Un meurtre pour rien

"Los tallos amargos" is a great example of film noir released out of USA. Following the tradition of classic Hollywood (the most brillant time in the history of cinema), this picture tell us the story of a poor journalist who, trying to make easy money, begins to work with an hungarian inmigrant. They start a fake journalism school and soon their pockets are full of dirty money. When the journalist begins to have suspects on your partner, the plot will become most than interesting. A perfect movie, a very good story. A picture that looks like any american film of that time. 9 out of 10.

EXTRA: When the A.F.I. chose the 100 bests cinematography of all time, this argentine movie was in the list among titles like "Citizen Kane" (!)

Very dated movie done --part of it-- as expressionistic 1930s German cinema, part as realistic 1950s European neo realism, all mixed up with a very Argentinian way of interpreting the brief and blunt dialogs throughout the whole movie.

The story is quite interesting. It could have been superbly interesting if the script could have been fully developed going deeply into the main character psychology and motives for his behavior instead of the bumpy way shown here so abruptly from one scene to the next (unless I saw a faulty copy with missing scenes).

Our tortured main character motivations for what he does, as seen in this version, is totally incomprehensible, since he has no real proof to take such a drastic measure to solve the dilemma that tortures his feverish mind.

The photography may be the best asset in this film, done in black and white with a very impressive atmosphere, dark and oppressive almost all the time.

The soundtrack is also very good, following the black mood of the story very precisely and to the point.

But the whole feeling disclosed here, either about the city, its people or our protagonists is nowadays as removed from us as a Christopher Columbus ship could be as incongruous standing next to an atomic submarine.

I am glad i found out about this movie. This is not a hidden gem but it's a good, maybe very good, crime/drama-film noir and every fan of this genre will probably like it. It doesn't even need to be a big fan of this genre, because all the elements of a good movie are here. Very good actors, a clever script, a very good director, nice cinematography and overall, an interesting-at least- movie.

I can't say i understood well the whole thing about this fraudulent operation of them. Maybe it was lost in translation. But the movie doesn't depend on this either way. Probably the biggest quality here is the script, this movie works better as a character study. The protagonist is a veey interesting character. And if you pay attention to his motives and his whole psyche, everything that he does is explainable. Not justified of course, but viewer can see the reasons.

It's getting gradually better and the last 20-30 minutes are the best part of this movie. I loved the fact that i couldn't see where it goes even though old movies are usually great but mostly predictable. The ending was very powerful if you catch the symbolisms. I didn't but i read some reviews and i understood this movie better.

THE BITTER STEMS is a 1956 Argentine Film Noir and is one of two new releases from Flicker Alley and the Film Noir Foundation that showcase two "lost" movies from 1950s Argentina. It was based on a best selling Argentine novel and is on AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER's list of the 100 Best Photographed Films of all time. The cinematographer, Ricardo Younis, was a pupil of the legendary Gregg Toland (CITIZEN KANE) while Fernando Ayala was emerging as one of Argentina's top directors. After being acclaimed on its initial release, it disappeared for many years before being discovered at a private collector's home. Restoration was done at the UCLA Film & Television Archive.

The story concerns a disillusioned journalist (Carlos Cores) who joins forces with a Hungarian immigrant (Vassili Lambrinos) to create a fake journalism correspondence school so the Hungarian can bring his family to Argentina. It all starts well with the money rolling in and 2/3 going to bring the family over but soon the journalist thinks he is being cheated after the appearance of a woman who is not a family member. It is then that he takes matters into his own hands with tragic results. In addition to solid performances and moody photography, BITTER STEMS features an early score from celebrated composer Astor Piazzola.

Thanks once again to Flicker Alley for continuing their ongoing Film Noir Series in partnership with "Noircheologist" Eddie Muller and to his Film Nor Foundation for rescuing THE BITTER STEMS from oblivion. The DVD/Blu Ray combo comes with a 23 page booklet that is loaded with photos and information. Other extras include a filmed introduction on the movie with Muller, a conversation with Argentine archivist Fernando Martin Pena, and a profile of composer Astor Piazzola. Finally there is an optional commentary from film historian Imogen Sara Smith. An absolute must have for fans of Film Noir...For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.

"And we decided to celebrate our end like the doomed in the movies do."

I loved the look and feel of this Argentinian noir, with its flashbacks, surreal dream sequences, and segues into the inner thoughts of its main character. Instead of a femme fatale we get a tragic figure (Aída Luz), and instead of everything coming apart because of a con game, we get drama out of misunderstanding and paranoia. These are basically good people, driven to dark places by economic desperation, with the post-war conditions in Europe looming as a distant backdrop. I wasn't completely sure about the ending, as the digging wouldn't have to be too deep and the guy should have known it (being vague here on purpose), but I loved how brutally grim it was. Overall, a very satisfying film.