One in Eight Million
Sep 25th, 2008 | By Rick | Category: Classic Cinema, Reviews
Barry Fitzgerald contemplates the naked city
In Jules Dassin’s The Naked City, Barry Fitzgerald is so over-the-top, cloyingly Irish I want to hit him. He stops just short of drinking green beer and saying “faith and begorrah.” I am surprised that the Irish Anti-defamation league (is there really such a thing?) doesn’t have a big black mark next to the movie.
There, I got it out of my system. Now for the movie: it’s not a bad film, exactly, but it’s certainly not a great one. Filmed like a noir, with beautiful black and white cinematography by William Daniels, it is nevertheless a police procedural, and not a paricularly suspenseful one at that. In fact, it plays like a Very Special Episode of Law and Order: the body is found in the first five minutes, and the rest of the movie is spent working out of the crime. And to reinforce the whole procedural vibe, there’s a narrator who just oozes false cheer and bonhomie, while at the same time telling us in no uncertain terms what is going on at any given minute.
Naked City was made two years before Dassin was named before the House Committee on Unamerican Affairs, and it shows. It displays a fundamental optimism, a basic belief that law and order will prevail that Rififi, his post-exile masterpiece, lacks. There’s none of the daring take on violence, or the nihilistic take on life, that pervades that film. More’s the pity: The Naked City could have used a shot of darkness, a sense that the police, far from being perfect, are themselves only human. What a difference a few years can make.
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I reviewed this movie quite some time ago and don’t agree about Fitzgerald at all. I thought he tempered the Irish caricature very successfully (he didn’t lose the accent, but at least it’s his real accent and in keeping with Irish having disproportionate representation on police forces).
Perhaps it’s my projection, I don’t know, but that’s what I was thinking whenever he was on screen. Perhaps I was also reacting to the paternalism of the role, the wise-old-man-ness, who knows it all and runs his detective squad like a benevolent father figure.
I read your review, by the way, and liked it.
Thanks. Perhaps my love of the TV series clouded my judgment, but if you think of Father Fitzgibbon and then of Muldoon, he definitely took a step in the right direction.
Are you??! … did you just say?!?!? … [sound of Lapper having a conniption fit] %$&@#*!!!
I love Barry Fitzgerald! Did you ever see A Catered Affair? My God he’s entertaining in that movie! I mean really, Bette Davis - Bette Freakin’ Davis! - who I love is very affected in that movie, Borgnine does a good job and the youngins (Debbie Reynolds and Rod Taylor) are trying real hard to give naturalistic performances (and the trying shows). And then there’s Barry! He’s all you remember about the movie afterwards.
I’ll forgive you this time but if this happens again, Erin is definitely gonna go Medieval Bragh on you.
“In Jules Dassin’s The Naked City, Barry Fitzgerald is so over-the-top, cloyingly Irish I want to hit him. He stops just short of drinking green beer and saying “Faith and begorrah,” ha! ha!
I agree with you Rick, it’s not a “bad” film (I think because of the Dassin’s “touch”)
(I consider Jules Dassin one of favorite directors from my top 5 of favorite directors, with Hitchcock as in Alfred, coming in first of course!)
“Filmed like a noir, with beautiful black and white cinematography by William Daniels, it is nevertheless a police procedural, and not a particularly suspenseful one at that.”
According to author Spencer Selby, the author of Dark City: The Film Noir …”Dassin’s Naked City is a policer procedure like you mentioned in your review, with strong location shooting and a climatic car chase scene which were “ground breaking” at the time.
Rick, I have also linked an excellent article covering different films including Dassin’s Naked City by author Micheal E. Grost.
http://members.aol.com/MG4273/semidoc.htm
According to noiraholic’s “trusty noir-o meter” the film “The Naked City” has elements of noir, and fall into the category of crime, mystery and drama…and I do agree with your over all assessment of the film.
Btw, I have purchase the Criterion Collection of the Naked City because I must admit I really “like” this film a lot, I would use the word “love,” but it’s hard to say “love” right now! (Rick, please don’t ask me if I am “fluttering” my eyelashes)
Tks, dcd
Marilyn –
He did indeed take a step in the right direction. I will give you that. And I liked the TV show as well.
Jonathan:
Geez, man, don’t have a cow. I didn’t say I hated the big (well, little) Irish lug, just that I didn’t particularly like him in this.
And no, I didn’t see him in A Catered Affair, but if he stands up well vs ol’ Scene-Chewer Davis, well, I gotta give him some props.
dcd,
All you say is true, about the ground-breaking techniques and all, but I just wish the story was more engaging.
Somebody wrote that it was the procedural after the noir, which took place just before the story that is filmed.
“but I just wish the story was more engaging….”
I am in agreement with you Rick, it’s not a “bad” film, but like you said, I wished it was more engaging.
That is why I said, “I do agree with your over all assessment of the film.”
Instead, I think it was played out by the numbers.(step-by-step…and with caution)
“Somebody wrote that it was the procedural after the noir, which took place just before the story that is filmed”
Hey! Rick, I think read that too, but I forgot who wrote it!
Tks,
dcd
Very well-written and astute essay Rick. I kind of like the film a bit more than you do, as I value those components you yourself cite. But I can see how one would compare it with LAW AND ORDER, as it does seem in narrative to be a forerunner of this genre, in both content and style. I found it mostly riveting, and the Criterion DVD does it full justice.
Thanks, Sam. I think it is a forerunner of the tv police precedurals. And Law and Order seems to be the purest flavor — or at least the one closest to this template. L&O is very post-modernly nihilistic and cynical, however, whereas this reflects thr post WWII optimism of the time.