Somewhere in The Night

Seen for the first time in October 2012.

This is really high quality film noir. The only thing it’s lacking is any kind of star power, but it’s every bit as good as something like “the Maltese Falcon,” though less celebrated all of these years later, and maybe on the verge of being forgotten. This makes me wonder what it’s reception was like upon release. Did it seem like just another noir amongst a surfeit of noir, overlooked amidst the gluttony, requiring the passage of time and the change of fashions for its quality to emerge from the background? Maybe similar to the 70’s funk of Betty Davis rediscovered early in this century?

If so, I hope it’s re-discovered before it’s completely forgotten. It’s hard though, because only noir fans tend to watch old nor, even good old noir, and our numbers dwindle, I feel. It’s hard to imagine this movie receiving the fanfare it deserves at this point. It deserves better than to be relegated to genre-specificists, though that’s probably where its fate lies.

What makes it good? A good mystery. A good twist. Nothing is telegraphed. Some of the hard-boiled dialogue seems like it was lifted straight from the novel, as of course it was, but you can just picture the words on the page and that’s a bit detrimental. Though maybe if Bogart were delivering the lines he would have pulled it off. It’s hard to say. This nonetheless holds your attention and we’re riveted by the mystery. I don’t really buy the romance and the movie could do without it, but all of the suspense pays off, and that’s what matters. Grade A.