Better than I remember
Added 1/9/2010
I had seen this movie when it first hit video and I liked it well enough but pretty much forgot about it after. It popped up again somewhere and I thought I'd give it another shot. I was glad that I did. I don't know what I saw the first time but I must have been in some kind of funk. This is way better than I remember.
The story is well suited to the time and place. Post WWII L.A. is given a good look with a lot attention to detail in sets, cars, wardrobe, etc.. You also get a good feel for the people and socio-political state of things. Particularly for the plight of the African-Americans. I won't recount the story as others have already done so, but it has that Dashiell Hammett or James Ellroy kind of feel to it. Lots of twists and turns and it unfolds at a very even pace. The performances are generally good but Denzel Washington, Tom Sizemore and Don Cheatle really light things up.
Other than getting some of the players' names mixed up which added a bit of confusion to the proceedings but this is a more than solid effort all the way around and well worth your time.
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Thank the Devil
Added 1/6/2009
today I watched Devil in a Blue Dress on cable (satellite actually, but that's not the point...). while the headliner of the movie was the excellent-as-usual Denzel Washington, what makes this movie noteworthy for me -the reason i've seen it so many times- is the film's REAL star: Don Cheadle, whose character Mouse Alexander brought a bit of Texas gangster into the noirish gumshoe flick.
Cheadle's performance was so authentic that he was universally praised (winning the LA Film Critics and National Society of Film Critics Awards, as well as nomination from the Screen Actors Guild for best supporting actor) , even when the movie as a whole wasn't.
Director Carl Franklin (Nowhere to Run, One False Move) managed to craft a film that stands as an example in black cinema, not of what is generally done, but what should be. adapted from the novel of the same name by Walter Mosley, Devil in a Blue Dress manages to be more than a period noir flick or a "black movie"... it adresses issues of love, race, infidelity, etc with an easy hand. but beyond all that, it gave me a new actor to identify with in Cheadle, whose star is still rising...
word.
-samax
samaxAmen.com
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One of the best book to movie adaptations ever
Added 12/9/2008
Look, I'm not one of those rabid dog book fans that trash a movie based on a book just because it didnt follow the book 100%. I actaully read Devil In A Blue Dress years before I saw the motion picture. Now even though the movie changed certain things around, its still pretty good in its own way. The movie is about 85% faithful to the book and even with that in mind it didnt destroy the fond memories of the novel.
The story: Easy Rawlins(Denzel Washington) is a world war veteran that is fired from his job at a defense plant. Things in his life get worse when he meets a mysterious fellow by the name of Dewitt Albright(Tom Sizemore) pays him money to find a woman by the name of Daphne Monet(Jennifer Beals).
Denzel is perfect as Easy Rawlins and I doubt I could have picked a better person to play Ezekiel Rawlins. Tom Sizemore does a pretty good job as well as Dewitt Albright. He is a creep without being overbearing. Don Cheadle does a pretty good job as Mouse, Easy's crazy but loyal friend. Like I said the movie is 85% loyal to the book so there are a few things the movie changed around(like the way Albright really died) and a few things left out(like the numerous love scenes with Easy and Daphne). Despite that Devil In A Blue Dress is still a treat not just for the fans of Walter Mosley's famous book but to the fans of black cinema period. Two thumbs up.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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"Are you on top of that trouble of not?"
Added 11/29/2008
Denzel Washington stars as "Easy" Rawlins, a down-on-his-luck factory worker in 1948 Los Angeles. Easy has just lost his job and desperately wants to keep his house. When he's approached by DeWitt Albright (Tom Sizemore) to do some private eye work, Easy hesitantly agrees for the right price. All he needs to do is track down a white woman named Daphne, who's engaged to an LA mayorial candidate. Apparently, Daphne (Jennifer Beals) has been known to date black men, so Albright thinks Easy might have more luck tracking her down. Easy soon regrets taking the job, though, as other people are looking for Daphne as well.
"Devil in a Blue Dress" didn't do very well at the box office, grossing just $16 million dollars, and is not one of Denzel's more well-known movies. Unfortunately, the plot is a bit muddled at times and just not as interesting as one would hope. In addition, the seedier elements of the story are somewhat glossed over, making it rather tepid for a neo-noir. Although it's not a great movie, it deserves to be better known. In particular, the film's neo-noir tone makes it a notch above the typical mystery, and it's one of the few noirs to feature black actors. The film was also beautifully produced, with a very realistic recreation of 1940s LA. The Elmer Bernstein score and jazz music add great flavor as well. Finally, the acting is very good - Denzel gives a sly performance, and Don Cheadle scores some laughs as Easy's violent friend. All in all, "Devil in a Blue Dress" is a solid movie that will probably be enjoyed by Denzel fans.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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better than average book to movie
Added 11/8/2008
Don Cheadle had the best lines. But the casting of Jennifer Beals and her makeup was a huge mistake, ruined the plot. I had read the book & as soon as she appeared I thought WTF. Imagine her as a blonde and it makes more sense.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Better than I remember
Added 1/9/2010
I had seen this movie when it first hit video and I liked it well enough but pretty much forgot about it after. It popped up again somewhere and I thought I'd give it another shot. I was glad that I did. I don't know what I saw the first time but I must have been in some kind of funk. This is way better than I remember.
The story is well suited to the time and place. Post WWII L.A. is given a good look with a lot attention to detail in sets, cars, wardrobe, etc.. You also get a good feel for the people and socio-political state of things. Particularly for the plight of the African-Americans. I won't recount the story as others have already done so, but it has that Dashiell Hammett or James Ellroy kind of feel to it. Lots of twists and turns and it unfolds at a very even pace. The performances are generally good but Denzel Washington, Tom Sizemore and Don Cheatle really light things up.
Other than getting some of the players' names mixed up which added a bit of confusion to the proceedings but this is a more than solid effort all the way around and well worth your time.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Thank the Devil
Added 1/6/2009
today I watched Devil in a Blue Dress on cable (satellite actually, but that's not the point...). while the headliner of the movie was the excellent-as-usual Denzel Washington, what makes this movie noteworthy for me -the reason i've seen it so many times- is the film's REAL star: Don Cheadle, whose character Mouse Alexander brought a bit of Texas gangster into the noirish gumshoe flick.
Cheadle's performance was so authentic that he was universally praised (winning the LA Film Critics and National Society of Film Critics Awards, as well as nomination from the Screen Actors Guild for best supporting actor) , even when the movie as a whole wasn't.
Director Carl Franklin (Nowhere to Run, One False Move) managed to craft a film that stands as an example in black cinema, not of what is generally done, but what should be. adapted from the novel of the same name by Walter Mosley, Devil in a Blue Dress manages to be more than a period noir flick or a "black movie"... it adresses issues of love, race, infidelity, etc with an easy hand. but beyond all that, it gave me a new actor to identify with in Cheadle, whose star is still rising...
word.
-samax
samaxAmen.com
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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One of the best book to movie adaptations ever
Added 12/9/2008
Look, I'm not one of those rabid dog book fans that trash a movie based on a book just because it didnt follow the book 100%. I actaully read Devil In A Blue Dress years before I saw the motion picture. Now even though the movie changed certain things around, its still pretty good in its own way. The movie is about 85% faithful to the book and even with that in mind it didnt destroy the fond memories of the novel.
The story: Easy Rawlins(Denzel Washington) is a world war veteran that is fired from his job at a defense plant. Things in his life get worse when he meets a mysterious fellow by the name of Dewitt Albright(Tom Sizemore) pays him money to find a woman by the name of Daphne Monet(Jennifer Beals).
Denzel is perfect as Easy Rawlins and I doubt I could have picked a better person to play Ezekiel Rawlins. Tom Sizemore does a pretty good job as well as Dewitt Albright. He is a creep without being overbearing. Don Cheadle does a pretty good job as Mouse, Easy's crazy but loyal friend. Like I said the movie is 85% loyal to the book so there are a few things the movie changed around(like the way Albright really died) and a few things left out(like the numerous love scenes with Easy and Daphne). Despite that Devil In A Blue Dress is still a treat not just for the fans of Walter Mosley's famous book but to the fans of black cinema period. Two thumbs up.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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