CS Weekly Archive > Weekend Read > 09/15/06

An Investigation Into Frustration

By danny munso

California's most notorious unsolved murder gets the big-screen treatment in an uneven noir mystery that ultimately fails to deliver on the great promise the script shows in every scene.

The Black Dahlia

Screenplay by Josh Friedman
Based on the novel by James Ellroy

In 1947 Hollywood, local cops Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) and Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) begin investigating the town's most gruesome murder: a young woman named Elizabeth Short (Mia Kirshner) is found cut in half, disemboweled, and her face cut beyond recognition. As Blanchard becomes unhinged by the case and his own shaky past with girlfriend Kay (Scarlett Johansson), Bleichert takes up with Madeline Linscott (Hilary Swank), the daughter of a wealthy businessman, who bares a striking resemblance to the victim, and may have ties to her as well.

The Black Dahlia gets off to a rousing start, as writer Josh Friedman (War of the Worlds) and director Brian De Palma work from legendary author James Ellroy's fictional account of the real case. The script reveals the beginnings of Bleichert and Blanchard's friendship as boxers who worked their way up the ranks of the Los Angeles police force. Their relationship is competitive yet affectionate, and is the script's main success, so much so that when Kay begins to have eyes for both men, we care less about who she'll choose than that Bleichert and Blanchard remain friends.

Friedman and De Palma take their time getting to the Dahlia's murder, preferring to focus on the story's rich characters instead. Once the murder occurs, the film spins into multiple stories, and begins to lose its vision. The Bleichert/Blanchard dream team splits up to follow different trails, with Blanchard becoming more aware of an old enemy's imminent release from prison, while Bleichert's search for clues at a lesbian club leads him into Madeline's bed. The stories on their own, particularly in their beginning stages, are quite engrossing; Friedman in particular does a good job balancing Blanchard's destructive behavior against a great comedic scene as Bleichert meets Madeline's parents at a horrific dinner party.

But, once the story finally shifts back to the murder at hand, as the plot thickens and suspects multiply, Friedman and De Palma refuse to back off on their subplots. As Bleichert and Blanchard's search for the Dahlia's killer becomes more intense, the side stories become less relevant, but are for some reason given equal screen time. This is possibly to throw the audience off the correct trail, and it certainly serves that purpose. But what results is a convoluted conclusion to a film that once seemed quite economical and sharp.

For a movie that can be so captivating at its peak, the ending falls flat. In fact, a scene involving the death of a major character proves to be the film's real climax, not the half-dozen scenes that follow, which include the big reveal of the killer. But by the time we discover the murderer's identity, it elicits little more than a shrug, unless you're like me and turn to the person next to you to ask, "Who the hell is that?"

The Black Dahlia is a good movie that could have easily been great, had the script had a little more focus. While it proves to be satisfying in many ways, expect this film to be one of the more frustrating experiences you'll have in a theater this year.

The Black Dahlia

Universal Pictures
Rated R; 119 min.

Buy tickets now

Danny Munso graduated from film school in 2004 and can currently be found on his computer working on one of his many half-written screenplays. Or, more likely, he's on the Internet checking the scores of his beloved Bay Area sports teams.

The Black Dahlia courtesy Universal Pictures

From the Trenches
Working screenwriters discuss in their own words a particular aspect of screenwriting, from the mechanics of writing to the personal and professional impact that writing has had on their lives. > VIEW ARCHIVE

The Art of Craft
Screenwriting experts discuss how to approach various aspects of writing and the writing life. A mini-seminar each week from the people who write the books and teach the classes. > VIEW ARCHIVE

The Big Picture

Features that cover all aspects of screenwriting, from our "Seven Best" lists to analysis of old favorites and new classics. > VIEW ARCHIVE

Expert Witness
A panel of experts assembled to provide the facts about the screenwriting business. Readers will be able have their questions answered by an agent, producer, entertainment attorney, and WGA representative—and without paying that 10% commission. > VIEW ARCHIVE

Son of a Pitch
A weekly tutorial on how to write a script. Each week deals with a different element of creating a script, with the ultimate goal to provide a step-by-step instruction manual for new writers. The guide for this is a writer just diving into screenwriting himself, who asks the pros questions any new screenwriter would have about this brave new world. > VIEW ARCHIVE

Weekend Read
Film, book, web site and technology reviews from a writer’s perspective. How can these items help a writer on his or her journey, or make that journey more enjoyable? > VIEW ARCHIVE

DVD Review of the Day
DVD reviews from a writer’s point of view. What aspects of this script and features of this DVD illuminate the writing, development, and storytelling process? > VIEW ARCHIVE