Good start, but then it gets ruined

Fantastic!

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

D.O.A. starts with one of the coolest shots and concepts ever put to film. There's the long, foreboding walk to our destination as we follow behind our yet to be named protagonist. Not until we arrive do we discover that our endpoint is the Homicide Division. And why are we here? A man has come to report a murder. Whose? His own. How cool is that?!This beginning sequence is famous for a reason: it is simply outstanding. Unfortunately, the rest of the movie cannot live up to this fantastic introduction. The movie quickly gets bogged down in a muddled and confusing plot. I just finished the movie and I'm not sure if I could succinctly explain the overarching plot or the motivations of all the characters we meet. The movie, told in the perspective of a flashback, spends far too much time in the buildup to the actual poisoning, dissolving much of the tension and suspense built up by the initial scene. This is further compounded by this B-plot involving Frank and his secretary Paula who also seem to be lovers with a future marriage in the works. By the time Frank is finally poisoned, the movie has lost a lot of momentum.There are a few good other scenes and moments after the initial one. There's a few good noir-style one liners and I really did enjoy the scene in the raucous jazz bar. Finally when the plot and excitement begins to pick back up again, it almost goes too fast, making up for lost time. Frank is running all over San Francisco and L.A. accusing characters of who knows what. While exciting, it definitely leaves the viewer confused as they try to pick up the pieces as to what exactly is going on. The action scenes are particularly memorable and neither are any of the performances (although one henchman reminded me a lot of Gary Busey).This will probably be one I'll have to revisit, picking up more of the plot each time I rewatch. For now though, I can't say it's as spectacular a film noir as everyone makes it out to be.

Interesting idea and should have been done better. Poorly written. Pacing very inconsistent throughout. Sequences go on and on, for no good reason, but tighter cutting would have made an already short film even shorter. Often sequences, such as the night-club near the beginning, go on and on and become boring. Likewise the hotel convention goer business is too long and repetitive. The wolf whistle business jerked the viewer out of the film and was a reminder of slip-whistles in Laurel and Hardy films. The Neville Brand (usually a reasonably solid character player) psychotic character is so overdone, as to be laughable. The whole thing gives the impression of being hastily and drastically cut. This is not one of Edmund Obrien's better films. In my opinion, not even close to Siodmaks' "The Killers". Big disappointment. I kept watching thinking it would improve but it never did. An interesting plot idea which should have made a much better film.

D.O.A. has arguably one of the greatest opening scenes in the history of films noir: Edmond O'Brien stumbles into a police station and says he wants to report a murder- his own. In mere moments, we're hooked. He then proceeds to tell his tale. It's here that the movie loses its full-speed-ahead momentum, but it's justifiable: the groundwork must be laid before the monument can be built. There are a couple of odd moments, though, along the way- in particular, the wolf whistles that we hear every time a "dame" appears on screen. Once our hero gets the bad news from a doctor that he's been poisoned (which occurs in a bar scene that's oddly shot), things really pick up. O'Brien manages to convey a sense of life-or-death urgency as he runs all over the country trying to track down his killer. Along the way he encounters Neville Brand as a particularly nasty psychopathic killer (the kind of guy who might even give Richard Widmark a moment's pause) before the final but inevitable scene. It's a classic for a reason (or three).

A man (beautifully played by Edmond O'Brien) finds out he's been given a slow acting poison and has only a few days to live. He has to find out who did it...and why.VERY quick (83 minutes) but great noir thriller. It's beautifully directed (nice use of outdoor locations) and has many twists and turns. O'Brien was a great character actor and he's given a rare lead role here. He's just great as a man who knows he's dying but doesn't know why. The rest of the acting is all pretty good. It's not a perfect movie. There's some terrible love scenes between him and his girlfriend and it gets TOO complicated. There are so many characters and incidents going at such a quick pace it sometimes gets confusing. I don't think the ultimate resolution makes much sense either. Still I loved it while watching it and I recommend it.