Review of The Blue Dahlia (1946) by Paul R — 30 Mar 2010

A war vet named Johnny Morrison, played by Alan Ladd, returns home at the end of the war where expects a warm welcome from his wife. Hoping to surprise his wife, Helen, with his return he comes home to some kind of party his wife is throwing and notices while she walks a "friend" out the door where he notices them kiss and causes a bit of a ruckus. The guests all depart and the two have a bit of quarrel where Johnny takes out a gun but doesn't use it on her, though he believes he probably should, and throws the gun on to a chair and storms out. Later that night, she is murdered and Johnny winds up being the prime suspect. Johnny must prove his innocence and he enlists the aid of Joyce Haywood, played by Veronica Lake, the ex-wife of Helen's lover to help him find the culprit of the crime. The two end up falling in love while tracking down the killer. Two of his ex-service buddies, Buzz Wanchek and George Copeland played by William Bendix and Hugh Beaumont respectively, also come to Johnny's aid. The murder mystery is eventually solved by the end where all things are not what they seem.

This film noir classic, directed by George Marshall, was Raymond Chandler's first, and only, original story written directly for the screen, one that would give him an Oscar nomination, his second nomination after sharing it with Billy Wilder for Double Indemnity. The film is filled with fast-paced dialogue and with Veronica Lake playing one of her signature roles as a femme fatale. Alan Ladd does a really well job as the protagonist who is wanted by the police. George Marshall does a really good job of directing especially with the pace of the film. While it isn't a classic in the same sense as other classic film noir of the '40s like Double Indemnity, it is still a pretty well written and acted film. A film worth watching if you're a big fan of film noir. 8/10.