On L List of Movie Reviews

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The Late Show (1977)

Rate: 5
Viewed: 1/17

1/17: The Late Show works for a neo-noir picture, but it has many problems.

Although Art Carney is great, it's Lily Tomlin, in her second film after being nominated for Best Supporting Actress in Nashville, who's annoying to put up with. I don't see why she had to be in the movie or take up so much screen time. It's evident that Art Carney was peeved with her, too.

More of the Raymond Chandler kind, the murder mystery plot is no great shakes and is too convoluted to follow. In a way, the film tries too hard to be a modern take of The Maltese Falcon. Even there's a framed picture of Humphrey Bogart at one point just to pay him homage. By the time the mystery had been solved, I didn't feel like I participated and was in the dark the entire time. On the other hand, the Oscar-nominated screenplay is okay. There are good lines here and there, but that's it.

All in all, if Art Carney had gone solo, The Late Show would be more of a neo-noir private detective picture than what I saw.

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