On B List of Movie Reviews

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Berlin Express (1948)

Rate: 9
Viewed: 6/15

6/15: Berlin Express is one of the better films noirs out there.

They say it's the first post WWII Hollywood picture that's shot on location in Allied-occupied Germany with Frankfurt and Berlin in shambles. But this can't be true because The Search with Montgomery Clift had been done two months earlier. Nevertheless, Jacques Tourneur employs many noir elements in Berlin Express.

Hence, thanks to Lucien Ballard's cinematography, it has a semi-documentary style that highlights the realism of the surroundings which was made possible by the effusive low-key lighting to let out a great deal of the chiaroscuro effect. Once the mystery gets going and the characters start to hit their stride, it becomes a train ride of thrills right to the end with a lot of unpredictable twists and turns. In short, Berlin Express is high film noir heaven.

The cast is perfect and suitable to play characters of different nationalities which serve as a metaphor for cooperation toward a common cause. So, it's hard to single out anybody giving the best performance. I like the ending which gives some hope for a reconciliation between the United States and the USSR before the reality of Cold War begins to sink in.

All in all, I prefer Berlin Express over Out of the Past, both directed by Jacques Tourneur.

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