Over-Exposed

Over-Exposed (1956)

"You'd use your grandmother's bones to pry open a cash register." That's the best line in "Over-Exposed," a surprisingly solid crime and ambition (and cheesecake) movie. But then, the second best line is when the leading bleach blonde model/photographer played by Cleo Moore has made it big, and she says, "Green becomes me."

This is a better movie than it could have been, with little known cast and crew and a story that seems at a glance to be a cross between formulaic gangster and splashy girl-photographer with some spunk. There is a love interest (a really nice guy who sees through our heroine's hard gloss to a decent kid inside) who comes and goes and seems to a lifeline to her salvation. But the real lure overall is success and money, which is found at a nightclub run by classy thugs. The movie remains a bit cheesy throughout, however, letting Lila be a club photographer wearing scant clothes, kind of like a cigarette girls did in those days.

One of the surprises was how central and accurate the photography was to the whole movie, start to finish, and I'm not talking cinematography, which was good, but the role of the photography in the plot, including shooting and developing and retouching. And blackmail, by the end. The friendly old man photographer at the start is a strong balance to the wayward and snippy young girl (Moore), and the two end up helping each other throughout.

So there is a lot going on, actually, and it's pretty well done in the main, with those occasional hiccups of a lower budget enterprise. Look for Constance Towers, who later made fame in a couple of hard hitting Sam Fuller movies (like "Naked Kiss"). Give this one a go. And know that the second half is more exciting than the first.

This is from a new DVD collection of B film noir flicks from Columbia. However, inexplicably, this film was included in the collection--even though I'd argue that it's NOT an example of film noir. Perhaps it has a few noir elements towards the end of the film--but that is all. Instead, it's a picture about a very ambitious lady (Cleo Moore) who is bent on being a success--and possibly at all costs. I think that the presence of Ms. Moore in the film is exactly why they marketed it as noir--as she did make quite a few crime films in the 1950s.

The film begins with Moore blowing into a small town and getting arrested--even though she'd done nothing wrong. It was simply a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time--plus she just looked "bad"! Soon, an old photographer comes to her assistance and she, being a very jaded lady, assumes the worst. However, he really is a very decent fellow and helps her get on her feet and teaches her the trade. She also helps him stay sober and make something of himself.

Eventually, she and the old guy leave on amicable terms and she goes off to the big city to make a name for herself as a photographer. At first she tries to get a job with the local newspaper and when that doesn't pan out, she is able to make a much better living as a fashionable photographer--making the rich look great as well as doing commercial work. However, she also makes a deal with some underworld folks along the way--showing she is mostly concerned with her career and not how she makes it to the top. During this time, she has an on-again off-again relationship with a very young Richard Crenna. To me, this was a shortcoming in the film, as the crusty and highly curvaceous platinum blonde and young idealistic reporter seemed to have little in common.

Eventually, while at the very top of her career, she runs afoul of the mob so it's up to Crenna to come to save the day. This is cool, but you also wonder why he didn't just get the cops! Duh. still, it's a dandy film--mostly because Moore did such a nice job in the lead and it was nice to see her play a different role--a very competent 'dame'.

By the way, although the film played well at the time, some of it seems rather sexist and dated. Crenna wants to marry Moore and naturally it's expected that she'll give up her career--even though she is far more successful than he is! My how times have changed! Well acted and interesting, but not without a few logical flaws that, fortunately, don't harm the film so much that it isn't worth seeing. For Moore's character alone, however, it is worth seeing.

I just sat through the better part of a day watching Cleo Moore movies and by far this one is my favorite. She was pretty good in "One Girl's Confession", she was OK in "Women's Prison" (she just didn't have enough to do) but here she really stretches her legs. She carries the whole thing all by herself and she does it with aplomb, like the veteran she was (this was her 23rd out of 25 movies). She plays a career woman driven by her shady past to rise to the top of her profession, photography. The only fly in the ointment was Richard Crenna whose character behaved like a spoiled child, his fragile male ego threatened by her success. The end was disappointing but right along the standards of the day. Still, this one's a keeper, even with Crenna in it.

A young woman learns the craft of photography, and uses her skills (and her wits) to fulfill her glamorous ambitions. This is part of a set called "Bad Girls of Film Noir" but that's a double misnomer. Lila isn't truly bad, just mildly manipulative and although the film is superficially a feminine version of Shakedown it lacks any real edge. I like my noir to be noir through and through, not just in the last 7 minutes. Cleo Moore is the only noteworthy performer in the cast (though Raymond Greenleaf is enjoyable as her mentor) and she's pretty good. It's interesting that one of the things that drives her character is a chip on her shoulder about being ogled, yet the film doesn't hesitate to objectify her, rarely passing up an opportunity to show off her shapely assets. Not bad as a time-killer and the script has some tasty lines, but overall it's forgettable.

Cleo moore is lila, getting kicked out of town, for hanging around in a bar. She meets up with max (ray greenleaf), who teaches her photography skills. She ends up in new york, where russ (crenna, from the rambo films) helps get her set up with a job. The only actor I recognize is jack albertson, from willie wonka and poseidon adventure. Les (albertson) runs the nightclub where lila works. As she gets rich and successful, her friends notice that she loses her home town girl compassion. Lila acts so greedy, that the one time she does the right, compassionate thing, no-one believes her. And now she's in danger. Can russ and max get her out of a jam before she gets in trouble with the mob? Tcm host eddy muller does a prologue and and epilogue for this film. Apparently, the story is partially based on a real female photographer. Moore died so young at 43, from a heart attack. Directed by lewis seiler. This was one of his last films. He didn't win any oscars, but worked with bogart five times!