"Touch of Evil" is an excellent movie. It is also one of Universal Studio's strangest films from the 1950s. It is dark, lurid, and weird.
Charlton Heston plays a high-ranking Mexican law officer. He is on his honeymoon with Janet Leigh. On the American side of the border with Mexico, a car explodes. Heston becomes involved in the case, to the annoyance of local police celebrity Orson Welles (who also directed the film and wrote the screenplay). Heston accuses Welles of framing a Mexican for the bombing. Further complicating matters, the Grande family has a grudge against Heston for imprisoning their kingpin. The Grande family seeks revenge against Heston through Leigh, who has almost as bad a time here as she would in "Psycho" two years later.
Heston's intense acting style suits his character
well. He is determined to seek justice, first for
the framed accused, then against Welles, then for
his wife Leigh.
Welles just looks awful. Corpulent, unshaven,
slurring, limping and corrupt, he is grossly
overweight. He is practically worshiped by his
fellow officers. His "game leg" gives him
"hunches" which always prove correct. This does
not keep him from planting evidence to support
his hunches. Welles' character grows increasingly
unstable throughout the movie. This inconsistency
does not harm the film, however, but increases
its tension.
Marlene Dietrich has a few scenes as the owner of
a... well, some kind of non-respectable
establishment. Her only customer is Welles. She
may represent Death.
Dennis Weaver plays a hotel "night manager". His
character is so weird and quirky, it would never
be credible in a conventional film. But "Touch of
Evil" is not conventional, and he fits right in.
His trademark expression is, "If they think I'm
gonna do that, they've got another thing coming!"
There are differing versions of "Touch of Evil".
It was originally released as 95 minutes. A
restored version ran 108 minutes. A second
restored version was released in 1998 with
editing based upon a lengthy post-production memo
by Orson Welles. I have not seen this most
recent version.
"Touch of Evil" must be seen to be believed, and
it is remarkable that it is a 1958 product of
Universal. You would think some studio mogul
would see it and say, 'What is the audience? Who
would go to see this film? There's no love
interest. It's not a comedy or a drama. It's not
really even a mystery!' I guess "film noir" has
claimed it, and we can only be thankful for its
existence. (85/100)
Orson Welles's TOUCH OF EVIL is nothing short of a masterpiece. Beginning with a three-minute-plus tracking crane shot the film explodes onto the scre...More at Family Video
Complete, uncut and restored to Orson Welle s vision set in a squalid Mexican border town, Welles, as the corrupt and bogoted small-town police chief,...More at Buy.com
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