crimemooremorrison

The Lady From Shanghai – Orson Welles (1947)

Pg. 17

“I stood alone in the darkness. Light does not illuminate. It only looks for things to illuminate. And I had never been found by the light. I would always be in darkness—”

Pg. 55

“Suddenly the countless streams of rain interrupting my vision as I stared at a withered lotus flower appeared like a big black curtain—clearly showcasing my life, closed off with nowhere left to go. Even though the curtain's come down…why wasn't I getting up from my seat…? What more did I think there was to see…?”

Pg. 160

Happy Birthday, Robert Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997)

Mitchum may be best known for his nightmarish turn as a preacher chasing a pair of children in The Night of the Hunter along with his menacing convict terrorizing Gregory Peck in Cape Fear. He also played Philip Marlowe in two big screen adaptations of Raymond Chandler’s novels. In 1975, Mitchum starred in the period retelling of Farewell, My Lovely, and in 1978 he played Marlowe in then-present day London in a reworking of The Big Sleep. Mitchum remains the only actor to play Marlowe more than once in the movies, and even when the movies wobble his performance remains rock-solid and one of the best depictions of the private eye. It makes you wish he had a shot at the role during the 40s and 50s.

Mitchum continued to deliver steely cool tough-guy performances in movies like The Friends of Eddie Coyle and (one of my favorites) the postwar Japanese noir The Yakuza.