(aka ' La cible vivante ')
USA 194
The dark side of
sexuality was seldom handled honestly by major Hollywood studios in the thirties
and forties. Mickey Rooney once observed that movie eroticism in that era ran
the gamut from a light kiss on the lips to a deep kiss…on the lips. No tongues,
since, as a movie buddy once helpfully explained, they didn’t HAVE tongues in
those days. The Breen office paid less attention to films turned out by poverty
row studios, so occasionally audiences might see something that resembled “real”
life.
“The Great Flamarion,” released by humble Republic studios in 1945, is a
brilliant study of low-life sexual politics, directed by the great Anthony Mann.
It stars Erich Von Stroheim, then sixty, in the title role of a dedicated master
marksman, reduced to headlining a novelty act in a succession of cheap theatres.
His assistants are Connie and Al Wallace, (played by two much underrated actors,
Mary Beth Hughes and Dan Duryea) whose marriage clearly hit the skids in the
middle of the first night. While Al nurses his bitterness and frustration in a
string of bars, Connie chases after power in the only way she knows how:
seducing guys, and the more reluctant the guys are, the better she likes it.
Excerpt from Monica Sullivan's review at Movie Magazine International located HERE
Posters
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Theatrical Release: January 14th, 1945
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
DVD Review: Sony (Nuits américaines - Vol. 4) - Region 0 - PAL
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CLICK to order from:
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| Distribution | Sony / BMG - Region 0 - PAL | |
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There is another French edition of this film on DVD. I have not personally seen the quality, but suspect it to be strong.
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There are two Region 1 editions of The Great Flamarion on DVD but both are interlaced and extremely poor. A VCI release and this Alpha edition. Our suggestion is to avoid, unless you have no other options.
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| Runtime | 1:14:45 | |
| Video | 1.33:1
Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.69 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s |
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NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
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| Audio | English (Dolby Digital 2.0) | |
| Subtitles | French, None | |
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Release Information: Edition Details:
• Catalogues of films |
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| Comments: |
A pretty strong progressive transfer that has decent sharpness and contrast (blacks look rich and deep, but their may be some minor brightness boosting). A few speckles but mostly damage free. This is from the Nuits américaines series - Vol.4 - and shares the package with Kansas City Confidential. These are great DVDs released by Sony/BMG in France. Vol 1 (HERE) contains Suddenly (1954)and D.O.A. (1950) Vol 2 (HERE) contains Vengeance Valley (1951) and Salome (1953). Vol. 3 (HERE) contains Sturges' The Sin of Harold Diddlebock (1947) as well as My Favorite Brunette (1947). There are many more - but many seem to be out-of-print - but still available from individual sellers at Amazon. Unfortunately again, Region 1 gets the bum end of the stick with two extremely poor versions (VCI Entertainment and Alpha Video). We may compare one day - ditto for the Kansas City Confidential version in this package. Extras amount to some text screens and a Quiz - both only in French. Overall - I found this film highly memorable with a haunting depiction of the Femme Fatale by wonderfully cast Mary Beth Hughes (The Ox-Bow Incident (1943), Orchestra Wives (1942), The Women (1939) ). Certainly this Mann Noir is a must see for fans of the style. |
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Recommended Reading in Film Noir (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
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The Dark Side of the Screen: Film Noir by Foster Hirsch |
Somewhere in the Night: Film Noir and the American City by Nicholas Christopher |
Shades of Noir: A Reader by Joan Copjec |
The Art of Noir: The Posters and Graphics from the
Classic Era of Film Noir by Eddie Muller |
The Little Black and White Book of Film Noir:
Quotations from Films of the 40's and 50's by Peg Thompson, Saeko Usukawa |
Film Noir by Alain Silver |
Film Noir Guide: 745 Films of the Classic Era,
1940-1959 by Michael F. Keaney |
Detours and Lost Highways: A Map of Neo-Noir by Foster Hirsch |
| DVD Box Cover |
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CLICK to order from:
|
| Distribution | Nuits américaines - Vol.4 - Region 0 - PAL | |
|
|
There is another French edition of this film on DVD. I have not personally seen the quality, but suspect it to be strong.
|
|
|
|
There are two Region 1 edition of The Great Flamarion on DVD but both are interlaced and extremely poor. A VCI release and this Alpha edition. Our suggestion is to avoid.
|
|
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