Noir-vember: Leave Her To Heaven (1945)

I love Gene Tierney. I love Gene Tierney so much that there's a chance I start every review of any Gene Tierney movie by stating my love for her. It doesn't make it any less true though. I've seen a fair few Gene Tierney movies, but there have been some blind spots that I should have seen long before now. Thankfully, I have friends to remind me of the many movies that I should make a priority, and last week I was told that I should definitely fit Leave Her To Heaven into my viewing schedule.

Tierney plays the beautiful and captivating Ellen Berent, a woman who captures the heart of a writer named Richard Harland (Cornel Wilde). Things move along quickly, a bit too quickly for the ex-fiance of Ellen, Russell Quinton (Vincent Price), and it's not long until the happy couple are living in wedded bliss. Well, there's the happy couple and Danny (Darryl Hickman), the polio-crippled younger brother of Richard. Ellen doesn't like to share though, and that isn't necessarily a good thing for a healthy relationship. It's also not a good thing for those who may take up some of the time and attention of her husband.

Based on a novel by Ben Ames Williams, Leave Her To Heaven is a good enough story that it would have been a great film in many different forms. It's directed well by John M. Stahl, who shows the right amount of confidence in the screenplay and his stars, and the writing from Jo Swerling does well to move viewers from a fairly standard opening act to the wild and heightened melodrama of the finale. 

Nobody really puts a foot wrong in front of the camera, although Hickman has to lean into the vulnerable and innocent "patient" persona as he tests the patience of Tierney's character. Speaking of Tierney, she conveys her willpower and steely resolve so well that it's easy to imagine her carrying the whole movie on her own. She essentially plays someone who is truly monstrous, but the edges are softened slightly by the fact that she's, well, Gene Tierney. She's ably supported by Wilde (even if he has to be a bit of a damn squib), a delightful Jeanne Crain, and a suave Price. There are a few other people populating this tale, but that central quartet is the reason for it being such a memorable and enjoyable experience. 

While I wouldn't place this alongside the absolute best Tierney films you could watch, that's only due to other specific titles setting a very high bar indeed. This would definitely be jostling with a few others just below the very best though, and it's certainly something you come away from with no questions about why it is so highly thought of. The runtime may be a bit longer than most noirs from this era, it's 110 minutes, and the bright colours may seem incompatible with the growing darkness of the plot, but don't let either of those things put you off. This is a classic. I'd love to spend much more time picking out specific highlights, but that would ruin the experience for anyone else yet to get around to it.

9/10

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Noir-vember: Shockproof (1949)

I decided to finally make time for Shockproof because it was yet another noir with a credit on it for Samuel Fuller (he helped to co-write the screenplay with Helen Deutsch). I'll admit that when I saw it was directed by Douglas "King of the melodrama" Sirk I was wondering just what the end result would be. It turns out . . . this is exactly what you might think, considering the people behind the camera.

Cornel Wilde is a parole officer named Griff Marat, struggling to help a young woman, Jenny Marsh (Patricia Knight), stay on the straight and narrow. Jenny seems like she could benefit from a second chance, but that might be completely scuppered if she keeps meeting up with her bad influence of an ex, Harry Wesson (John Baragrey). Griff not only wants the best for Jenny, he may well end up falling in love with her. Which would make him much easier to manipulate if Jenny keeps wanting to plan a future with Harry.

Not the best example of noir, and certainly not the grittiest, this is a melodrama that makes use of some familiar tropes to liven things up on the way to a decidedly safe and comfortable finale. Despite the runtime only clocking in at 79 minutes, it's a bit of a slog at times, especially as the leads often engage in some circular conversations and arguments while figuring out just how much they can trust one another. 

The leads help though, and Knight is a particularly enjoyable potential femme fatale. She gets to have more fun, and gets to be very believable as someone who could steal the heart of a good man. Wilde has to be much more straight-laced, but he does well enough to avoid being completely overshadowed by the entertainingly dastardly Baragrey, who does such a good job that his shadow looms large over the proceedings even in the many scenes that don't have him onscreen. Esther Minciotti also does well as Mrs. Marat, the blind mother of Wilde's character, perhaps pivotal in helping Jenny to see that she doesn't have to keep making the same mistakes that haven't helped her improve her life so far.

Many may view this as being a bit too soft, considering the premise and the potential, but I thought it was nice to actually have some sweetness working against the usual bitterness. Sirk may not be the best person to helm this, but he's very capable when it comes to presenting a seemingly ill-fated romance complicated by circumstances and pressures. It's a shame that all of the sharp edges are removed, leaving the end result as one of the weaker films to feature major input from Fuller, but there's still fun to be had, particularly in a third act that turns up the heat before, sadly, turning it right down again just before the end credits.

6/10

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Prime Time: The Big Combo (1955)

Although not at the very top of the film noir tree (which is like a normal tree but . . . extra shady), The Big Combo is a dark and thrilling crime pic, one that depicts a battle of wills between a good cop and a very bad crook, with the latter always seeming to be one step ahead of the former.

Cornel Wilde is Police Lt. Leonard Diamond, a cop obsessed with bringing down a dangerous gangster named Mr. Brown (Richard Conte). It would appear, at least initially, that the key to bringing down Mr. Brown lies with a woman in his past, Alicia, and Diamond puts more and more people in danger as he continues to circle closer to the truth.

Directed by the prolific Joseph H. Lewis, and with a script written by the equally prolific Philip Yordan, The Big Combo is a film made by people who know just how far they can take things to make viewers uncomfortable without stumbling into territory that many would find distasteful. It feels nasty and vicious throughout, and the main protagonist often feels in very real danger, but it also uses a number of the tropes of noir to somehow make you more comfortable while the events unfold.

This is all aided by the main performances. Wilde is solid and upstanding in the lead, so much so that while you worry for him you can also sense that he will make it through whatever happens and come out of the other side okay. Conte exudes complete confidence, and menace, throughout, which also makes it possible that you could reach the end credits without seeing him receive the justice he deserves. Brian Donlevy is very good as the right hand man to Brown, named Joe McClure, and the main female characters, portrayed by Jean Wallace, Helen Walker, and Helene Stanton, are all absolutely pivotal to the storyline, in different ways. The supporting cast also includes the likes of Robert Middleton, Jay Adler, John Hoyt, Earl Holliman, and Lee Van Cleef.

Released in 1955, towards the very end of what many view as the classic period for film noir, this is a film that manages to play around with the familiar without warping any of it. Everything that you expect is present and correct, but it's not necessarily in the classic form that makes it easier to notice. The weakest element, sadly, is Yordan's script, which does a good job with the characters and most of the plotting, but fails to have that sizzling heat that the best noirs had. I cannot reel off any truly memorable lines of dialogue from this, and my ears didn't perk up during any particular exchanges. There are many good lines here and there, but nothing truly great.

Is there such a thing as a bad film noir? If there is, I cannot think of any that I have discovered yet. Maybe I have just been really lucky so far. The Big Combo is another good one. It just suffers in comparison with many of the better, and better-known, titles that I've already seen. I still recommend it to fans, as long as you've watched a number of the more celebrated noirs before you get to it.

7/10

There's a nice disc here for you.