There are lots of comments made around here that once a film gets a home video release we stop talking about it, so I'm making a resolution this year to try to keep up with the new Criterion releases and really go through them. Up first is
Gilda which absolutely blew me away.
Gushing about a Hollywood classic is probably unnecessary, but the movie constantly surprised me, left me smiling, or devastated me. For their part, the three leads were magnificent, especially Glenn Ford whom before tonight I wasn't crazy about (mostly knowing him from
Jubal and
3:10 To Yuma, neither of which did much for me.) Here, his self-deprication and attitude are a superb centerpiece to a haunting performance.
There are so many little, perfect things about the film. What I think I liked best was that the film didn't rely on the shock of revelations for effect. It's clear pretty early that Johnny and Gilda know each other. But rather than dwell on just how they know each other, that point is danced around, and the mystery about their relationship is all the more effective because of it. Like the film says, we are going to start anew with only futures, so why dwell on the past? While I'm no expert, it didn't exactly strike me as a film noir. The mysteries upon mysteries, where characters bury themselves deeper and deeper into a mess was really not apparent here. As Eddie Muller also points out, there is also really not a femme fatale here, either. The film perfectly shifts its focus from "what is the story here" to "how will these relationships turn out" and remains perfectly entertaining because of it.
Because the film doesn't rely on revelations to make its point, the viewer gets little surprises as well. When it became apparent to me that Ballin was evil, Johnny was still enthralled with him. The viewer gets to figure these things out for themselves, and it's effectively done. The surprises are not called out but become so obvious as to be impossible to miss, and we get the most possible mileage out of their mystery.
Stylistically their were many fine moments, but I'd say my favorite was Ballin appearing in total blackness after letting Gilda out, and Johnny being in light. At this point, Johnny thinks he is the one hiding the big mystery (his relationship with Gilda), and thinks he is protecting Ballin from possible pain. But while Johnny thinks he is keeping a secret, Ballin is evidently the one with far more mysteries up his sleeve. Throughout the film, Ballin perfectly plays up the oblivious angle while clearly knowing far more than he lets on.
Lastly, lots of great little one liners from Glenn Ford in the film, and my favorite touch was
Gilda getting married dressed in all black.
The Scorsese/Luhrman appreciation piece was fine if nothing truly fantastic, but the Muller discussion was an early candidate for supplement of the year. He discusses an angle of the film that I'm sure is obvious to most, but I totally missed: the idea that the male relationships in the film have more than a few homosexual overtones. He ties his discussion of the film in with its production and development in a totally convincing way.
Sensational film, pretty good release.
