Enjoy the Silence

The Thief (Russell Rouse, 1952) – mixed+
This thriller is schooled in the deepest of noirs, but it is also ripe with Cold War paranoia and xenophobia. Ray Milland stars as the titular thief; a government physicist who gets tangled up in an espionage scheme. Despite rigorous precautions, including a complicated way of receiving and sending information to the foreign power he works for, the feds find out about Milland’s actions, and he is forced to make his escape. Shot mostly in Washington D.C., with an illuminated Capitol Hill often looming in the background, the film hammers home its message of the importance of vigilantism and upstanding citizens, but it never becomes overly preachy, just slightly obvious – almost endearing, in a way. Milland delivers a fine performance as the tormented thief, but don’t hold your breath for any hardboiled noir banter – there is no audible dialogue! A gimmicky experiment to say the least, and director (also co-writer) Rouse struggles at times with the format, but it also has its merits: the mute menace of the spies and agents following Milland around creates an eerie, ominous ambience.

***

It’s All Gone Pete Tong (Michael Dowse, 2004) – con+
Rise and fall story of a British superstar DJ, set in that balearic den of iniquity Ibiza. Clearly made by people who know their way around the club scene, but apart from the setting, the result is uninvolving and formulaic: fame and money leads to girls, drinks, coke and an inevitable melt-down. Lead Kaye is a grimacing Shane MacGowan-like ape-man who chews, snorts and drinks up the scenery and everything else in his way. The plus is for the clever – and accurate – way of showing how a good beat mix is performed, from the perspective of the DJ.