montana-4

This film should be named something else; the title could be misleading. As the movie critic in my local newspaper, The St. Louis Post Dispatch, put it; this is a muddled murder mystery story. After doing some online research on the case, I found it to either sidestep or omit many salient points from the investigation. A person who is interested in a fictional solution to the case would be much better off reading " Angel In Black " written by Max Allan Collins. He tends to stick more to the true facts of the case and gives a more plausible solution than this motion picture does. It seems that James Ellroy, the author of the book that this film was adapted from; always has an axle to grind with the LAPD of the 1940's as shown in LA Confidential; another of his novels adapted to film. I found little to recommend this movie. The popcorn and soda at the theater was the best part of the movie.

Did anyone else notice that all of Sessue Hayakawa's dialog was dubbed in using the voice of Richard Loo; the prototypical Japanese Officer during the World War II era in US Motion Pictures? Those who saw Bridge Over the River Kwai should remember the problems that Hayakawa had with his lines. Truthfully; since Sessue Hayakawa was in a number of American silent films; it is a surprise that he still had difficulty with the English language. The first memory that I have of this revered performer was when he was a guest star in an old black and white episode of Wagon Train with Ward Bond and Robert Horton on NBC when I was about eight or nine. For some reason; he stuck in my mind from this one appearance on TV.

The Turner Classic Movies recreation of this "lost" classic was unbelievably well done. The Recreation using still photos was close to experiencing it on film. The music was well suited to the theme. I sincerely hope that a print of this classic exists somewhere so that it can be seen.