Secret ring 99
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Secret ring 99 |
| Original title | The big combo |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1955 |
| length | 87 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 18 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Joseph H. Lewis |
| script | Philip Yordan |
| production | Sidney Harmon |
| music | David Raksin |
| camera | John Alton |
| cut | Robert S. Eisen |
| occupation | |
| |
Secret ring 99 (Original title: The Big Combo ) is a black and white shot, American gangster film from 1955 . Along with Rattennest (1955) and In the Sign of Evil (1958), he is one of the late representatives of film noir . Directed by Joseph H. Lewis .
Lieutenant Leonard Diamond is investigating the unscrupulous gang boss Mr. Brown. In addition to his research, which borders on obsession, he is also driven by his obsessive love for Susan Lowell, Brown's lover, who is unable to break away from him.
action
Lieutenant Leonard Diamond has been investigating the unscrupulous gang boss Mr. Brown for some time, but is unable to collect sufficient evidence for an indictment. He's also obsessed with winning Susan Lowell, Brown's lover, for himself. Susan is a slave to Brown, who lets his henchmen Fante and Mingo watch over them. Desperate about her addiction, she attempts suicide. When questioned, she drops the name Alicia on Diamond. Diamond believes in a new lead and makes a series of arrests. McClure, Brown's former boss and now his subordinate, kidnaps Diamond with the help of Fantes and Mingo and tortures him, but eventually sets him free. Diamond continues his research and discovers that Alicia is the name of Brown's missing wife. Brown orders Diamond's murder, but Diamond's girlfriend Rita is killed in his place. Eventually, Diamond locates Alicia in a sanatorium, but does not receive the testimony he requested. Meanwhile, Brown first had McClure eliminated, who had plans to overthrow him, and then killed Fante and Mingo in order not to have any unpleasant confidants. Before his death, Mingo Diamond can reveal the name of his murderer. Brown kidnaps Susan to an aircraft hangar, where he wants to escape with a private plane, but Diamond overpowers him. Diamond and Susan leave the scene together, an uncertain future ahead of them.
background
Production and theatrical release
Secret Ring 99 was produced by Cornel Wilde's own production company Theodora Productions and Sidney Harmons Security Pictures and was created in Kling Studios, the former studio area of Charles Chaplin . Originally, Jack Palance was slated to play Mr. Brown, but Richard Conte replaced him. Filming ended in September 1954.
The film opened in American cinemas on February 13, 1955 and in German cinemas on April 16, 1956 .
analysis
Although it was repeatedly rated as old-fashioned when the film was released as well as in later film historical analyzes, Secret Ring 99 was often mentioned because of its - for the time it was made - its explicit depiction of sexuality, violence and their relationship to one another. Bruce Crowther (Film Noir. Reflections in a dark mirror) emphasized "the perverse sexuality that constantly runs against the Hays Code and its restrictions", and led, among other things, "the sadomasochistic violence of the gangsters, two of whom, Fante and Mingo [... ], are clearly homosexual ”and the“ psychosexual dominance ”that Leader Brown exercises over his mistress. "Mingos and Fantes homosexuality," said Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward in Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, "is suppressed in the atmosphere of murder and sadistic torture when they refine the conventions of violence into an erotic ritual". The “connection between sex and violence” could also be found in the bondage of the lover of leader Brown or in Diamonds' compensation for sexual frustration.
The pictures of cameraman John Alton have received unanimous praise to this day . Alton, known among other things for his black and white compositions for film noirs such as Anthony Mann's secret agent T (1947) and Deadly Frontier (1949), created, according to the BFI Companion to Crime, "one of the most outstanding examples of 'noir' lighting in crime films ever" . Dave Kehr from Chicago Reader even discovered a “distanced, idealized beauty” in the pictures. "The striking contrast between the black and white images and Lewis' erotic undertones isolates the characters in a dark, closed universe full of unspoken, repressed things and explicit violence." (Silver / Ward)
Reviews
While Secret Ring 99 was received rather cautiously at its premiere, it is now, at least in the Anglo-Saxon world, a small classic of film noir. In Germany, on the other hand, film is still treated as an outsider, Georg Seeßlen, for example, did not even mention it by name in his book series Basics of Popular Film .
“ Secret ring 99 is neither very big nor good. Even with its combination of capable actors, led by Cornel Wilde and Richard Conte, and an essentially provocative story, the result is a shrill, clumsy and rather old-fashioned detective melodrama with ingredients drifting in opposite directions. "
“The acting is based on Joseph Lewis' tough directing, and is good at this level. John Alton's low-key images and David Raksin's loud, jazzy film music [...] match the rough mood of the film. "
"Raw, violent film noir [...] a cult film, stylishly staged."
“Outstanding gangster film [...] structured by cruelty and pain [...], a dark night of a multitude of souls, visually perfectly implemented by John Alton's outstanding camera work. Surpasses even Lewis' previous - and remarkable - Gun Crazy . "
"A routine product from Hollywood that takes a rather rough pace at times."
“It's amazing how openly B-director Joseph H. Lewis addresses the connections between suppressed sexuality and excessive violence. A little pearl of the genre. "
DVD release
Secret Ring 99 was released on DVD by various companies in the USA under its original title The Big Combo . In France he appeared under the title The Big Combo - Association Criminelle on "Wild Side Video", in Spain as Agente Especial on "Sotelysa". All publications present the film in Open Matte - normal format (1.33: 1).
Web links
- Secret ring 99 in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The Big Combo at Turner Classic Movies (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Foster Hirsch: The Dark Side of the Screen: Film Noir. Da Capo Press, New York 2001, ISBN 0-306-81039-5 , p. 202.
- ^ The Big Combo (1955) - Notes. In: Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved December 8, 2019 .
- ↑ JA Aberdeen: The Charlie Chaplin Studio: History of the Legendary Lot. at the Hollywood Renegades Archive / Cobblestone Entertainment, accessed on April 14, 2012.
- ^ Secret ring 99 ( Memento of May 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) in the directory of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , accessed on June 5, 2012.
- ^ "The Big Combo" with Cornel Wilde, Richard Conte and Brian Donlevy . In: Harrison's Reports . February 19, 1955, p. 32 (English, online at Archive.org [accessed December 8, 2019]).
- ^ A b Secret ring 99. In: Lexicon of international films . Film Service , accessed April 14, 2012 .
- ↑ a b "[ The Big Combo ] isn't very big or good. Even with the "combo" of a capable cast, headed by Cornel Wilde and Richard Conte, and the kernel of a provocative plot, the result is a shrill, clumsy and rather old-fashioned crime melodrama with all hands pulling in opposite directions. " - Reviewed in the New York Times on March 26, 1955, accessed April 14, 2012.
- ↑ James Naremore: More than Night: Film Noir in Its Contexts. University of California Press, Berkeley / Los Angeles / London 1998, ISBN 0-520-21294-0 , p. 156.
- ↑ Bruce Crowther: Film Noir. Reflections in a dark mirror. Virgin, London 1988, ISBN 0-86287-402-5 , p. 63.
- ↑ a b Alain Silver, Elizabeth Ward (Ed.): Film Noir. An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style. Third Edition, Overlook / Duckworth, New York / Woodstock / London 1992, ISBN 0-87951-479-5 , p. 29.
- ↑ Phil Hardy (Ed.): The BFI Companion to Crime. University of California Press, Berkeley / Los Angeles 1997, ISBN 0-520-21538-9 , p. 48.
- ↑ Review in Chicago Reader (undated), accessed April 14, 2012.
- ↑ Bernhard Roloff, Georg Seeßlen (Ed.): Basics of popular film. 10 volumes, Rowohlt, Reinbek near Hamburg 1980–1981.
- ^ The Big Combo. In: variety.com . 1955, accessed on December 8, 2019 (English): “Performances are in keeping with the bare-knuckle direction by Joseph Lewis and, on that score, are good. Low-key photography by John Alton and a noisy, jazzy score by David Raksin […] are in keeping with the film's tough mood. "
- ↑ Raw, violent film noir […] a cult item, stylishly directed […] - Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide. Signet / New American Library, New York 2007.
- ↑ Terrific gangster movie […] structured by viciousness and pain […], it's a dark night of several souls perfectly visualized in John Alton's extraordinary camerawork. Even better than Lewis' earlier - and remarkable - Gun Crazy. - Review of Tom Milne in the Time Out Film Guide, Seventh Edition 1999. Penguin, London 1998.
- ^ Secret ring 99. In: Cinema . Hubert Burda Media , accessed December 8, 2019 .