I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

I'd be surprised if you didn't solve the script's major mystery pretty early on, so the question is if there is much else to enjoy in this movie.The answer is yes. But it's a mixed bag. Even some reliable actors (Conte, Nolan) seem a little lost, as if they weren't quite sure what notes they were supposed to be hitting. On the other hand there is a haunting performance, in a single scene, from Josephine Hutchinson, and an enjoyable hard-boiled dame from Margo Woode.As far as acting honours are concerned, though, they go to Fritz Hortner, who effortlessly steals whatever scenes he's in.SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT is efficiently photographed and designed. It boasts an interesting score from journeyman composer David Buttolph, and the script is well-stocked with good lines and Hammett-like speeches and situations.John Hodiak takes a brave stab at the lead, Nancy Guild radiates warmth as the gal who takes a shine to him. Unfortunately neither of them can provide the wattage of the great players associated with this genre.And Mr Mankiewicz, although already an experienced writer, was evidently feeling his way as a director here.All in all, it's a moderately entertaining piece of work.

A film noir does not have to be totally realistic to become a classic; All it needs are the elements that make film noir the gritty and riveting thrillers they are. This plot surrounds amnesia, money laundering, and mistaken identities. George Taylor (John Hodiak) is an amnesiac veteran who finds a letter from a friend he doesn't remember named Larry Kravat for a bank account in Los Angeles. When he goes to the bank, he becomes nervous over the suspicious nature of the bank teller and flees. Mysterious encounters with several others makes him wonder about his own identity and who the mysterious Kravat really is. With the help of a kindly nightclub singer (Nancy Guild), he sets out to solve the mystery. What he finds he may not like.In a year of such classic film noir as "The Big Sleep", "Gilda", "Decoy", "The Strange Loves of Martha Ivers", "The Killers" and "The Blue Dahlia", "Somewhere in the Night" has been somewhat overlooked until recently. It has a somewhat convoluted plot line, and its structure moves all over the place like the roads in the mountains above Los Angeles. Characters come in and out of the script like bees out of a hive. Who is good and who is bad will have to be waited out until the ending revelation, but this isn't the L.A. of movie studios and sunny days at the beach. Sure, Taylor ends up at the beach, but it is to go into the bowels of an old wooden dock, not to catch rays between Santa Monica and Venice. Film noir vets like Richard Conte and Lloyd Nolan add color, while Margo Woode is an interesting supporting "femme fatale". ("Whose the character with the hair?", she squawks upon meeting Guild....) Guild does have an interesting look, sort of like a younger Kate Mulgrew. Veteran 30's leading lady Josephine Hutchinson is memorable in one key scene as a seemingly middle aged recluse who dresses and lives like Whistler's Mother. Look too for Harry Morgan as a rough character Hodiak encounters while investigating.This was only the third film for director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and he already shows signs of being a master story teller. With truly dark photography, a moody hero, a Lauren Bacall like heroine and other archetypes that make for essential film noir, this is worthy of becoming a small classic. I would like to have seen more films of this nature with Nancy Guild; She had the ability to make you trust her in spite of her involvements of unsavory characters, but appears to have had a very limited acting career.

Ten minutes into this jumble and I thought the writers were being paid by the word, either that or they were trying to talk the audience to death. Which might be okay if the dialog added up to an interesting story. But instead, it goes off in ten different confusing directions not even a Rosetta Stone could unpack. The credits list five different writers, which is not surprising since they appear to be working in separate cities. Now, I don't expect every loose thread to get tied up, especially in noir. However, I do expect a general shape or coherence, which this screenplay unfortunately lacks. It's like a jigsaw without a concept.Leading lady Nancy Guild (Christy) does deserve some sympathy. This is her first movie and Fox thrusts her into a demanding role with lots of dialog. And that's the trouble. In her under-trained mouth lines of dialog sound just like that, lines of dialog. At times it works, but mostly it doesn't. She may look like Bacall—likely why she was promoted in the first place-- but lacks the needed smolder. Unhappily, her career proved downhill and short, so likely the resemblance was both a blessing and a curse.What the movie does have are some striking cameos—a cranky Henry Morgan, a sassy Margo Woode, a sweaty Sheldon Leonard, and in a part that steals the movie, Josephine Huchinson as Elizabeth. True to the scrambled screenplay, her wounded spinster sort of drops out of the sky. Nonetheless, catch her many nuanced expressions that are really quite touching. I just wish the editor or the director had cut the scene after it peaks since we've already gotten the idea. Then too, Nolan and Conte are quite good in their supporting roles, parts that each could probably do in his sleep. On the other hand, leading man Hodiak looks good in a suit, but like the disappearing man, has a presence that becomes fainter and fainter as time goes on. Perhaps he was as confused by the script as others of us.Now, I'm as big a fan of noir as anyone. However, I think this film proves an important lesson. Namely, there is more to noir than just a smoky aesthetic, a big-hair dame, and a catchy title.

The film begins with John Hodiak in a military hospital. It seems he's had a horrific injury while serving in WWII. The wound is so bad that he has no recollection who he is--which is strange, as he hasn't got a single scar throughout the film! This seemed sloppy--a couple nice big scars on his head would have been appropriate and made the film seem less contrived. This is exactly the sort of injury that happens in movies--not in real life. Armed only with a few tiny bits and pieces on him, he tracks down who he might be once he's discharged.It's obvious early on that who Hodiak is and who is old 'friends' were is pretty bad--as the trail leads him to thugs and creeps galore. And, on top of that, people start making attempts on his life and beat the crap out of him! Now you'd think that in a situation like this, he'd either give up his search OR he'd get the police involved. After all, with no memory, he's just blindly walking into one dangerous situation after another! Herein lies the problem--with him running about like a proverbial bull in a china chop, he should have been killed early on in the film. But because he ultimately is able to unravel the mystery, it all seems very contrived and totally unbelievable.Despite a good cast and Joseph L. Mankiewicz co-writing and directing, it's only a so-so film. There were a few decent story elements (such as the film noir look and some of the acting). However, you might expect more, as in the late 40s and early 50s, Mankiewicz was perhaps THE preeminent film maker--with such wonderful credits as "A Letter to Three Wives" and "All About Eve" to his credits. This film simply doesn't show the Mankiewicz brilliance--plus this sort of idea has been done better (such as with Edmond O'Brien in "Man in the Dark").It's odd. After looking at the reviews, I noticed that what people thought was all over the place--many hated it, many thought is was brilliant. I thought it was neither.By the way, was it just me or was Richard Conte's move to disarm the lady with the gun near the end of the film a bit hard to believe?!