Blast of Silence

 

 

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Blast of Silence is a fascinating film. It follows the journey of a hit man from Cleveland coming to New York City to do a job in 1959. What makes this film particularly unique and compelling are three fold in my opinion: The first is the dynamic black and white location shooting around New York City; two, the earthy and gritty narration in the second person by Lionel Stander; and finally, the character study of the hit man himself, played by Allen Baron.

The film is only 77 minutes long, yet seems longer. It is the intensity and ominous nature of the film that makes it seem so. The hit man, Frankie Bono, is an emotional basket case. What is particularly disturbing about his character is that he probably isn't a psychopath or sociopath, but simply a psychologically damaged individual pursuing an evil career. He is a character that has to go through delusional rationales to build imaginary hatreds toward his targets. He is a man who exists within the banality of evil.

What is striking about the character of Frankie Bono is the lack of social skills that he has. The film describes him as a loner. However, one has to assume that he may never have experienced any kind of love his whole life. His pathetic efforts at interacting with a woman he meets that he once knew as a child growing up in an orphanage emphasize this lack of social and love experience in his life. He may never have actually had a close friend or girlfriend. The fact that he shows a desire for this is what suggests to me that he would not be a psychopath, and actually must live with the tragic burden on his conscience of what he had chosen to become.

I should also mention that I was very impressed with the performance of Larry Tucker in this film, who played Fat Ralph. A true scene stealer that would have made Timothy Carey proud. In fact, it is amazing to me that Tucker was not able to parlay himself into a great film career as a character actor. He definitely has the charisma and talent of a good character actor. I wish I could have seen him in more films.

The film is reminiscent of an earlier film noir made in 1955 by Stanley Kubrick called Killer's Kiss. Both films were first time directorial efforts. They both were low in budget, but they more than made up for that with high creative energy. Both had simply plots and story lines, but this is secondary to the mood and themes that these films brilliantly conveyed. It is interesting to see how Kubrick was able to go on to have one of the most brilliant careers in film history, whereas Allen Baron disappeared into relative obscurity directing hundreds of mediocre TV shows. Yet, if we look at both films, I would argue Baron's Blast of Silence is superior to Killer's Kiss. Its presentation is more creative, the acting of the supporting cast much stronger, and the violence much more realistic and compelling.

There was genius in the making of Blast of Silence, but it may have been inspirational genius that once captured in a bottle could never again be released and controlled. Kubrick was obviously able to harness this genius and grow it to ever greater heights.

Blast of Silence is a very good film. It may very well be a great film in terms of its unique presentation of mood and theme. Well worth watching if you enjoy the art of film making as true art.

This film bridges the gap between classic 50s noir, and the more
complex, improvisational dark New York films to come, first by
Cassavettes, and then by Scorsese.

Very reminiscent of, if not as psychologically complex, surreal, and
twisted as, the writings of Jim Thompson.

A hit man from Cleveland comes to New York for one last job.

The film uses 2nd person narration ' 'You feel this', or 'You sense
danger'. It's an interesting technique I can't remember encountering in
a movie before, which plays with your head in a good way. Who's
narrating the film? Obviously the 'you' is the main character, but by
subtle implication it makes US him. The narration was written under a
pseudonym by the great blacklisted writer Waldo Salt.

Beautiful, stark and depressing photography ' which I guess describes
the film as a whole as well.

A couple of terrific, odd supporting characters add to the nightmare
atmosphere. While some of the acting is variable, and a few twists are
too telegraphed, this is a film that has stuck with me.

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