Force of Evil, Abraham Polonsky's 1948 debut, is as brave and uncompromising as Polonsky himself. After making this film, Polonsky directed another film after 20 more years.
Force of Evil tells the story of Joe Morse (John Garfield), a lawyer whose main client is Joe Tucker (Roy Roberts), the boss of a numbers racket. Tucker wants to control the number rackets in New york. This means taking control of many smaller rackets ,one of which is run by Morse's older brother Leo Morse (Thomas Gomez). Joe wants to save Leo's small business ,to pay him back for putting him through college. Leo doesn't take it lightly. He calls Joe a gangster. Joe feels bad but still he attempts to save his brother. Eventually Joe forces Leo in on the scheme .
John Garfield did brilliant job in lead role. According to Martin Scorsese nobody portrayed guilt on the American screen better than John Garfield in Abraham Polonsky's hard-hitting Force of Evil (1948). Marie Windsor even with her limited screen-presence, delivered a powerful performance.
Force of Evil is one of those rare film masterpieces in which the story, script, casting, acting, direction, photography, and sound design work in perfect unison to create a tense and deeply enjoyable story. Above all, it is a beautiful film ,expertly directed with tremendous black and white imagery. It may be the noir that most perfectly captures the societal anxieties of America in the late 40's.
Stupendous ! The noir was excellent and the beautiful stark black and white photography by George Barnes is appreciable.The way he filmed the city scapes and the prologue of the movie is good.
ReplyDeleteGarfield's performance was strong and soft when needed in the film showing a more flexible side. At first he was the crooked lawyer and later on he changes after realizing the depth of his corruption. This noir doesn't go by the books but it was totally enjoyable and good enough to see with your friends and family.
Yep the noir was top notch.
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