![]() Carl Franklin’s 1992 neo-noir masterpiece One False Move is one of these forgotten gems. And consequently, in this maelstrom of creativity, many great films were outshined by more popular and/or accessible ones, thus fading into the realm of obscurity. Yes, it’s very true that decades prior also flaunt an impressive repertoire of noir and crime films, but what the 90s entailed was an integration of a variety of influences into the genre. I myself, unfortunately, did not have the pleasure of living through the 90s, but whenever I contemplate the sheer amount of modern classics the decade produced, my eyes turn green with envy at those fortunate enough to have experienced it: Heat, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Se7en, Goodfellas, The Usual Suspects, etc. Both discs boot up to standard menu screens with options to play the film, set up audio, browse special features and select chapters.The 90s were the time to be alive for avid fans of film noir or crime fiction in general. The 4K disc is a BD66 and the Blu-ray is a BD50, and they’re both housed in the standard clear Scanavo case from Criterion. Small-town history becomes a big-time problem in One False Move, presented here as a two-disc (4K and Blu-ray) set from Criterion. As someone who has seen One False Move plenty of times, I cannot recommend it highly enough. Yet another unique thing to be found in this great work. If noirs romanticized violence as an extension of the moral turpitude in which the story sits, then One False Move pares it all down to the essentials, opting to let the audience infer the action through montage than get their kicks off the nastiness of what’s happening. That’s not to say that the film is without its thrills, of which they are sudden and unrelenting in a way. The world in which Dale walks through is much different than Lila’s, and the film delicately paints that picture with character interactions. And then I think about how that small-town sheriff is unwittingly using his privilege to right a wrong that’s only bound to bring more pain. I think about the way in which Dale tries to ingratiate himself in with the two FBI agents and watching them politely suffer the musings of a small-town sheriff. There’s a genuine mastery of form in One False Move that I’ve never been able to shake. With Dale assisting two FBI agents investigating the whereabouts of the trio, the unspoken truth is bound to come out. Fantasia is actually Lila, a woman with a past in Star City, and it has all to do with the local sheriff, Dale Dixon (Bill Paxton). The trio head to Star City, Arkansas, where they plan to sell the coke to one of Pluto’s contacts. Ray (Billy Bob Thornton), Pluto (Michael Beach) and Ray’s girlfriend Fantasia (Cynda Williams) are three criminals on the lam after murdering six people in Los Angeles to acquire a cache of cocaine and money. You’d think such a hefty idea would be hard to visualize, but Franklin does so with such ease and attention to character that it seems so deceptively simple. Where the harsh realities of white supremacy in the south give way to sudden violence, the same attention is given to the film’s characters living on the margins and navigating a violent situation where they’re at a disadvantage because of their color. ![]() Carl Franklin’s One False Movemay be one of the most unheralded of the bunch, and that’s certainly not for lack of trying on behalf of film critics over the years.įranklin’s straightforward, terse direction turned out to be a perfect fit for the script, as he was able to give full, confident realization to the ways in which our institutions demean Black people based upon their social status, even if those people are members of those institutions. It was a beautiful time filled with just hit after hit of wry, unfussy dialogue and crackling violence set within the lives of outsiders. The noir genre certainly made a comeback and with a new fresh coat of paint in the 1990s, with David Lynch’s Lost Highway, Oliver Stone’s U-Turn and David Fincher’s Seven all putting their weight behind playing with the noir tropes within a modern setting.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |