I had never seen this movie, so I decided to watch the original and then the remake. The original stars Lana Turner and John Garfield as the murderous duo. If you want to see someone gorgeous, check out Lana Turner. Holy crap. I know Hollywood was full of gorgeous people, but she was really exceptional. And she could act - so could John Garfield. This is a pretty great piece of noir, and Lana is a great femme fatale. And in real life she was definitely a bit noir. She married 8 times (twice to the same guy), and her daughter eventually killed Lana's gangster lover and it was ruled justifiable homicide. That's pretty dark.
There are parts of this movie that don't ring true. John G kisses Lana about 10 minutes after meeting her, and that seems a little fast. They fall in love within another five minutes or so. OK. The husband is a sweet old guy who absolutely ignores Lana and is so concerned with saving a dime that he won't let her turn the lights on at night. That's convenient, but not exactly horrible. And Lana looks perfect in every scene, dressed in white with lipstick always on (apparently her clothes budget is OK). And she's the cook at the diner, so you would think she'd look a little greasy once in a while. Plus she is so sweet to John G's character, and hurt by her husband's indifference that she doesn't seem a likely murderer - until she does. Lana does a good job. Watch for a young Hume Cronyn as an oily lawyer.
OK, we'll see how the remake does.
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