{"id":48123,"date":"2020-03-18T07:51:58","date_gmt":"2020-03-18T14:51:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48123"},"modified":"2020-11-23T20:24:09","modified_gmt":"2020-11-24T03:24:09","slug":"blues-in-the-night-1941","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48123","title":{"rendered":"Blues in the Night (1941)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;That ain&#8217;t a band &#8212; it&#8217;s a unit! It&#8217;s one guy multiplied five times.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Poster-190x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"190\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-48125\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Poster-190x300.jpg 190w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Poster-81x128.jpg 81w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Poster.jpg 295w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 190px) 100vw, 190px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA jazz pianist (Richard Whorf) and a clarinetist (Elia Kazan) form a blues band with a trumpeter (Jack Carson) and his singer-wife (Priscilla Lane), but find their aspirations complicated when an ex-con (Lloyd Nolan) first holds them up in a train car, then invites them to come work for him at a roadhouse where a manipulative singer (Betty Field) attempts to seduce nearly every man around her.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Anatole Litvak Films<\/li>\n<li>Betty Field Films<\/li>\n<li>Ex-Cons<\/li>\n<li>Femmes Fatales<\/li>\n<li>Jack Carson Films<\/li>\n<li>Musicians<\/li>\n<li>Priscilla Lane Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nWikipedia describes this interesting, fast-paced enigma (mess?) of a movie as an <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Blues_in_the_Night_(film)\">&#8220;American musical in the film noir style&#8221;<\/a>. Indeed, reading Wikipedia&#8217;s plot synopsis gives a good sense of how this bizarre film shifts from a &#8220;let&#8217;s put together a band!&#8221; feel-good musical to a tale where we&#8217;re no longer certain what role music plays other than as the life-passion being sucked out of Whorf by a ruthless <em>femme fatale<\/em>. Ernest Haller&#8217;s cinematography makes the entire affair gorgeous to look at, and there are some mind-bending surrealistic images:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1563\" height=\"971\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-48129\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2.png 1563w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2-300x186.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2-1024x636.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2-128x80.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2-768x477.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Cinematography2-1536x954.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1563px) 100vw, 1563px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>that shift the film into yet another category of cinema altogether. Field gives a red-hot performance, future-director Kazan hops around on screen like he&#8217;s on speed, and there&#8217;s no guarantee at all of where or how things will end. Is this really what the blues look like at night?     <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Betty Field as Kay<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2-1024x654.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"409\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48126\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2-1024x654.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2-300x192.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2-128x82.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2-768x491.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Field2.png 1485w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Ernest Haller&#8217;s atmospheric cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2-1024x656.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"410\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48127\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2-1024x656.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2-300x192.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2-128x82.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2-768x492.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Still2.png 1507w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery-1024x644.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"403\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-48128\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery-1024x644.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery-300x189.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery-128x80.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery-768x483.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Blues-in-the-Night-Imagery.png 1525w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The Oscar-nominated title song <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s worth a one-time look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0033409\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/591\/blues-in-the-night#articles-reviews?articleId=21734\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1941\/12\/12\/archives\/at-the-strand.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;That ain&#8217;t a band &#8212; it&#8217;s a unit! It&#8217;s one guy multiplied five times.&#8221; Synopsis: A jazz pianist (Richard Whorf) and a clarinetist (Elia Kazan) form a blues band with a trumpeter (Jack Carson) and his singer-wife (Priscilla Lane), but find their aspirations complicated when an ex-con (Lloyd Nolan) first holds them up in a train car, then invites them to come work for him at a roadhouse where a manipulative singer (Betty Field) attempts to seduce nearly every man&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=48123\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=48123"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48123\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54288,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48123\/revisions\/54288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=48123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=48123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=48123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}