References:
The Asphalt Jungle Discussion Notes
The Asphalt Jungle
- Influencetial social problem film
- Leftist response to HUAC
- Film represents the chain of inevitability
- Every character has a fatal flaw
- Expresses outrage against HUAC
- Left side coming through the cracks
- Unreality of the American Dream
- Endings, post WWII, get darker, Right-wing location, less happy endings
- made when the Left-wings were put in jail
Academy Award Best Nomination
- Best Director: John Huston
- Best Screenplay: Ben Maddow, John Huston
- Best Supporting Actor: Sam Jaffe
- Best Black and White Film: Harold Rosson
Capper Film
- Granddaddy of the caper
- Influenced:
- Hubrick
- The Killers
- Tarantino
- Dogs
- Milestone
- Oceans Eleven - Sodeburgh's Oceans films
The Caper
- Organization and Explanation
- Seasoned professional
- Novice
- Girl
- Mr. Big
- Group as protagonist
- Huston variation - group not protagonist, a number of individuals
- Rehersal, actual crime orcaper obstacles
- Aftermath - caught or go free
Players - Involved in Robbery
- Doc Erwin Ricdenshroider
- Dix Hendley
- Linked to the Depression
- Country boy turned criminal
- Aligns city to
- Degeneration
- Decodence
- Distopic
- Gus Minissi
- Small business owner
- Loves cats and animals
- Cobby Cobb
- Louis Ciavelli
- Dooll Conovan
- The gang - has skill and honor (intergrity and honor)
Players - Corrupt Represebtatives of the Law
- Alonzo D. Emmerich
- Bob Brannon
- Lt. Ditrich
- All are dishonorable, blind, and have a lack of sympathy or understanding
- The cop - closed case
- The commisioner - spread fear
Left Ideology
- Crime as metaphor for capitalism
- Gang on the side of labor
- Emmerich, Brannon, and Ditrich on the side of capital
- Dix is trying to get back to his farm
- Police corruption
- Detailed planning of crime
- Suicide
- Breen ofice concluded:
- Speech about importance of police outweighed the other issues
- Audience would not sympathize with criminals
- 1950's Code is read loosely, more liberal
Censorship and Politics
- Iron curtain decends on Hollywood 1950
- Emmerich: "Crime is a left-handed form of human endevor"
John Huston
- Tall tale tradition
- Men fail through no fault of their own
- Men central, women on the circumference
- A twist at the end
- A quest
- Tension between irony and abscurdity of the quest
- Chance rather than classical cause and effect
- links Huston with existential sensibility
- Tells story cisually - even dialogue is cinematic
- Fills frames
- Great depth of field
- 3 Planes of action
- Characters placed in relation to each other to reveal meaning
- Strategy of group in relation
- Flawed people
- Focus on a goal
- Requires us to work some:
- His dialogue is even visual
- Tight restricted spaces
- Wide angle lense
- Have to think about the movie
- Haileded as on of the 'Greatest' B films
- Poverty Row "B" Picture
- Narratives are darker
- Do not have to abide by the Production Code