Touch of Evil

SPOILER ALERT

Touch of Evil, by Orson Welles, focuses itself around a newlywed couple, Mike (Charlton Heston) and Susan (Janet Leigh, also in Psycho) spend their marriage between the border of US and Mexico. Here, Mike and Susan witness a car explosion. With his career as a Mexican narcotic policeman, Mike is recruited to help investigate the crime. Also put on the case is the massive figure (both physically and metaphorically) of Captain Quinlan (Orson Welles, himself) whom continues to barge into the investigation. Even though he has a good reputation for solving the cases, his belligerent drunk behavior ruins the integrity of the case. Yet, their lives are both in danger as they continue to involve themselves into the crime. Grande, the local leader of the organized crime, has ties with the car killing and is nothing but trouble throughout the story. At one point, Mike puts Susan in a motel for her safety, but Grande’s gang captures and drugs Susan like a pawn in his whole picture. Vargas, the moral protagonist, discovers that he cannot trust anybody because he found reason to suspect that Quinlan was planting evidence to frame innocent (or free guilty) people. Eventually, Grande’s corrupt deals with the sleazy Captain cost him his life. The suspense for Mike to identify the real criminal becomes the focus of the ending. Through his wits and cleverness (that all Film Noir protagonist should have), Mike is able to solve the case and return to his honeymoon with Susan.

Overall, I am glad I watched this movie, but I doubt I will ever watch it again. Nothing against Orson Welles, I happen to like War of the Worlds, but this movie was too complicated and too slow in parts for me. Typical of Film Noir, the suspense and the logic of the film is emphasized. Yet, I am not sure if I have patience to enjoy the slow moments. The long drawn out sections with mini-episodes (like Quinlan going to Tanya’s brothel a few times or some of the scenes with the weirdest motel clerk of all time) could have been edited a little more for better continuity of the film. Again, I am glad I watched to experience this classic film, but personally, it is not something I would choose to enjoy in the future.