Touch of Evil . Tucson Weekly . 11-09-98

Touch of Evil

DIRECTED BY: Orson Welles

REVIEWED: 11-09-98

Thirty years after its original release, this version of Orson Welles' film is re-edited according to changes the director requested after viewing the studio cut that significantly altered his vision. A beautifully shot film noir, the story follows the investigation of a car bombing in a small town on the Mexican border. Newlyweds Mike (Charlton Heston) and Susan Vargas (Janet Leigh) witness the explosion during their honeymoon, so Mike joins a nasty American police chief, Hank Quinlan (Orson Welles), in the investigation. In true noir style, Welles creates a claustrophobic world with a slippery definition of morality, where the cops are sometimes as corrupt as the criminals. Though the murder is solved by the end of the film, the most compelling question, why Heston is playing a Mexican, remains unanswered.

--Higgins

Full Length Reviews
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil

Capsule Reviews
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil

Other Films by Orson Welles
Citizen Kane
The Magnificent Ambersons
The Trial

Film Vault Suggested Links
The Killing
Mulholland Falls
Double Indemnity

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