Review of Black Dahlia (2006) by Connor _ — 16 Apr 2011
Brian De Palma knows no boundaries. He should. The 'Scarface' director completes his super-stereotype 1940s detective mystery with lesbian porn, gorey facial mutilation, post-sex bed scenes, and plenty of blood.
None of this is a problem. The problem is that De Palma put so much time into the sideshows he almost forgot about the core of the film. The cinematography, the set, the costumes, the score, the makeup, it's all great.
But the screenplay has let downs. The only notable performance comes from Aaron Eckhart, it's too bad his character seems to be the least on the filmmakers' minds. None of the other actors seem to be trying very hard at all.
The film tries to chalk so much up in itself, I just wanted to tell it to chill. The only character that is followed moderately is Josh Hartnett, so it would be easier if his character had anything to him.
He's boring, he has no personality or quirks or habits or humor or flaws, he doesn't really have much of anything. He's minimally human. The second hour of the film is just a twist and/or epiphany(realization) every other scene to the point where we just want to see something happen rather than have already happened.
Honestly, 'L.A. Confidential' is a lighter but identical film, see that one instead. B-.
This review of Black Dahlia (2006) was written by Connor _ on 16 Apr 2011.
Black Dahlia has generally received negative reviews.
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