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<\/p>\nFor a film featuring several brutal murders, Neil Jordan\u2019s Marlowe is oddly bloodless. That\u2019s not to say it\u2019s bad – it has many fine things going for it – but it lacks the grit those familiar with Raymond Chandler’s iconic detective may be expecting.<\/p>\n
That could have something to do with the fact the source material wasn\u2019t written by Chandler. Jordan collaborated with Oscar winner William Monahan (The Departed) on the screenplay; but based on the 2014 book The Black-Eyed Blonde by John Banville (writing under the nom-de-plume Benjamin Black). Of course, Jordan himself is an Oscar winner (for The Crying Game) and storied filmmaker. He brings a keen eye to the material and draws some fine performances from his cast; but can\u2019t seem to elevate the material to the lofty heights of his earlier work. Jordan\u2019s other problem of course is that calling the film Marlowe immediately invites comparisons with other Marlowe adaptations, notably Howard Hawks\u2019 seminal The Big Sleep (1946).<\/p>\n
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The story begins, as all Marlowe stories must, on a steamy Los Angeles day. Marlowe (Liam Neeson) is in his office, the orange-hued afternoon light cutting deep shadows across his face. He\u2019s meeting a new client, the alluring Clare (\u201clike the county\u201d) Cavendish (Diane Kruger). The married Clare is hoping to find her sometime lover, Nico Peterson (Fran\u00e7ois Arnaud), who has mysteriously disappeared. With money no object, Marlowe takes the job. And it soon seems like an easy fee. Marlowe\u2019s old buddy from the police force Joe Green (Ian Hart) tells him that Peterson is in the morgue. He was apparently killed in a hit-and-run outside the exclusive Corbata Club. Open and shut. When Marlowe visits Clare to tell her the news, she calmly responds that can\u2019t be right – because she saw Nico driving in Tijuana after he supposedly died. Clare\u2019s mother, former film star Dorothy Quincannon (Jessica Lange) also takes an interest in Marlowe\u2019s investigation. And he finds more clues when he encounters Peterson\u2019s sister Lynn (Daniela Melchior). With stories not adding up, Marlowe decides to take the matter further; a decision that will put himself and others in grave danger.<\/p>\n
Credit where it\u2019s due, the film looks spectacular thanks to cinematographer Xavi Gim\u00e9nez and production designer John Beard. I\u2019m not totally sure about the choice to go with a warm colour palette for what\u2019s ostensibly a noir film; but hey, it worked in Chinatown, so why not. And the mystery surrounding Peterson is just the starting point for a deeper story that goes to some interesting places – although the script meanders somewhat rather than going full-throttle. But I thought the film sadly never stuck the landing. I felt a let down by the ending which seemed both illogical and unnecessary.<\/p>\n