Devil In A Blue Dress
Denzel Washington turns up the heat as a L.A. private eye in this steamy mystery from director Carl Franklin. Washington stars as Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins, a decorated war hero who returns home to the segregation of post-war America. Forced to accept an under-the-table job finding a missing socialite, Easy is caught between the white power elite and the vibrant black community of Central Avenue. And as soon as Easy and his trigger-happy friend Mouse find the mysterious Daphne Monet trouble fellows.
Member Reviews
Review - Devil in a Blue Dress - maw-
This is a great movie adaptation of Walter Mosley's equally great novel and I've watched it numerous times. It's a typical noir thriller with all the twists and turns one would expect. What's different is it depicts black society, exposing much of the prejudice of the post-war period. Don Cheadle is excellent as Mouse.Not bad but expected more - Daniel_Cohn
As said in the rental blurb, this is an attempt to remake the 1940s-1950s sub-genre of film noir, involving an ordinary Joe who gets into something bigger than himself. Something that will cause all the soiled laundry in the closets of the local ruling class to come tumbling out into plain view. What makes it all the more dangerous is that those members of the ruling class play on both sides of the law.
Dead Reckoning, starring Humphrey Bogart, as just returned to home army officer Rip Murdock, is the classic example in the field.
Denzel Washington's Easy Rawlins is not bad but the script lets him down, especially the attempt to add humour into the story in the persona of Rawlins friend, "Mouse." Don Cheadle's character comes off as comic relief rather than the dark presence the story needs. In the end he seems less a stone cold killer, someone who lost his morality a long time ago and has no interest in finding it again, than a teenage gangbanger.
In the end it is okay but it could have been more.Racial Neo-Noir - Jimmy_Jam
Easy is the innocent man looking for a way out in this Neo-Noir that is surrounded by race. It twists traditional noir because the protagonist is already at the bottom of society, yet manages to fall even farther; which makes his refusal to lie down more dramatic and motivated. The best scenes of the film involve Denzel and a brutally violent Don Cheadle (who is my favorite part of the film). There are some pretty good twists involved that are not visible until they are sprunk upon you; but unfortunately it just seems like it has been done before. The part of the film that bothters me the most, is also one of its most amusing; that being dialogue. There are some truly funny moments in the movie, but some lines are so corny that it just can not be forgiven. I might be a little hard on it, since most classic noir has corny dialogue, but it just distracts from the movie now-a-days.
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Review - Devil in a Blue Dress - maw-
This is a great movie adaptation of Walter Mosley's equally great novel and I've watched it numerous times. It's a typical noir thriller with all the twists and turns one would expect. What's different is it depicts black society, exposing much of the prejudice ...Not bad but expected more - Daniel_Cohn
As said in the rental blurb, this is an attempt to remake the 1940s-1950s sub-genre of film noir, involving an ordinary Joe who gets into something bigger than himself. Something that will cause all the soiled laundry in the closets of the local ruling class ...Racial Neo-Noir - Jimmy_Jam
Easy is the innocent man looking for a way out in this Neo-Noir that is surrounded by race. It twists traditional noir because the protagonist is already at the bottom of society, yet manages to fall even farther; which makes his refusal to lie down more dramatic ...