
Date viewed: 2/3/11
Venue: Home (NWI)
Evidently, it was quite the novelty to shoot a movie on location in the 1940s. The first five minutes of NAKED CITY are spent showing rather mundane (but pretty) shots of NYC with the producer narrating about what a big deal it is that the movie wasn’t shot on a sound stage. Obviously, this is commonplace in modern-day filmmaking, and attempting to retroactively appreciate the grandeur of actors talking on a sidewalk is a losing battle, but NAKED CITY still has its successes. Namely the performance of Barry Fitzgerald and the finale foot chase.
I’m sure books could be (already have been?) written about how Jules Dassin’s writing and directing were affected by his blacklisting and exile, but it’s hard to believe NAKED CITY and RIFIFI are directed by the same person. Dassin is clearly well on his way to developing his Mannish eye for action in NAKED CITY (though the jump he makes two years later, with NIGHT AND THE CITY, is remarkable), but otherwise you would never guess these movies were directed by the same person. NAKED CITY is stilted, talky, traditional, even wholesome. RIFIFI is one of the coldest and meanest movies I’ve seen.
I can’t wait to check out the rest of Dassin’s filmography.
Rating: 6.5