I'm just glad nobody made the comparisons to Quentin Tarantino--it seems like every board I go to, somebody's drawing a strained, vague, tenuous, etc. connection to him--or David Lynch--like they're the Classical archetypes.
For me, "Blast of Silence" seemed very Bressonian (Paul Schrader coined that neologism), like it was heavily influenced by "crime" films like "Pickpocket" (1959), both similar in their use of trenchantly introspective voice-overs and the minimal plot. I don't think it's a stretch for one to believe he was influence by the aforementioned films of the New Wave, as they were indeed his contemporaries. However, this film seems to delve more into the psychopathology of the criminal contract killer, rather than the philosophical quandaries that the New Wave generally explored, that seems to make it not only noir-like, but somehow American.
On a purely pedantic level, it falls outside of the traditional film noir era however, which by most scholarly readings ends in 1959 with "Touch of Evil" (1959)/"Odds Against Tomorrow" (1959), but the influence is evident--perhaps it could even be considered one of the first neo-noirs. Alternatively, this film seems to have been grouped within the New York independent cinema that came to fore around the late 50s, early 60s, along with John Cassavettes and his ilk (who as a school of filmmakers I'm not too familiar with).
_____
Yeah, I'm so bad I kick my own ass twice a day.
-Creeper, the Hamburger Pimp from "Dolemite"
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johne23-1
16 years ago
I'm so glad that this film, since its dvd release, seems to have become more recognised. I think it's important to not get too bogged down in definitions such as "noir" or "neo-noir", although of course deeper criticism would bring you to consider such definitions.
To me a great film is sometimes simply just a film that you feel so moved by as to want to tell other people that they should take time to watch it, or to put it another way, if you enjoyed this film, you should consider these films -
The Naked City (1948)
The Ashphalt Jungle (1950)
Touch of Evil (1958)
Rififi (1955)
Night and the City (1950)
Out of the Past (1947)
and, more obliquely perhaps, it may lead you to a different, yet not so different, film like -
They Made Me a Fugitive (1947)(British)
Pick-up on South Street (1953)
Pickpocket (1959)
The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959)
The Killers (1946)
Thunder Road (1958
Never Let Go (1960)
Isn't it all about the human condition - and what would we do in desperate circumstances - and the magic that is a film?
"What does it matter what you say about people?"
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myblackgloves
16 years ago
Great recommendations.
I would also like to add Kubrick's KILLER'S KISS. It has the same low-budget style and it is also filmed in NYC. Would make a good double feature.
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The_Dying_Flutchman
16 years ago
I've seen hundreds, perhaps thousands of film noir and I've heard of this one for years, but after seeing it I don't understand why so many think its so superior. Perhaps because it wasn't available for all those years. Its about on par with the cost of many early 60's black and white pics and true it is dark, but it is also cliched and draggy. The best parts, for me, are the score and Lionel Stander's narration. Well, everyone to their own emptiness I guess. I see no great work of art in it.
Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.
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johne23-1
16 years ago
Thanks myblackgloves. I really liked Killer's Kiss.
Does anyone have anymore recommendations for lesser-known similar films?
"What does it matter what you say about people?"
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the_negotiator-1
15 years ago
what i like about this film is that it is very basic, almost normal but certainly emphatic. it retains the conventions of noir without getting sidelined by them, which I guess, as mentioned previously, would have alot to do with time and budget...this film had me from the first second. Im not that into noir and i certainly cannot stand the french 'new wave' stuff and the pomposity that surrounds it so blast of silence was a great way in without having to suffer the wall to wall agonizing din of people mentally masturbating to the more celebrated works of noir which now, certainly, is more kitsch than cool. Blast of Silence still feels very modern as it has a very human element to it, Frankie Bono is certainly no Chow Yun Fat hitman, merely a spoke on a wheel - yet the beauty of it is that no matter how much of a amoral criminal he is, he just wants to be loved and as always the woman in the picture messes everything up! just perfect! simple yet effective...!
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