MovieChat Forums > In a Lonely Place Discussion > Slightly cheap looking...

Slightly cheap looking...

posted 9 years ago by cookiela2001
6 replies | jump to latest

It's interesting watching these films set up by stars' independent production companies (whether those of Bogart, Ida Lupino or Loretta Young) because they show what was lost by going outside the studio system. The subtle sense of luxury in lighting and design that the art and electrical departments supplied is nowhere to be seen. The camera work is also much simpler, almost brusque, as these films were shot on a tight schedule.

The interior locations of this film just looks so flat: Certainly the restaurant they always go to is the drabbest celebrity hangout ever depicted!

Not all films need to be physically beautiful, and of course sometimes that would be inappropriate for certain stories. But compare the flimsy world of this film to those of, say, All About Eve and Sunset Boulevard, the 1950 movies this is often grouped with (and in places presented sometimes scrappy cosmopolitan environments) (an airport, an alley, two bachelor apartments, a boarding house, etc.) and you see the unity of design and production the studios gave their product.

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[–] MichaelMartinDeSapio 9 years ago

I agree, the movie did look a bit dingy overall, and that restaurant looked like a cheap set.

[–] DorianGray502 9 years ago

___I agree this was a drab, ill conceived film, but the apartment complex is pretty intriguing, and based upon a real one the director lived in on arrival in Hollywood. I cannot tell how large a set this was, but when George Cukor tried this on Marilyn Monroe's last film when he duplicated his own house on an indoor set, it was one of the largest sets of it's kind up till then and cost the world. So, I wonder, since this film had a limited budget, how they managed it?

"When the legend becomes fact, print the legend!"

[–] MyMovieTVRomance 9 years ago

That's funny---I had the exact opposite impression of the look of this film. To me, it looked cozy and luxurious. I loved the look of it, even better than many films of the same genre or period, like MURDER, MY SWEET. I'll take the look of this one over the look of that one any day. And I say this as someone who appreciated both, to a degree.

Please excuse typos/funny wording; I use speech-recognition that doesn't always recognize!

[–] Goodbye_Ruby_Tuesday 8 years ago

I agree that the restaurant set could have been better dressed, but in all fairness this was basically an independent production, I don't think their budget was huge; even the beautiful apartment complex exteriors (maybe where most of the production design budget went?) are noticeably empty of extras, despite Dix constantly referencing his neighbors, which creates its own unintentional added meaning of the film's title.

And had this movie been made at a bigger studio with a bigger budget like Warner Bros., Nick Ray would not have been able to get away with kicking everyone off set and improvising the ending with his actors.

There's something I know when I'm with you that I forget when I'm away

[–] greenbudgie 8 years ago

It's quite B-Movie-like in parts. Some scenes in particular didn't have an authentic look to them.

[–] liscarkat (17028) 7 months ago

Every scene, every shot in "In a Lonely Place" is perfectly done and effective at conveying the grim subject matter. More money couldn't have improved it.