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Blast of Silence (1961) More at IMDbPro »
44 out of 57 people found the following comment useful :-
Rememberin', 23 May 2004
Author: Bobs-9 from Chicago, Illinois, USA
Yeah, rememberin' da time when you was a kid and saw this movie on late night TV. Even then you was wise that it was a shabby-lookin' lowdown no-budget job and the cast was not so good lookin' -- but that's OK, you liked it that way. These was the kinda people you could see all around you, every day in da neighborhood, downtown, on the street corner, in the subway. Yeah, this looked like life in the city, but wit' a special kinda danger, a certain mystery. You ain't never forgot this movie, didja? Oh, you didn't remember what it was called or who was in it, but it stuck wit' ya and bounced around yer brain like the beatin' of a conga drum in a Greenwich Village beatnik club. Didn't think it would ever catch up with ya, didja?
Ya seen it again tonight, huh? The actin' still ain't so great and the people still ain't so good-lookin'. But that's OK, 'cause it's still the coolest damn thing ya ever seen. Ahh, Hollywood is for saps. You want somethin' gritty and dark, don't ya? 'Cause that's the way you like it.
Rememberin'.
24 out of 25 people found the following comment useful :-
Chilly But Effective, 26 April 2003
Author: secragt from United States
Saw this one a few weeks back on the big screen at the American Cinematheque and it has stayed w/ me. Baron was about as short and homely as leading men get but somehow in this bleak and uncompromising piece he's effective (particularly in voice-over). Some striking cinematography (especially the wonderful opening train sequence) and a few long takes (Baron walking an entire rundown city block of a sidewalk with no other business, the stirring snowy pier finale) are memorable. Also good is the sleazy fat bearded character actor whose name escapes me (he also appeared in Fuller's SHOCK CORRIDOR around the same time).
There isn't a lot of humanity in BOS though, and the one moment when Baron opens up to the girl he has befriended, he gets slapped hard with cold reality. A well done scene but it only piles on to the disaffection and malaise already permeating this movie. Don't expect to laugh much or take a date; the proceedings rarely stray from deadly serious. This is a movie full of lapsed morals and betrayal but you can take heart that the system remains firmly in control at the chilling end of this downbeat but solid late entry in the noir cycle.
23 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
Lost Classic Hardboiled Noir!, 30 December 2001
Author: noir guy from London, England
Someone resurrect this 'lost classic' hardboiled noir! Director/Writer/Lead Actor Allen Baron (whose subsequent career took him into TV-land with the likes of CHARLIE'S ANGELS) turned out this bleak film noir in 1961, and it must surely rate as one of the all-time genre downers (and that's intended as a compliment!). Similar in tone to Irving Lerner's earlier MURDER BY CONTRACT (another must-see!), this features a protracted, yet stunningly appropriate, opening tracking shot through a railway tunnel as an early morning train spits Ohio-based contract assassin Frankie Bono (Baron) out into a wintry New York to carry out a Christmas holiday hit on a second-tier racketeer but, as in MURDER BY CONTRACT, all the meticulous planning and methodical preparation becomes unravelled as fate and his malevolent (and often unseen) criminal fraternity deal Frankie a crueller hand than the one he'd planned for his unsuspecting quarry. OK, nothing new here, but the tone, something like a cross between the cruel randomness of a Cornell Woolrich story (read this guy!) mated with an existentialist and angst-ridden take on the 'We're born in pain, We die alone' school of genre filmmaking, means that you'd need to take in a couple of Abel Ferrara movies like THE DRILLER KILLER and BAD LIEUTENANT to get your jollies after watching this one. Oh yeah, and it's topped off by a pitiless world-weary hardboiled third-person narration which ratchets up the ominous atmospherics that all the doomy foreshadowing brings to this dance of death (example - when Bono tracks his would-be victim to The Village Gate, the jazzy soundtrack switches to a beatnik vocalist/conga-drummer whose set consists solely of death-themed numbers). Atmospheric lengthy takes, often featuring a behatted and raincoated (or alternately dark-suited) Bono stalking the mean streets of the Big Apple dwarfed by the concrete jungle cityscape evoke and prefigure both Marvin in POINT BLANK and Delon in Melville's LE SAMOURAI, and his ruthlessly downbeat demeanour also recalls Henry Silva in the similarly ruthless (and elusive) JOHNNY COOL (see my IMDB review for more on this one - shameless plug!). This may be (by now) an oft-told tale, but what we have here is a true low-budget one-off for fans of the lower depths, and there's even a sweaty, weighty (excuse the pun) and telling cameo from Larry Tucker (Pagliacci in Fuller's 'SHOCK CORRIDOR') for cultists to take in amongst the no-name cast. A must-see - if you get a chance to see it.
18 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
A bleak, "existential" slice of late noir, 19 June 2001
Author: bmacv from Western New York
The strongest impression left by director/star Allen Baron's 1961 Blast of Silence is that the fabulous postwar years are gone, fini, kaput. The gritty 60s have arrived, and Manhattan is grimy, garish and awash in human as well as inanimate litter -- the 60s in which transvestite hookers started knifing U.N. diplomats in Times Square. Into this nascent cesspool travels tired hitman Frankie Bono; he comes by train, through a dark and endless tunnel which seems to symbolize either the birth canal or the human condition -- or both. He's a full-time loner (like Vince Edwards in the somewhat similar Murder by Contract) out to do a job, collect and move on. But he happens upon some old acquaintances from his childhood in an orphanage and succumbs, clumsily, to some human contact. This proves his undoing. The ending takes place in a desolate shore not unlike the Staten Island locations of Sorry, Wrong Number. Blast of Silence is amateurish and "personal," in the style of the John Cassavettes films that would soon follow -- products of that edgy, verbal New York culture of jazz boites and improvisational theater. It's no masterpiece, but it's worth seeing for anyone tracking the turns the noir cycle took in its last, dying years.
20 out of 25 people found the following comment useful :-
Should be a cult classic, 5 August 2005
Author: TimothyFarrell from Worcester, MA
Its not technically perfect, but this film remains one of my favorites. Definitely something with plenty of re watching value. You think the classics of Hollywood Noir where pessimistic and hard-hitting? This makes many of those films look light. There is no major studio interference or traditional Hollywood happy ending. There aren't any attractive people or even likable characters. This is just raw and pessimistic film-making. There is little or no plot, just an outline that connects various events in a week of a hit-man. The film is obviously very low budget, but that doesn't matter too much. It adds to the darkness, and the minimalism. This isn't flashy Michael Bay type film-making. This is one of the darkest and most misanthropic films ever made. It also is one of the most memorable.
The film centers around Frankie Bono, a well paid hit-man who is known for his efficiency. He is hired to kill a mob kingpin on Christmas day, and it seems like it will be a very simple job to follow through on. However, he gets sidetracked when he meets up with an old friend from the orphanage and his sister who he still has feelings for. Bono is an interesting if not completely well-developed character. He is pessimistic and feels no need for others, as they only seem to be out to get him as the narrator describes. One of the reasons he is more human than many other protagonists of low-budget noir is the narrator. The hard-hitting narration (provided by Lionel Strander, who remains uncredited but has a recognizably unique voice) acts as sort of a conscience for Bono. This is both a plus and a detraction for the film. The scenes with the narration is obviously due to lack of a budget to afford sound film. The narrator provides background on Bono, and describes his feelings. It may have been better if they had dialog instead to show the feelings of the character. I can't hold it too much against the filmmaker though, because like I stated above this is a very low-budget film, and post-dubbing is always destructing.
Bono is the closest to a well-developed character. The girl who he still has feelings for, Lorrie, is a stereotype, but the filmmaker obviously wants her to be more interesting, so it isn't for lack of trying. Big Ralph is appropriately slimy, and is an all around unappealing and sleazy character, who certainly gets what is coming to him in one of the most impressive death scenes ever caught on film. Luckilly since Bono is the most interesting character, the film centers entirely on him. As far as I can recall, there isn't a single scene where he isn't in it. This is definitely a character study, albeit a crude one.
What makes the film so great? The fact of how unique it is. It's all Allen Baron's show (he directed, wrote, and starred in it), and he equips himself well in all areas. Unlike many other Hollywood versions of Film Noir, these are people you'd run into in the street. The film is gritty beyond belief, and there is a sense of hopelessness throughout the entire thing, unlike the more higher budgeted crime films. It is far from the most technically impressive crime films such as "Touch of Evil" or "Kiss Me Deadly", but is in many ways a perfect textbook example of how noir should be made. Sleazy, irredeemable yet oddly compelling characters, and a depressing atmosphere. From the beginning you know there is no way there can be a happy ending for this film. It sticks in your memory and the lack of finance adds to the atmosphere. The camera-work is very impressive (and you even get to see some vintage footage of early 60s New York).
This is a film awaiting rediscovery, and if the midnight movie circuit had survived, this may have secured a spot on the roster of cult classics. Unfortunately, due to a perceived lack of interest, no major studio feels like releasing a DVD of this impressive film, so the bootlegs are the only ways to see it. The boots are easy to locate from several popular retailers of odd and unusual lost films, and are in overall good quality. Despite the high price of the copies, they are certainly worth the purchase for fans of film noir. This is one of the most hard-hitting noirs I have ever seen, and I highly recommend it. (9/10)
16 out of 19 people found the following comment useful :-
voice over was brilliant, 6 August 2001
Author: Steve
I thought the movie used the voice-over very well. I like the idea of a character allowing us into his mind and/or thought process while he goes about his daily business, especially an interesting profession such as being a hitman. Overall I thought the movie was suspenseful as well, with me cheering on Bono in the last scenes. I recommend this movie for anyone interested film in general.
11 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
uncompromising study of a professional hit-man, 24 January 2005
Author: stephen-357 from United States
A hard-boiled, uncompromising study of a professional hit-man, "Baby Boy" Frankie Bono. The beginning of the film is menacing; a pitch-black screen and pounding percussion driving a cynically vicious narrative, "remembering, out of the black silence you were born in pain . . . born with hate and anger built in . . . a slap on the backside to blast out a scream!" A small light becomes visible amidst the black like a moving bulls eye on a target and all of a sudden amidst a crescendo of noise you realize you've been on a train in a tunnel and are now being "blasted" out into the world. But it's like being born into a sewer because this world is seen through the eyes of our killer. Frankie Bono is played by Allen Baron (the director himself) who's appearance and acting style are vintage Robert DeNiro. Frankie has the misfortune to run into a girl for whom he once had affection, and for the first time in his career, he's having 2nd thoughts about his profession, but a killer who doesn't kill gets killed. Frankie's on a one way street that cannot go on forever. Unforgettable film.
12 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
beautiful lit images - effective sound, 20 September 1998
Author: soundmxr from Indiana, USA
This B& W film, set in New York uses its locations and actors with great skill. The sound editing is very effective and adds moments of tension to the atypically dark contrasty lighting. One shot of an exterior street is enormously powerful without any action beside the cityscape. The director has a great eye - not as good at acting as directing though. If you like film noir - this low budget film is worthy of your viewing.
9 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :-
An explosive film with a great narrator, 10 November 1998
Author: OldTree from Germany
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
The opening of this film is really explosive. The screen is completely dark; a new-born baby cries. Then a tiny light is to see. While the narrator tells what is going on with the boy, the light is getting bigger and finally it seems to have the shape of a baby-carriage (it's a question whether this is intentional). A few seconds later one realizes that the light is the end of a railway tunnel. The tracks lead to Manhattan. Frankie Bono, who has become a professional killer, is on the way to do a job.
Truly extraordinary is the narrator. Hard-hearted words, spoken in an aggressive tone, reveal what orphan Frankie thinks about this world. That he is a loner, that he hates the necessary contacts (for example a 38 special with a silencer has to be organized), that the 25th of December means nothing to him, except a delay of his observations.
I like BLAST OF SILENCE very much, because it presents a noir atmosphere in an unusual way. A low-budget film that surpasses many other titles of this genre.
7 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
One of the final Film Noirs is a super little thriller that works thanks to a very real sense of New York, 13 June 2008
Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York
Loner hit-man comes to New York City for a job at Christmas and things begin to happen.
One of the last films made during the heyday of film noir this is a really good little crime drama now out on DVD thanks to Criterion. The tale is told in stark black and white images with such a stunning sense of place-it was filmed all over the city-that you actually feel you're pounding the streets and back alleys of Manhattan.The sense of place is gets the film many points in my book Adding greatly to the film is what should be an odd second person narration, but instead fills in details that the visuals lack. Its a perfect marriage of word and image. Its like listening to really good Chandler and Hammett narrating a story. The film itself is not perfect, there are some technical issues with the sound making it seem dubbed at times, the cast is uneven with some characters coming off as stiff as a result, and one or two twists seem more contrived then natural. Still this is definitely worth a look since its mostly a very real film.
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