Shaw

MPAA Rating: R (for strong violence, some grisly images, sexual content and language)

Premise: Master storyteller Brian De Palma, known for such classic crime dramas as "The Untouchables," "Scarface" and "Carlito's Way," as well as his suspense thrillers "Carrie," "Dressed to Kill" and "Blow Out," directs this adaptation of James Ellroy's ("L.A. Confidential," "American Tabloid") best-selling crime novel.

"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 (two-time Oscar® winner 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 when De Palma brings Ellroy's "The Black Dahlia" to the big screen.

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I've been waiting for this film for a long time. I can't wait to see the results.

[Lazy Boy]

I was aware of the case before the movie was made, though I've never gotten through Ellroy's book. It's fascinating to me, and I generally like period pieces. De Palma handles this period well at least in terms of direction and looks -- The Untouchables was a disappointment, but it sure had that feel for Prohibition era.

The reviews for this seem mixed, and I dare say some even mention the dreaded word "campy" in parts. De Palma hasn't had a mainstream hit in a whille, but I don't care. He's really one of the undervalued filmmakers of our time.

Slant Magazine is doing a retrospective of his work on their site. Check it out, it's pretty good stuff.

[MadsenOMC]

I like De Palma. He's had a few misfires, but he's directed some movies I love. This looks good. The source material is superb and the cast is solid.

[leprechaun]

I cannot wait to see this movie. I love reading true crime stories and this one in particular has interested me for a long time.

[Moviefan02000]

I think it seems excellent. I'll definitely be seeing it. Also, you might want to update your threads for this and The Last Kiss with pictures from Yahoo, the pictures aren't showing up.

[TylerDurden182]

Trailer was ok. I'm still looking forward to seeing it next Friday.

[SpikeDurden]

I'm really looking forward to this. I love De Palma, his last film, Femme Fatale, is ridiculously underated camp noir, and he's done a lot of other really solid work in his time. I love the 1940s/50s LA noir feel this film seems to have, the period details look delicious, and the cast is interesting, especially Hartnett for I've always felt that he's just been waiting for the perfect role to blast us with what he's got ("O" and Lucky Number Slevin came close).

So I'll definitely be there opening weekend.

[Monotreme]

While he is certainly an important emergee of the 1970's school of filmmakers, De Palma is really hit-and-miss. On the one hand he has masterpieces like Scarface and The Untouchables; on the other hand, total stink-wads like Snake Eyes and Mission To Mars. Throughout the 90's his career has pretty much been going down, but with this movie, it seems hard for him to miss. I really hope this will be a success, and I am a huge fan of Hilary Swank and Scarlett Johansson, so I'm definitely looking forward to this, eagerly.

[chinton]

I just dont get Femme Fatale at all. I mean it was so campy and silly I just laughed and laughed at it.



WHEN OH WHEN are they going to do The Big Nowhere. I mean they did the other two. Of course as I remeber Nowhere is not only LA Confidential dense but is quite grotesque. I seem to remember a scene where a guy glues wolves teeth over his own and disembowels a guy alive with t he teeth. Probably wont make it in.

[daddiefatsacks]

i definately want to see this, great cast, and scarface is one of my favorite movies, so i have to see it for de palma...even if he did make me sit through mission to mars

[NightStalkerGtx]

Looks fantastic.





And the man has also made Carlito's Way
<-------------------

Def checking it out.

[Lost in Space]

i cannot wait to see this, i just read the book and like it so im ver excited

[Cronos]

i have no idea when this is being released in the UK but i cannot wait to see it, De Palma is one of my favourite directors (despite a couple of misfires) and this looks like its going to be great

[thedudeman69]

I thought the trailer was underwhelming. I might see The Last Kiss or something else over this.

[Goberg]

im realy looking forward to this :D

think its gonna be a great movie, but again, i have to wait a long time for a premiere here in norway. the movie premieres at 26th of December :P

[ChemicalRomance]

Mmm neo noir!

I'll be checking this one out as soon as possible.

[ThirdOuting]

Josh Hartnett gets on my wick, and I can't say I'm the biggest fan of DePalma either. From what I've seen of his work, it's cheap and tacky, and always leaves me with a bad taste. I've never rated any of his films highly. Now here's the 'but'...I'm a right sucker for Noir, and this does look quite alright. He didn't manage to pull it off with Femme Fatale though, did he? Johansson's getting around, by the way...

[Alecc Bracero]

I saw this last night.

The De Palma style is present. With all the slow motion shots and slow zooms and all that. The sets are great as are the costumes.

The first half is sooooo much better than the second half, which is just pure crap.

Josh Hartnett has to be one of the least charismatic actors out there. I mean really, this guy is fucking boring to watch. The rest of the actors in the flick are just okay.

I read somewhere that Hartnett and Scarlett Johansson had a steamy scene in the movie. Well, they must have cut it out, because all we get is a scene of them about to do it right after they knock a perfectly good dinner off of the table. We do get a shot of the Swank Crack though, which is then tarnished with a shot of the Hartnett Crack.

I started making jokes with my brother during the last half to keep ourselves entertained, which is never a good thing.

* 1/2 stars out of 4

MAH!

[moviebuff01]

Just previewed The Black Dahlia last night and am sad to say that it was a little bit of a dissapointment to me. I was hyped for this intense mystery thriller and instead it was a very slow moving film with no real climax. The film did have its moments, but overall the film left me wanting what the previews portrayed.
I thought that the acting was good. Josh Hartnett did a good job as the lead, with the very beautiful Scarlett Johanssen and talented co-star Aaron Eckhart. The fault wasn't with acting, as it the case of many films, but with the writing I believe.
The film seemed to have three different stories going on at one time, but could have been shortened and made much more appealing by focusing more on the dahlia murder. There was more going on outside of the murder case than actually focusing on the events of the murder.
Basically I felt it was a movie that was a little disappointing and one that I felt I would have to watch again to look closer at some details to answer questions about some details. But, I would be interested in hearing what others have to think about the film. If you are reading this and have an interest in watching the film, I do not discourage going to watch it. Just don't be as hyped about an intense mystery thriller and be able to take the slow ride. Happy movie going...

[moviebuff01]

Originally posted by dingostyle

* 1/2 stars out of 4

MAH! [/B]


pretty harsh... out of a 5 star rating, i'd give it 2 1/2

[ChemicalRomance]

I just got back from seeing this, and I must say, while visually intoxicating the story is all runaway and no takeoff. Okay, let's called it attempted takeoff. The movie runs for 110 minutes of uncomfortable subplot after subplot, and then in the final 10 minutes attempts to jam as many answers into the resolution. Not only is it convoluted and frustrating, it is simply sloppy filmmaking.

Hilary Swank, who is almost always reliable, has an accent in this film that changes on and off at the drop of the hat. Josh Hartnett is horribly miscast, and Johannson looks beautiful but is acting to simply cash a check. I can't say much in the acting department besides Eckhart, who puts forth the one somewhat intresting performance.

I feel discouraged about this film because of the potentially I truly believe it had. The main problem looking back might just be the script. The structure is incredibly poor and in effect brings down nearly the entire movie.

And for those who to know, DePalma keeps it very aesthetically pleasing.

7/10






****SPOILERS (QUESTIONS FOR THOSE WHO END UP SEEING IT)*****











1) Eckhart's character: did he get his "bank money" that Hartnett found in the bathroom by blackmailing Swank's father? What was he blackmailing her for?

2) Why did the mother kill Elizabeth Short? What the fuck in god's green earth was this woman's motive?

[chinton]

Very dissapointing film. Incredibly unclear if you havent read the book and suprisingly miscast on so many levels. Oh and the performance by the woman who played Fiona Shaw was a trainwreck on epic porportions. The whole climax at the end that goes completely over the top almost singhandedly sinks the movie.


Oh and what is with everyone saying Swank looks like Betty. Interesting idea thats never really developed and it is severally hurt by the fact that MADELINE LOOKS NOTHING LIKE BETTY.

The only performance in the film that actually got some emotion out of me was the great work by Mira Kirschner as the Dahlia. Easily the best part of the film. Also it looked great.

5/10

[EBastard]

Whether Dahlia is good or bad (i'll be seeing it in about an hour), honestly I just hope Mia Kirshner gets some kind of kudos after this. She's every bit as hot and talented (if not more so) as Swank and Johansson and for her to be in the biz THIS long and not get some credit for her work is a damn shame...I mean, she's Canadian for God's sake, and nobody can get her ANY juicy roles?!
:mad:


SHIVER ME TIMBERS...

STILL CAN'T BELIEVE HER CHARACTER EVADED CAPTURE FOR 2 WHOLE SEASONS ON 24...DEADLIEST TERRORIST THEY EVER HAD ON THE SHOW, IMO. :eek:

[EBastard]

Originally posted by chinton

The only performance in the film that actually got some emotion out of me was the great work by Mira Kirschner as the Dahlia. Easily the best part of the film. Also it looked great.

5/10
Glad to hear that. Makes me feel I won't be throwing away ALL of my money when I go see it.

[ChemicalRomance]

Originally posted by chinton
Very dissapointing film. Incredibly unclear if you havent read the book and suprisingly miscast on so many levels. Oh and the performance by the woman who played Fiona Shaw was a trainwreck on epic porportions. The whole climax at the end that goes completely over the top almost singhandedly sinks the movie.

Oh and what is with everyone saying Swank looks like Betty. Interesting idea thats never really developed and it is severally hurt by the fact that MADELINE LOOKS NOTHING LIKE BETTY.

The only performance in the film that actually got some emotion out of me was the great work by Mira Kirschner as the Dahlia. Easily the best part of the film. Also it looked great.

5/10

Haha oh my god Chinton I cannot agree more about that woman's performance at the end!

I felt EMBARASSED, the woman was hooting and hollering and it was so...TERRIBLE! It was awfu! My god!

And yes, I'm glad you agree that it is unclear, could you please help me out in any way shape or form with this damn flick!

(Mira Kirschner did rock though, best performance in the film.)

[chinton]

Chemical Romance

I dont mean to put you off but read the book. Honestly I read after I saw the movie and I was amazed at how clear and easy the explanation became at the end. It's still convoluted which is why I couldn't properly explain it all here but you get it. It all rests on the screwed up family dynamic (which is explained in great detail and significantly more twisted in the book) and Betty looking like Madeline.

[ChemicalRomance]

In the end I just can't remember what exactly everyones motives were for doing what they do.

Needless to say, this is not a very good film (6/10 from me, not 7 anymore).

By the way, the "kill" and the "laughing face" parts made me CRINGE.

[Lazy Boy]

7/10

Style over substance is what we have here, despite the best efforts of one performance, shunted to the eaves.

Not one of the DePalma's best, but I didn't mind the camp factor since I was never a true fan of old B-W noirs, finding them full of stiff, stilted performances, femme fatales, and pulpy one-liners. De Palma succeeded in that attempt, capturing the gorgeous landscape of seedy Hollywood, yet it feels as empty as one of the pulp novels of its time. L.A. Confidential did this thing with more heart, more emotion, and better performances (plus, the labyrinthine plot was better structured, not muddled).

Josh Hartnett and Scarlett Johansson are two excessively bland performers, she even more so with each passing film. Their characters are bilboard cigarette ads, functioning to look either tough or glamorous, nary a minute of charisma between the two of them. I was frustrated that the Black Dahlia murder, a case I find so fascinating, was pushed more in the background and used as a catalyst for the personal strife of the cops. Mia Kirshner, in her few brief scenes (acting across the vocal cameo by Brian DePalma, dontcha know), really puts wounded pain behind the wannabe starlet's eyes, giving more emotion than the obvious message -- Hollywood chews 'em young, spits 'em out. I'm talking about the stag film, watch her eyes, so lovely, speaks so much in so few words. Hilary Swank's accent might be slipshod, but she has a lot of fun playing somebody other than a tomboy type.

It's nice to see William Finley (was that him?) in a small role as Georgie, in a staircase sequence that has ties to De Palma's better works. As the director yearns for material from the past, so does the fan see an homage to the works which brought him to our current state of film. He makes gorgeous pictures, but this feels like the efforts of a by-hire director trying to finish painting a picture unfinished, left unloved, by somebody else.

[anakinsrise]

In Short: The trailer was better than the movie

I really enjoyed the first half of the film,establishing a good back story for the characters,and the love triangle(???).A beautiful looking film.Depalma still has a great eye.
But the second hour things just seem to fall apart.
Some critics are saying Swank was horribly cast ,but i though she was great(nice bottom by the way Ms.Swank) until the end when Hartnett confronts her and her "Addams Family" That scene contained some of the worst acting ever.Scarlett Johansson was good here and there and looks great in her sweaters and lingerie but she kind of fades into the background.
Just to many twists in the plot towards the end ,and so many different drawn out endings i started rolling my eyes.
Eckhart was good too but sadly his character fades away too,it would have been interesting to folow his obssession with the murder a bit more.
Scale of 1-10 a 6

[Lazy Boy]

Did anybody else like the shot, near the end, of Hartnett and Johansson in the bathroom, and there's two images of him reflected through the mirrors, creating an oddly photographed trifecta?

It was subtle and effortless, even though I'm trying to place it in context of the movie, stylistically or thematically. It just looked cool, I guess.

[DareDevil]

This movie was like playing a game of clue but your missing half the peices and cards, but you play anyways just to find out it wasn't worth it.

Had high hopes but this movie sucked. 3-4/10

[Bourne101]

From the WOM this looks like it won't be my kind of movie. Too many sub-plots, poorly explained at the end. I will be seeing Gridiron Gang instead.

[JCPhoenix]

Saw it last night with a few friends...The Black Dahlia is one of my favorite books so I naturally had high hopes for the film...for the first hour or so, I thought it was going pretty good...but then the second half came and all the plot points were sort of forced out through just different people talking about it...a lot of things didn't quite mesh together as well as I was hoping and I felt like it ended up a lot more contrived than in the book especially when they used voiceovers and flashbacks from different people from earlier to explain away everything...but that could be because they tried to squeeze everything together...bah

And I agree with everyone about the mother....BLECH, I mean, the mother was a little nuts from what I remember reading the book but I never imagined her quite like...that. That really ruined a lot of the last part of the movie for me, it was like he was trying to play things out for comedy but way too extreme...that really grated on me and did a large part in ruining the second half for me.

My main BIG problem with the film though was that I've always viewed the book's main thematic motif as obsession - I think of the book as being all about Bucky's descent into obsession with the black dahlia (and Madeline because she looks like the Black Dahlia)...but the movie barely touches on this...in fact, I'm pretty sure most of the audience was probably just thinking he "liked" Madeline until they just throw in that Kay Lake line there about her looking like the dead girl...I felt like they didn't play up the obsession angle at ALL and the fact that he was obsessed with her cause she looked like Elizabeth Short and that's a big shame to me because it really is what makes the book brilliant imo as he goes from relatively clean and good cop and gets more shady as the time goes on...And the movie seemed confused as to what it wanted to do...they had that one creepy shot of the body with the bird on it at the end of the film but they could've done with more twisted stuff like throughout the ENTIRE film to show how Bucky's consumed by his obsessions...

Now I'm really curious to read the original 174 page draft of the screenplay (when Fincher was around...when de Palma came on, he and Friedman worked together to take it down to around 120 pages) cause it feels to me like they cut out a lot of the things that would have evened it out more and made it less confusing for audiences who haven't read the book...

They also didn't do the Eckhart obsession well cause one minute he's fine and then he just suddenly is obsessed with Short...

So despite all this though, for the most part, I quite enjoyed the first half of the film. I thought they did quite a few things right for the most part during that half...it was really the second half that bothered me. Stylistically too, I fucking loved it in that area and that's really the main reason I'm giving it 7...it is extremely flawed but it's worth seeing if mainly for de Palma's camera tricks and Kirshner's fantastic performance (all too short - no pun intended)...the only scene I did have a problem with de Palma's work stylistically was the POV shot he had with Hartnett first meeting the family...that really bugged me and didn't work for the film.

Oh and the one thing they did right though was the scene in the stairway...(would be more specific but don't wanna spoil it for anyone) that scene was absolutely brilliant and if the rest of the movie had been that good, I seriously think that scene would've become a classically well known piece of cinema, like the scene from Scarface at the end (where he says Say hello to my little friend...). The stairway scene was perfectly done in EVERY way from beginning to end and was sort of a hint to me of how great the film could've been...also the cool Touch of Evil-esque shot when the camera rises up over the roof and we see the woman screaming and then comes back around to the car with Hartnett and Eckhart in it...great stuff.

Oh and of my two friends who saw it (both in film prod), one liked it and one hated it.

7/10

[Hannibal21]

Originally posted by JCPhoenix
My main BIG problem with the film though was that I've always viewed the book's main thematic motif as obsession - I think of the book as being all about Bucky's descent into obsession with the black dahlia (and Madeline because she looks like the Black Dahlia)...but the movie barely touches on this...in fact, I'm pretty sure most of the audience was probably just thinking he "liked" Madeline until they just throw in that Kay Lake line there about her looking like the dead girl...I felt like they didn't play up the obsession angle at ALL and the fact that he was obsessed with her cause she looked like Elizabeth Short and that's a big shame to me because it really is what makes the book brilliant imo as he goes from relatively clean and good cop and gets more shady as the time goes on...And the movie seemed confused as to what it wanted to do...they had that one creepy shot of the body with the bird on it at the end of the film but they could've done with more twisted stuff like throughout the ENTIRE film to show how Bucky's consumed by his obsessions...

They also didn't do the Eckhart obsession well cause one minute he's fine and then he just suddenly is obsessed with Short...

7/10

I've never read the book (really really really want to though, is it readily available in book stores and/or libraries?), but judging from the overall film I agree completely that the obsession angle should've been the MAIN focus of the film. It was where the movie's potential lay, for God's sakes! I was constantly waiting for that aspect to go somewhere but sadly, it was never explored beyond a couple of sex scenes between Hartnett and Swank. The last scene between the two of them would've been more effective otherwise too, if that angle was used to full advantage. It certainly doesn't benefit from Hartnett's wooden acting either, never once did I come close to believe that he had the hots for Madeleine. De Palma, of all people, who's usually very good with his themes on obsession (as demonstrated in his homages to Hithcock/Vertigo in previous films), should've known better.

Btw, you're completely right about the stairway scene (whenever I flash back to it, my mind keeps on reeling back to the first church scene with Scottie and Madeleine in 'Vertigo' :)). It was one of the few moments in the film that generated quite a bit of suspense, reminding me of what De Palma used to be so masterful at.

Fiona Shaw's performance is possibly the WORST case of OVER-THE-TOP scenery chewing..............ever! Hilary Swank was also over-the-top, but at least it was fun in a campy way. Shaw hamming it up at the stairs goes way beyond that, it was simply grating.

[ChemicalRomance]

Did anyone like DePalama's deep focus shots in the film?

I liked when he used those. And yes Lazy Boy, that was a great, but subtle shot towards the end with Hartnett and the mirrors.

[ChemicalRomance]

1947 Los Angeles. The body of a young woman named Elizabeth Short is found in a vacant lot. Her mouth is cut open and her body is split at the torso, all organs missing. What ensued from there was the biggest manhunt California had ever seen, and a homicide case that has not been solved until this day. This part of the The Black Dahlia is based on truth. The rest however, is based on a fictional novel of the same name by James Ellroy, which uses the real Short murder as a springboard for a story of cops and corruption. Two cops, Bucky Bleichert (Josh Harnett) and Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) are consumed by a need to find who killed the aspiring actress and why. Unfortunately for the viewers, the actual murder story becomes a backdrop to a convoluted plot involving double crossing women, dirty money and some serious family issues.

The films plot and structure is all runaway and no takeoff. Okay that’s a bit harsh, there is an attempted takeoff. The mystery, or lack thereof, builds for about 110 minutes. With 10 minutes left, an unbearably convoluted monologue ensues, not helped by unforgivable overacting from all parties involved in the scene. The monologue attempts to tie up every subplot, every loose end, and explain the motives and intentions of every single character. Needless to say, this does not come anywhere close to working. This situation in the film represents the biggest problem in the script, which was penned by the author of the novel, James Ellroy. The most interesting aspect of the story, the actual murder, is pushed aside for subplot and exposition that never reaches a level above being only mildly interesting. I can’t imagine many people fully understand the climax of this film, but maybe some people like their endings incomprehensible. I’m not one of those people.

The film is almost completely miscast. Hartnett and Eckhart go through the motions as the obsessive police men, switching from tough face to compassionate face when needed. Scarlett Johansson, who plays Eckhart’s wife, is bland in posture and line delivery, making her an emotional DOA. Even Hilary Swank, a usually reliable two time Academy Award winner, is utterly unimpressive. Her accent in the film (no clue as to what kind she was trying to achieve) goes on and off all throughout. Her acting is cause for some of the most unintentionally laughable scenes in the film. Mira Kirshner, who plays the title character, is the only positive thing to say about the acting in the film. In an emotional black hole of a film, her character is the only one that got a reaction from me. I felt for her sadness in life, and her tragedy in death. Sadly, her screen time is less than 10 minutes and is not merely enough to take the entire mediocrity of the films acting on its back.

The Black Dahlia is not a complete disaster. Visually, the film is quite hypnotic, an expected trait from acclaimed director Brian DePalma (Scarface, The Untouchables). Even in scenes where my mind began to wander, I was consistently drawn in by creative directorial nuances and subtle touches. One scene involving Hartnett and Johannson makes creative use of mirrors, while a certain intense scene on a staircase (the best scene in the film) are some of the bright spots in the careful direction of the film. The mark of a truly talented director like DePalma, taking a poor script and keeping the direction of the film interesting, even if some of his techniques are a bit flashy.

Besides DePalma making the film enticing visually, I can say almost nothing positive about The Black Dahlia. The film, which had potential to be a great mystery from a great novel, ends up being the exact opposite in a colossally disappointing film. I see this as a film plagued by ‘what-ifs?’ What if the story was handled differently? What if it was cast differently? We’ll never know the answers to the questions because as it stands The Black Dahlia is a film of incredibly apparent flaws and a final 20 minutes that isn’t only implausible, it’s laughable.

[Scarfather]

6/10

Aesthetically pleasing, completely shallow and campy.

[CreeperBEATNGU]

One of the worst films of the year.

Boring as hell, barely any time devoted to the actual investigation because they were too busy with pointless love stories with a string of unlikable characters, the conclusion(and the film itself)was much too Hollywood and just plain stupid.

The acting was mediocre to be generous, with the only good performance being Kirshner who was hardly in the movie. Swank was disgracefully over-acting, Hartnett was as wooden as usual. There were maybe 10 minutes where I was interested that were mixed in with about 100 minutes where I couldn't have cared less.

[SkyNet]

this movie sucked so much, there is no other way for me to describe its sucktitude.

One of the worst pieces of garbage i have ever seen.

[cold]

I think the movie itself was pretty bland and confusing to a point. It also seemed like the end was very rushed.

The whole story was kind of jumbled and you never really know which story is supposed to be followed, lots of stuff thrown together and what could of been a really good movie, because I think the beginning was excellent, just slowly got very disapointing.

5/10 and if it had ended 10 minutes earlier I probably would of bumped it up 1-2 points.

[bankholdup]

Eek! No, that doesn't mean I've seen it yet. I plan on seeing it soon, and perhaps I will enjoy it more than some of you guy, since my expectation have officially been lowered quite a bit. Sorry you guys didn't dig it, though.

[TylerDurden182]

I will probably see this tomorrow, but my expectations are about as low as they can be.

[EBastard]

Hands-down, the most unintentionally silliest murder mystery i've ever seen in my life...this movie makes Snake Eyes (1998, 4/10) look like a fuckin masterpiece...Mia Kirshner BETTER get some fuckin kudos after this. As expected, she was definitely the only bright spot in the entire film.

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SPOILERS BELOW
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what the fuck was up with that one shot of her dead body at the end? That shit was just not necessary...

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END OF SPOILERS
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Overall, this is definitely one of the worst films of the year, if not THE WORST, I was sooooooo hoping this was gonna be DePalma's big return, but honestly after the godawful Snake Eyes (1998, 4/10) and Mission To Mars (2000, 4/10), the so-so Femme Fatale (2002, 6/10), and now this garbage...maybe it's time for DePalma to retire or something...



SHIVER ME TIMBERS...

AND HE USED TO BE SO GOOD...

[JCPhoenix]

Ebastard, I'd actually argue it's the other way around...as it played out it did seem unnecessary in the film but there should really have been more of those sequences in the rest of the film rather than just excising it from the film entirely cause that plays up the obsession angle of the film (which is what the book is really more about imo)

Hannibal21: I first got it from my library but I do remember the book was out of print for a while...I dunno if it's still out of print or not (since the movie came out, they could possibly have come out with a new edition) but I did find a copy (which I bought) in a Chapters that I was at last year so it can be found...

[Lazy Boy]

I think the image of Short's body at the end is an homage of shorts to Carrie...the Hartnett character may be plagued/haunted by this obsession in finding the girl's murderer, and it carries with him into his relationship with Kay, even though she herself is a source of respite. This doomed agony is typical of several DePalma characters, including Michael J. Fox in Casualties of War and John Travolta in Blow Out. I liked the intent of the shot, but, as others have said, the focus on Elizabeth Short is backlogged through most of the film and mired down by numerous muddled subplots.

[XvoorheesX]

SPOILERS!!!!










Questions: Georgie, the familys old gardener, was the killer. I get that. And I think it had something to do with him wanting revenge for Madeleine's father scarring his face. What did Madeleine's father do to georgie, and why?

So for whatever reason, Georgie wants to kill Madeleine for revenge against her father (I think), but to protect her they let Georgie kill Madeleine's look-alike, so madeleine would be safe (I think). So why the hell was Madeleine's mother involved in the murder?

And Madeleine sends Georgie to kill Lee at the scene in the stairs (I think), but when Georgie attacks him, Madeleine emerges out of the shadows and kills them both (I think). Why?


END SPOILERS

[ChemicalRomance]

Haha XvoorheesX post = pure confusion.

[TylerDurden182]

The Black Dahlia- 4/10

Just plain bad.

[ilovemovies]

The pervert inside has to ask, does Swank and Johansson show any skin? :p

[Lazy Boy]

There's a Swank ass shot, but not much from Johansson, except maybe some brief moments only in her bra.

[dman476]

Originally posted by TylerDurden182
The Black Dahlia- 4/10

Just plain bad.
Hah, you liked it just as much as I did. Meaning, you didn't.

Originally posted by Lazy Boy
There's a Swank ass shot, but not much from Johansson, except maybe some brief moments only in her bra.
It was a really obscure and weird ass shot though, and Swank looks ugly in the film IMO. And, there's a really unnecessary Hartnett ass shot though, and nothing from Johansson.
Just don't watch the film. Oh wait, there's a Kirshner boob shot...so, but what is that worth?

[ilovemovies]

Originally posted by dman476
It was a really obscure and weird ass shot though, and Swank looks ugly in the film IMO. And, there's a really unnecessary Hartnett ass shot though, and nothing from Johansson.
Just don't watch the film. Oh wait, there's a Kirshner boob shot...so, but what is that worth?

Make no mistake, I want to see this because I think it looks really good. And despite all of the bad reviews, I still want to see it. Although I guess I'll have to lower expectations and just hope that I'll enjoy it rather than expecting a great movie, which was my original expectation.


I am disappointed to hear that there is nothing from Johansson though. When will she finally show something?! :(

Oh, well. Atleast Rachel Bilson, surprisingly and happily so, actually shows some skin in The Last Kiss! :p

[chinton]

I'm really surprised DePalma didnt play up the main motif of the book Bucky's obsession over The Black Dahlia through Madeline. There is some very obvious Vertigo touches to that and being the Hitchcock nut he is I'm surprised he didn't jump at the chance.

[Alecc Bracero]

What has happened to director Brian De Palma over the past decade? Before the 90's, he was responsible for bringing many classics to the big screen. Films like Carrie, Dressed to Kill, Scarface (Which is pretty laughable these days!) The Untouchables, Carlito's Way, and his last good movie Mission: Impossible (Which came out ten years ago!) But then De Palma started to fall off slowly with Snake Eyes, the god-awful Mission to Mars, and the camptastic Femme Fatale, which despite having the delicious Rebecca Romijn to look at, really sucked. Now we have The Black Dahlia, which from the commercials looked like it was going to be De Palma's return to form. Does it succeed? No.

The film follows two detectives, Bucky and Lee, who are nicknamed Fire and Ice (insert laughter here). They're the new hot shot detectives who stumble upon the body of a dead woman, who had been cut in half, her organs removed, and her face sliced to look like she has a great big smile. From then on, the two of them embark on a dangerous investigation filled with violence, sex, and the Swank Crack!

Josh Hartnett has got to be one of the most boring actors to watch on screen. He has zero charisma and is someone that should only be taken in small doses, like his role in Sin City. With that being said, his performance as Bucky, a.k.a. Ice, bored the hell out of me here. Aaron Eckhart plays Lee, a.k.a. Fire, and entertains for a while before becoming a little annoying. Scarlett Johansson smokes her way through the role of Kay, Lee's lady-friend. Mia Kirshner, as the dead girl Elizabeth Short, has a pair of eyes that are hypnotizing. She is great to watch and a pretty good actress as well. Hilary Swank shows up as Madeleine, a girl who likes to get around and is often said to "look just like that dead girl!" I have to point out that Swank looks nothing at all like Kirshner, not one bit. Fiona Shaw, John ("I was the guy that looked like Patrick Stewart in Braveheart!") Kavanagh, and Rachel Minor fill the roles of Madeleine's mother, father, and sister and provide most of the laughs, which are half intentional.

The script was adapted by Josh Friedman from the novel written by James Ellroy, the man behind the great L.A. Confidential, and starts off good but then becomes very muddled. Even when we find out who is behind the murder, there is no explanation of why the girl needed to be cut in half. The trademark De Palma style is there, with the slow motion shots and zooms, but that's it. There's no real excitement to the cinematography. I saw what they were going for, trying to capture the old school feeling of the films of yesterday, but it was just dull. I did love the costume designs though. There's also one point near the end where Hartnett says, "Fire and Ice" and all I could think about was Talladega Nights. Shake-n-bake!

There is a shot of the Swank Crack, which was pleasant, even though Swank herself is not all that sexy to begin with, Then they went ahead and ruined it with a shot of the Hartnett Crack. Just thought you guys and gals should know.

Overall Review: * ½ stars out of 4

Best Line:

Kavanagh: Good people, Germans. Although, Hitler was a bit excessive.

[screamer581]

Originally posted by ilovemovies


Oh, well. Atleast Rachel Bilson, surprisingly and happily so, actually shows some skin in The Last Kiss! :p


I thought it was a body double.....

[TheSharpshooter]

This was a big disappoint for me. The Black Dahlia could have been not only another cool neo-noir flick, but also one of the best movies of the year. The first act is really good, but then it just slowly decreases from there.

The main problem with this film was that the story just had too much going on. If you were like me and expected to mostly see a movie about the mystery of Elizabeth Short's death, then you're in for a surprise. A lot of the movie does revolve around her death, but there's a lot more going on in here and some of it just isn't that interesting. By the end of the movie though, I was, to say the least, satisfied. The revelation we're given was enough to make up for a lackluster third act.

The Black Dahlia does look great on the big screen. The 40s look is captured beautifully and the actors all look perfect for the era. I also enjoyed seeing a fresh face like Hartnett in this kind of a movie. If you really want to see this film, then make sure you go to the theaters to see it cause it looks great.


6/10

[nikescream]

Originally posted by TylerDurden182
The Black Dahlia- 4/10

Just plain bad.

Ditto.

[fooknasty]

I went into this movie expecting a solid murder mystery, because that is what they were showing on TV. Wel, not so.

This movie was just to bland and to boring for my taste. Half the time, you were confused as fuck as to what was going on and why some of the charcaters were doing what they were doing. Just bad...

4/10


By the way, eight (8!!) people walked out of the theatre. The movie was a little over halfway through, and they just walked out. I was tempted, but I was hoping I was going to see some Johannson loving!!

[bob]

Agree with the consensus, the movie was very, very poor.

They could've chosen literally any solution to put at the end; the one they chose is so horrendously stupid it boggles my mind.

Plus, and people who have seen the movie will understand this, characters A and B do NOT look alike!!!

[SpikeDurden]

De Palma's trademark high gloss style and gorgeous cinematography does not a good movie make. Sure, Hartnett continues his streak of being an affable and respectible lead, and Mia Kirshner and Aaron Eckhart do fine jobs with their limited, underwritten roles, but the film becomes so utterly ridiculous , over-the-top, and campy in the last act, and throughout there's such a major lack of focus (for a movie about the black dahlia murder, there's very little about that) that you can't help but wonder what exactly went wrong? My opinion? The screenplay. It's a shame when a fine director assembles a solid cast only to be entirely screwed in the first place due to a poor screenplay that somehow was deemed worthy enough of being made into a film. Elroy's book is phenomenal, it's a shame this adaptation doesn't pan out. And it's certainly no Femme Fatale.

**/****

[Glaze]

I was very disappointed, I really expected much better, the whole movie left me flat on my ass.

[Strider]

The Black Dahlia - 3/10 or *1/2/***** stars

Visually, Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia is an outstanding film. The cinematography, art design, costumes, etc. are superb. And that's about as far as I am willing to praise this film. Although The Black Dahlia is (loosely) based on a novel written by James Ellroy, who also wrote L.A. Confidential, which Curtis Hanson adapted into a film in 1997, mentioning these two films in the same sentence almost sounds blasphemous, as The Black Dahlia is a so-bad-it's-not-good crime mystery/thriller, with several stale performances, some wildly over-the-top acting (keep an eye out for Fiona Shaw, who plays a crazy, drunk mother), poor writing, and an absolutely preposterous and convoluted final half hour.

With such a talented cast, including two-time Academy Award-winner Hilary Swank, I expected at least one solid performance. Alas, all four main actors - Josh Harnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart, and Swank - deliver performances worthy of being called lifeless, not solid. Mia Kirshner, in such a brief role as real-life aspiring Hollywood actress Elizabeth Short, whose sinister murder during the 1940s in Los Angeles led to a case that remains unsolved to this day, captures the sadness of Short's life quite well and puts the rest of the cast to shame.

The Black Dahlia is actually a contradictory title, as the film hardly focuses on the Black Dahlia case and, instead, devotes itself to the lives of two fictional police officers (played by Hartnett and Eckhart respectively), and subplots involving a love triangle, lesbianism, boxing, a child rapist, other criminals, and a bisexual femme fatale. This is a huge problem, but perhaps I could have forced myself to ignore it, if only the film worked on some level. It does not work on any level, however, and its stupefying finale, which is confusing enough to leave the viewer infuriated, makes things even worse.

The Black Dahlia is a cinematic train wreck and one of the year's worst films. It's too bad David Fincher didn't get his hands on this one. He would've been perfect.

Strider

[petergriffin]

I liked the movie. I honestly did. I have criticisms that show disappointment though, because it's fairly evident that this movie could have been so much better...And there's no WAY a story like this should have been aimed for a 15 certificate market in the UK; de palma should have gone for the throat and hit home that this case is very much real but set in the context of a fictional situation. And now the complaints:

1. - The movie would have been so much better had he gone more film noir if that makes sense; visually, if he'd gone the route of sin city and filmed the entire thing to be screened in black and white, I would have been happy. I feel it needed to be more in the narrative, and frankly some of the scenes pissed me off with his camera setup choices.

2. - Hilary fucking swank. nuff said. That bitch needs to decide whether she's geordie, scottish or american in this film; either way she takes the award from johnny depp for worse english accent impression

3. It focused way too much on josh fucking hilary, then fucking scarlet, then fucking hilary again. He seriously could have made a porno out of the length of time he spent concentrating on harnett boning swank and johansen.

Thats it for now from me.

[bigred760]

I'm too tired right now to give this thing a long review. I'll just say that I don't think this was a very good movie. The characters were all one-dimensional, the story was boring and uninteresting, and the ending wasn't that much of a shocker. A few gory and/or shocking moments woke me up here and there, but that's about it for this one.

3/10

[Cronos]

i saw this earlier and really liked it, i liked the plot and mostly the acting was good (although Swank was aweful and Johansson wasnt much better). excellent direction though and Kirshner was great

8/10

[MadsenOMC]

SPOILERS!!!


Maybe my low expectations helped, but I didn't think this was awful. Granted, I didn't think it was all that great either. Just a decent matinee on a dreary afternoon. Other than Eckhart and Kirshner, the cast is fairly weak. Johansson is a good actress and hot as hell, but she looked ridiculously out of place and uncomfortable in period clothing. Swank doesn't fare much better and both were woefully miscast. Hartnett is OK but he isn't entirely convincing either. Probably a tad too young for the part. Anyway, I did like the look of the movie. They had a great crew, including an extremely talented production designer and cinematographer. De Palma pulls off some great shots, and the stairwell stabbing and tumble is a tense, well-shot scene. It goes on too long though and feels like it ends about four times. Too many "startling" revelations as well. Felt forced. The ending is sort of a letdown too. Builds up to not a whole lot. When all is said and done, it's pretty much textbook mediocrity.

5/10

[brode]

i have done reports on the black dahlia muder for school and i think its wild that the guys were never cought

but im confused...i read that she was murdered by more than one man and that because it was the work of a gang it was harder to pin down anyone...

in the previews though theymake it look as if its one guy getting away with a brutal murder....guess ill jus have to check it out

[Moviefan02000]

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/the_black_dahlia/_group_photos/josh_hartnett4.jpg

Ever since I saw the trailer for THE BLACK DAHLIA, I thought it looked fantastic. As the release date grew closer and closer, reviews were pouring in about how horrible a film it was. While I was disappointed, I didn't let that get in the way of my anticipation. It wasn't until after DAHLIA was in theaters for a few weeks my expectations for it started to get slimmer and slimmer, until I had nearly none. I still expected to enjoy it, though. I'm happy to say I did enjoy it. It's not one of the year's ten best films in any way. Hell, it's not in the year's top fourty, but in a way I found it entertaining. The film's first hour was great, and I was ready to type about how much I was in love with it, and then I'd be bashed :p. The last fourty-five minutes was confusing, and it was far too long, which brought my grade down quite a bit. Still, I enjoyed it. None of the performances were too bad. Josh Hartnett was probably the worst, but he was still watchable. I hated his narration, and I found it really annoying. Scarlett Johansson was pretty good, but not as excellent as many of her other films that were made in the past few years. Mia Kirshner was great, and I wish she had more screentime. Hilary Swank was also alright, but it was annoying how her accent was either on or off. Fiona Shaw was hysterical (was the scene near the end supposed to be funny?), whether she was supposed to be or not. That's really all I have to say about THE BLACK DAHLIA. It's not good, it's not bad. It's just sort of in the middle.

6/10 (B-)

[ilovemovies]

I thought Aaron Eckhart was superb despite having a surprisingly small amount of screen time. The scene in the stair way, while not as good as the climatic chase scene in Carlito's Way or the train station shootout in The Untouchables, was nonetheless magnificant. Great suspense. DePalma really knows how to put you on the edge of the your seat.

Yeah, Shaw gives an awful performance but other than that I didn't really have a problem with the ending. It wasn't great and not as good as L.A. Confidential's ending (which this movie definately reminded me a LOT of throughout only it's not nearly as great) but it had some neat twists and satisfying enough.

Besides Eckhart I thought Hartnett was really solid in the movie. Between Sin City, Lucky Number Slevin and this movie, it's pretty obvious that he was born to be in these types of movies. Mia Kirshner was excellent though I completely confess that if the role was played by an unkwown I wouldn't even have noticed her. As for the other women, Swank and Johansson are adequate. No more, no less. Though both look amazing.

Speaking of looking amazing, the production values are nothing short of superb. Stellar art direction and cinematography. This movie looks gorgeous. It's very well paced. The movie moves quickly and there is never a dull moment.

So in the end, this movie turns out being a bit short of being great. It's also different than what I was expecting. It's actually not even really about the Black Dahlia murder. There is a suprising lack of screen time devoted to that mystery. In the end this flawed movie but an absorbing and very good one. L.A. Confidential was definately but this is still solid, enjoyable fare. A solid effort from DePalma.

7/10

[RandalGraves]

I never got to a theater to see this, but I'll be checking out the dvd for sure.