I liked how ‘Manhattan Night‘, the 2016 film by director Brian DeCubellis, begins. We are in a dark, cold and violent New York, and the main character is one of those who bring the public news about the crimes in the city, practicing a profession that will soon disappear, that of investigating reporter for a newspaper. In most cases I dislike voice-over in movies, but here it fits very well. Porter Wren, the narrator, who is also the main character, sounds a bit like a Philip Marlowe transplanted to the New York of the previous decade. In a short time, the stunningly beautiful blonde appears and she will use her charms to buy his services. Everything is set for an erotic thriller combined with a film noir (I guess it’s called neo-noir nowadays).
The beautiful Caroline wants to know the circumstances of the death of her husband, a famous and extravagant film director. The secret could be related to the sequences filmed by him, as he was accompanied by a camera at every moment of his life, including the most intimate ones, or maybe it is also related to the press tycoon Hobbs who had bought the newspaper where Porter works. Not only is the reporter drawn into a hot relationship with Caroline, but he finds himself threatened with the destruction of his career and of his entire marital and family life, which until then he had managed to keep at a distance from the dangerous profession he was practicing.
‘Manhattan Night‘ was the first feature film for Brian DeCubellis, who also wrote the screenplay, adapted from a novel by Colin Harrison. A few details of the plot may raise questions, but overall the story flows smoothly, the characters are truthful and well-defined, capturing the viewers’ attention. My only complaint concerning Adrien Brody is that he seems to wear the same mask throughout the film, but this mask is very suitable for the main role. Yvonne Strahovski enters very well her role, which is a kind of emulation of those played by Sharon Stone two or three decades before. Campbell Scott and Steven Berkoff are very good in two key supporting roles. Without too much innovation or daring, ‘Manhattan Night‘ is a solid film, which manages most of the time to meet the expectations of neo-noir fans.