Crack-Up

Pat O'Brien plays an art critic named George Steele who believes he was in a train wreck. The only problem is there's no evidence of a wreck and now everybody thinks he's crazy. So he sets out to investigate the matter himself and get to the bottom of things. Good mystery with film noir touches. Nice direction from Irving Reis. Opening few minutes is exceptional. Pat O'Brien has one of his strongest leading roles here. Herbert Marshall, Ray Collins, Wallace Ford, and lovely Claire Trevor lead the fine supporting cast. Perhaps not cynical or gritty enough for some film noir fans but it's still a good movie. Definitely check it out.

Critics all liked this and got me interested to see it but when I did, it turned out to be a big disappointment. Pat O'Brien was the lead actor in this crime movie involving an art critic. Being a big fan of art, that also drew me to this. Also being a fan of film noir, I expected more in that regard, too. This film just didn't deliver on any of those counts. Claire Trevor and Herbert Marshall also starred, but that didn't help, either. The story is about O'Brien uncovering a forgery scam but he's made to look like a crazy man so that no one can take him seriously. Some parts of this, granted, are really good and suspenseful, but way too much of this film simply drags. It also is not an easy story to follow, at least on the first viewing, and that can turn off people. Film noir....melodrama....what is it? After awhile, one doesn't care.

"Crack-Up" is a fun noir that stands out as unique entry in the genre because of its setting: the world of art forgery. Forget about the plot. Who cares? Enjoy instead the murky museum corridors and shady dirty dealings. It's too bad that Claire Trevor plays a good guy -- noirs are so much more fun when she's the femme fatale. But no matter -- some Claire Trevor is never a bad thing. Grade: A