Touch of Evil

I didn't like Touch of Evil. Like, not at all. Orson Wells did some great and brilliant things in his career, but this wasn't one of them. Filmed in 1958, this well meaning, but ultimately slow and boring film follows "Mexican" cop Mike Vargas (played by Charlton Heston) as he tries to unravel the mystery of a car bombing. Along the way, he crosses local detective legend Hank Quinlan (played by Orson Wells). Vargas discovers Quinlan is a bit... liberal with the law and calls the large man out on it. Quinlan doesn't appreciate this and attempts to destroy Vargas' reputation. Mostly people just hold pauses for entirely too long and ignore their wives' feelings of unease.

Visually speaking, Touch of Evil is amazing. There are a lot of shots which simply boggle the mind. The entire opening segment, for instance, is an excellent display of filmmaking. The movie breaks down in it's writing. There are pauses where they don't belong, scenes that our drawn out to create artificial tension, and Charlton Heston is not Mexican! I know, I know, superficial nitpicking. Seriously, though, it's really distracting!

Touch of Evil receives a three out of five. As previously mentioned, I didn't like it. Still, if you're a film buff *coughcough*Maness*coughcough* you'll really enjoy the visual elements of the film. Is you like compelling story and deep plot, however...