The Black Dahlia (2006)

Praises De Palma’s restrained yet obsessive noir adaptation of Ellroy, with Hartnett and Johansson as naturals in the hardboiled world; singles out the haunting audition/voyeurism sequences as a highlight of the film’s themes.

De Palma eschews straightforward adaptation for a formally complex, tragic take that foregrounds political consciousness and loss; singles out the expressionistic camerawork and the way it visualizes the protagonist’s grief and the society’s corruption.

This is De Palma back to something like his best: a superbly shot, virtuoso thriller that may not quite match LA Confidential but is in the same class, with strong performances and stylish direction. It notes some melodramatic tendencies and weird moments but calls it one of the best American thrillers for some time.

The critic praises De Palma's technical bravura, lush atmosphere, and strong casting, particularly Josh Hartnett and Scarlett Johansson, while noting the film's gripping noir style and visual wizardry. However, it faults the director's familiar emotional coldness and lack of interest in characters' humanity, making the denouement feel frigid.

De Palma delivers a stylish genre exercise that nails the atmosphere of post-war Los Angeles but falls short of the cohesion seen in LA Confidential. The review highlights the solid cast and classic De Palma themes while noting the cluttered storyline.

The critic finds this over-long and muddled adaptation of Ellroy's novel unsatisfying despite its handsome mounting and directorial gusto. The plot leads nowhere satisfying and features some over-the-top melodramatic performances.

The adaptation struggles to capture the novel's depths, with De Palma's cinematic indulgences overwhelming the story of obsession and corruption. The critic praises the screen-test footage sequence for exposing the film's themes of self-delusion.

The film feels like a bait and dump, overloaded with noir conventions, overripe period detail, and an overly complicated, hard-to-follow plot that buries the central mystery. The brief glimpses of the Dahlia herself and some campy, over-the-top scenes (notably with Fiona Shaw) provide the main points of interest amid the excess.

The film is overrich and fundamentally unsatisfying due to rampant allusiveness, an awkward and overly complicated narrative, and undigested plot elements that lead to irritation rather than satisfaction. De Palma's visual brilliance in certain scenes, such as bodies falling in slow motion, is praised, along with Mia Kirshner's effective turn as Betty Short.

The critic finds the film restrained and awkward despite De Palma's potential for creative lunacy, with the leads (except Hilary Swank) disastrous and the grim reality of the real murder weighing heavily. Swank's slinky, convincing performance as Madeleine Linscott is singled out for praise amid the film's lack of playful cinematic energy.

A ripping yarn undercut by lackluster performances (especially Hartnett and Johansson) and overripe late melodrama, though De Palma delivers fine visual set pieces and atmosphere. Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank stand out among the cast for strong impressions in a film that generates intrigue but falls short of classic noir like Chinatown.

The film is an intensely visual experience that prioritizes De Palma's stylistic auteurship and filmmaking aesthetic over narrative substance, which may annoy average viewers. The intriguing crime story is presented through a deliberately muted, dreamlike lens that suppresses reality.

The critic credits De Palma for attempting a noir adaptation that other directors avoided but faults the result as overly convoluted 'noir-lite' focused on a romantic triangle rather than the crime itself. The film is called smug, too long by half an hour, and ultimately alienating to viewers.