This Gun For Hire (1942) ***1/2
I didn't realize when I purchased the Blu-ray for This Gun For Hire (1942) that I'd actually seen the film before, five years ago. I gave it three stars then and apparently it didn't leave a lasting impression. As I watched it again, certain details felt familiar, and after it finished I feel like I enjoyed it more on "Take 2". I gave it an extra half star for a rating, which bumped it way up on my Film Noir Feature Films Ranked list, which you can view below.
I still don't have the same love for it that it seems a lot of noir fans do, but I appreciate certain elements that laid the groundwork for a lot of (superior) future noirs to come. Alan Ladd as hit man Philip Raven (love that name) is mostly very good here—all tough guy exterior, but hurting and mentally suffering inside. I didn't pick up on it the first time I watched TGFH, but the influence of the Raven character on Jean-Pierre Melville's neo-noir classic Le Samouraï (1967) seems obvious to me now. Veronica Lake is a bit stiff and her singing numbers, whilst entertaining, are a bit silly, but she does do a nice job of portraying the only character that is willing to give Raven a fair shake and hear him out.
For being an 81-minute film, This Gun For Hire still manages to drag a bit here and there, and after a second viewing, I still don't think it's an all-time great noir. But my appreciation for it has grown a bit, and hopefully it'll continue to do so on subsequent viewings.
I still don't have the same love for it that it seems a lot of noir fans do, but I appreciate certain elements that laid the groundwork for a lot of (superior) future noirs to come. Alan Ladd as hit man Philip Raven (love that name) is mostly very good here—all tough guy exterior, but hurting and mentally suffering inside. I didn't pick up on it the first time I watched TGFH, but the influence of the Raven character on Jean-Pierre Melville's neo-noir classic Le Samouraï (1967) seems obvious to me now. Veronica Lake is a bit stiff and her singing numbers, whilst entertaining, are a bit silly, but she does do a nice job of portraying the only character that is willing to give Raven a fair shake and hear him out.
For being an 81-minute film, This Gun For Hire still manages to drag a bit here and there, and after a second viewing, I still don't think it's an all-time great noir. But my appreciation for it has grown a bit, and hopefully it'll continue to do so on subsequent viewings.
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