Manhattan Nocturne

I am on a hot streak this year regarding indie films noir. This is the fourth I've seen and it's the best so far. I know, I know, I said that about "The American Side", but this one's even better. But I don't think you can see it, at least in the NYC area - it got here on a Thursday, I saw it on Monday, and it's leaving on Wednesday; 7 days exposure, and in only one theater.

In a nutshell; Porter (Adrien Brody) writes a column in a tabloid and covers accidents and murders. He meets Caroline (Yvonne Strahovski) at a party and tells him she has a problem, but he must come to her apartment to get the details. Her husband, a kinky movie director, was recently murdered and it is still unsolved. He volunteers to help. The publisher of his paper also enlists his help to find a compromising tape made of him. (of course, there is a connection).

The plot and script is as good as it is absorbing. "Manhattan Night" starts off slowly for the first 40 minutes, but the last hour is riveting. And I can guarantee you've never seen a more offbeat story. Adrien Brody is perfect as a noir detective (in this case, a writer) and Ms. Strahovski is a knockout as well as a very competent actress. Too bad you won't be able to see this one.

Film Noir like I like them. Even though there is not much action the movie is enjoyable to watch. It's all filmed at a slow pace, also with the calm narrating voice, but that's what this movie needs. It's a mystery drama that starts slow but once you're into the story it all gets better. The strange relationship between husband and wife Caroline and Simon Crowley played by Yvonne Strahovski and Campbell Scott is not the average day-to-day relationship and this is what makes the movie interesting. Add on that that Yvonne Strahovski is a candy for the eye. Adrien Brody plays like most of his roles, never flamboyant but always performing good. His character this time is also a very calm person that just tries to figure out some mysteries and solve some problems. But don't expect much action because there is hardly any, and the story doesn't really need action anyways. The story is strong enough for that. A good movie night assured.

Manhattan Nights has that feeling of classic film noir from the start. Substituting a modern day investigative reporter for the private eye is a fit. It fairly quickly turns into a disturbing darkness - as in somewhat uncomfortable to watch. Nothing really tells the viewer where this might go and it piles on quite a bit of weirdness thanks to the intersection of our reporter, Brody, with a femme fatale widow who knows how to use her looks for manipulation. It becomes a downward spiral for the reporter who, though you "might" want him to end up OK he's thoroughly maddening.

Gobs of mystery is piled on without a clear idea of what's going on. This is a good hook because like watching a blurry image you believe it will, eventually, come into focus. For this viewer it's the last quarter of the movie that feels too hard to believe making that final clarity hollow.

Maybe a couple that was super strange could pull down a wealthy tycoon and an egotistical writer? The problem, as I see it, is not nearly believable enough in the final analysis for the genre.

By the other reviews here I think there's a good number of folks that do not share my opinion. That's probably good since I'm not claiming to be right. It's just one person's take. Not having read the book I didn't know what to expect anyway. Actually I thought it had good acting and cinematography which held promise, I just couldn't buy into the story when it was finally revealed. The story (writing), therefore for me, ended up being the let down.

In the final analysis you may also feel manipulated as a viewer, or not?

Adrein Brody plays a washed up newspaper journalist whose claim to fame came from finding a missing girl, when even the police ran out of options. In hopes of finding another hit to keep his career alive, he accepts an invention from a beautiful woman to figure out her husband's death, but as he gets deeper evolved it complicates his life greatly.

Thought the actual crime is not that interesting, I was more taken by how the narrative was laid out while Brody was driving the wheel. He has a way of getting you into the mix of everything that was going on, some of his best work in a while.

I also loved the modern day film noir accepts I saw in the film. A very modern day twist of the crime orientated genre, with Brody deep in trouble with the Femme Fatale, played by Yvonne Strahovski, and modern day elements added to it. Yvoone's character Caroline's recently dead husband was a abusive filmmaker who documented everything, which was a big drive to the movie's story.

The overall crime was pretty weak but yeah, the whole movie with Brody as the centerpiece was done brilliantly

Producer-director Brian DeCubellis had done some TV movies and short films before this bigger directorial effort, the neo-noir Manhattan Nights, from 2016. He certainly has talent.

The film stars Adrien Brody as Porter Wren, a columnist for a New York newspaper. His wife (Jennifer Beals) is a surgeon, so they are able to have a darling house that is hidden down an alley in Manhattan - something like Patchin Place in the west village.

When his newspaper is taken over by a Rupert Murdock type (Steven Berkoff), Porter reluctantly attends a party for him. There he meets the beautiful Caroline (Yvonne Strahovski) whose husband, well-known director Simon Crowley (Campbell Scott) was found dead, buried under the rubble of an imploded building, surrounded by pieces of jade. The two wind up having an affair.

It seems Simon was a complete weirdo with an interesting hobby of recording "honest moments" on video cards. Caroline takes Porter to a safety deposit box with dozens of them. She invites him to watch them. But it turns out one of those honest moments is being used to blackmail someone, and the person being blackmailed wants it and begins to terrorize Porter to find it. This leads to Porter uncovering secrets about Simon, Caroline, and person being blackmailed, and learning something about himself.

The film is based on an novel called Manhattan Nocturne. I suppose the name was changed because the filmmakers thought not enough people would know what a nocturne is. That's sad. The story is good but unsavory, and, frankly, so are the characters. And it has the usual female nudity.

The acting is very good, particularly from Brody and Strahovski - she is gorgeous and reminds me of Sharon Stone when she was younger. Brody has had a so-so career since winning the Oscar. This was a good role for him. Linda Lavin has a cameo, and she's excellent.

Overall I can't say I was crazy about "Manhattan Night." It was well done but unpleasant.