User reviews

Every time this is repeated on TV I can't help but watch it to the end; it's crammed with sharp lines, great performances, and the best studio production there could be. Unfortunately it's let down badly in two places; when Veronica Lake picks up Alan Ladd in the torrential rain - this is scripted as perfectly normal, and even in 1946 LA(?) that's doubtful - this scene just clunks; and in the ending, which as many have pointed out was changed, turning it into less of a film noir and more of a gung-ho for the navy pic. The supporting cast, however, don't have to contend with these plot shenanigans, and the nasty, shabby side of postwar LA is portrayed without a seam showing. The cops, the partygoers, the flophouse heavies, they're all totally convincing. I even reckon Morrison's wife (name escapes me while this page is open) gives Lake a run for her nylons. Gets better with every viewing. God-damn monkey music!!!

There's a lot of great noir flicks out there; but if you ask me; this isn't one of them. It probably doesn't help that I saw the fantastic noir classic 'They Drive by Night' just before seeing this one, but even so; I wouldn't list The Blue Dahlia among my favourite noirs. The film actually does have a lot going for it, and it's a real shame that this wasn't better considering the plot, which could easily have lead into a great little mystery thriller. The Blue Dahlia focuses on Johnny Morrison, an army bomber pilot who returns home to Hollywood along with his two pals, George and Buzz (complete with metal plate in his head). It's not long before he goes to see his wife and discovers that, in his absence, she's become something of a tramp, and is having an affair with a man named Eddie Harwood; owner of 'The Blue Dahlia' nightclub. Naturally, Johnny isn't pleased at this development and storms off after threatening to shoot his wife. Things take a turn for the worse when Johnny's wife later turns up dead; the offending weapon being the one he used to threaten her with...

The atmosphere is one of the key elements in any noir flick; and this one unfortunately falls down on that point, as the film lacks atmosphere and actually comes off feeling rather cheap. The plot itself doesn't move well either; the first half hour is good, but the mystery doesn't build well, and the route towards finding out who really did it is paved with unlikely happenings, which doesn't do the film any favours. The cast is decent enough, with Alan Ladd providing a good leading role. He is supported by the beautiful Veronica Lake, though her role never really feels all that important...which kind of makes her feel like window dressing. William Bendix is the one that steals the show as is the case with most of his films as the soldier with a metal plate in his head. The film has a pretty big problem where the resolution to the ending is concerned also; personally, I wasn't really bothered who did it by then, and it's quite a good job I felt that way as the resolution is completely unsatisfying. I won't say that this is a completely dreadful film; but there's a lot of better noir out there.

Most reviewers comment on the on screen chemistry between Ladd and Lake. I just watched this movie for the fourth time along with the Glass Key and I just do not get it. Sure they are continually making asides and innuendos but I don't see it as convincing. I think the reason is that to me Lake has zero sex appeal, when I look at her I think of a blond Morticia, an ugly blond Morticia. I am sure that in the forties they had a different take on what makes an attractive, sexy woman, but it's hard to believe that Lake fit the bill. Also she can't act worth a damn. The movie is stolen by Bendix and the ending is a surprise because it is not the real ending it was made up to please the US Navy. Also it is not a true noir it is a straight forward mystery and not a very good one.

Those of us who are passionate admirers of Raymond Chandler's novels and stories naturally have an interest in this film for which he wrote an original screenplay. However, the film does not measure up to one's hopes. The leading man, Alan Ladd, is wooden and unresponsive, as if he were half dead. George Marshall did not direct the film in a manner which was lively or inspiring. As for Alan Ladd, in other films he did have an infectious grin. But in this film he only briefly grins three times. (I counted them.) Marshall should have realised that Ladd needed to be given some medication to wake him up. He was cast opposite Veronica Lake because they were both almost the same size. She at least made considerable efforts to show that she was living and breathing, though she got no feedback from Ladd. One curious result of the Ladd and Lake casting is that Howard da Silva (the lover of Ladd's wife) comes across as a tall person. Da Silva was not particularly tall, as I know because I met him long ago. He only appears tall in the film because Ladd and Lake were tiny people. (Many will know that Ladd sometimes had to stand on a box or platform in his scenes with other leading ladies.) The performances in this film which stand out are from the supporting rather than from the leading cast. The outstanding performance comes from William Bendix. He is utterly and terrifyingly convincing as someone suffering not just from wartime shell shock but, as a result of the brain operation which he has had and the metal plate in his skull, from actual brain damage. Despite the intensity of his performance, he manages never to go over the top, and always remains all too believable. Another excellent performance comes from Doris Dowling, as Ladd's unfaithful and frankly horrible and vicious wife. She is so good at making us hate her that it is a wonder she was not attacked after each scene by the crew. Will Wright, as "Dad" Newell, a corrupt "peeper", is his marvellously droll and laid back self. Actors like that make a film believable. There are many instances of terrific dialogue and good lines in Chandler's script. The plot is good but it is not brought out satisfactorily by the direction or camera work or by the uninspired leads. Those of us who so admire Raymond Chandler should not delude ourselves that this is a marvellous film. It just isn't. The fact is that it was ruined by mediocrity of production. But it is not terrible, it is watchable by those who have patience, and it is in the film noir canon. This was the only original screenplay by Chandler which was actually produced, though he contributed to others. Chandler was far too subtle and profound for Hollywood, and all the best things about his work tended to evanesce and float skywards under the heat of the arc lights. Chandler was a real talent, whereas so many of his interpreters were not.

In their third film together, ALAN LADD and VERONICA LAKE are only mildly interesting in standard roles--so much so, that it's the supporting characters that gain all the interest and most of the attention. But since Raymond Chandler wrote the script, it emerges as a satisfying enough film noir, expertly crafted except for a weak ending which seems to come out of nowhere.

HOWARD DaSILVA, WILLIAM BENDIX, DORIS DOWLING and HUGH BEAUMONT give strong support to Ladd and Lake, with Bendix having the most interesting role as Ladd's shell-shocked war comrade who seems to be the most likely man to have killed Ladd's wife. But the police suspect Ladd, so it's up to him and Lake to solve the crime he knows he never committed. DORIS DOWLING does a bit of over-emoting as the unfaithful wife, but she's a striking presence and HOWARD DaSILVA gives off sparks as a tough and equally suspicious nightclub owner.

Biggest flaw is the revelation of the murderer in the final scene which seems an arbitrary choice made by the scriptwriter as a last minute decision.

Ladd and Lake are still in their physical prime, but the roles might have been better handled by Bogie and Bacall over at Warner Bros.

Chandler's script earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

The Blue Dahlia has a premise that's fairly fresh for the genre. A Navy man returning home to his unfaithful wife who later is mysteriously murdered leaves much potential for plenty of suspects to be debunked. The movie does a really well job too keeping you guessing on who it could be. Unfortunately when the perpetrator is found it's a bit underwhelming & forced. Apparently this was because the real life Navy didn't want a Navy man portrayed in the movie to be the murderer, so there had to be a rewrite. It's another example of a film that got straight jacketed due to the restraints of the time period. However the film is still definitely worth checking out mainly for the performances of Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake and especially William Bendix. It still has many of those elements that make even the most average of film noirs from the 40s still a thrilling watch.