In the history of movies ‘Touch of Evil‘, the 1958 film ‘noir’ by Orson Welles played perhaps a more important role in European and especially French cinema than in American cinema. It is a story of gangsters that takes place in the border area between the USA and Mexico, a film that gathers in its cast some glorious names from at least three generations of actors, an entertainment film and that pursues commercial success, but is made with the means of master of cinema. Like many of Welles‘ other projects, ‘Touch of Evil‘ had a turbulent history. If the legend is true, the young French filmmakers Truffaut and Godard may have seen the film several times more than Welles himself, who claimed to have seen it only once. In the years following the production, the two, who had awarded to ‘Touch of Evil‘ the ‘Cahiers du Cinema’ award, were to direct their first films as independent directors and start what would be called the ‘New French Wave’. They all viewed in fact a film version edited by the big studios that was not to Welles‘ liking. Today’s viewers enjoy a version restored and re-edited in 1998 according to the director’s notes kept by Charlton Heston, the lead actor, a version considered closer to Welles‘ intentions.
The story takes place in a small border town in Texas. Today, in the age of the walls between countries, it is difficult for us to imagine that six decades ago there were such cities divided by a border marked just by the booth of a customs officer or border guard. However, the problems seem to have been about the same as today, with street violence and gangs of drug traffickers controlling the day and night lives (with all the specific vices) of the inhabitants. The rather complicated story of Mexican police officer Vargas (Charlton Heston) confronting criminals and the corrupt police led by Captain Quinlan (Orson Welles), endangering his family and especially his new American wife (Janet Leigh) could be included with minor changes in the genre of films whose action takes place on both sides of the violent border between the United States and Mexico. It can be said in fact that ‘Touch of Evil‘ inaugurated or was the first remarkable film in a series that continues to this day.
The cinematic qualities of the film are exceptional. We are dealing, as in many of Welles‘ films, with a copious portion of vertical takes, from close-ups filmed from the bottom up to car trails on the city streets that I can’t imagine how they were filmed (on location, in Venice, CA, they say!) at a time when drones did not even exist in dreams. For the first time in a movie of the big studios, the handheld camera is used in street scenes. In the following years, French directors had to make consistent use of this device on the streets of Paris. The sound recorded directly in scenes that take place in cars is also, I believe, a technical premiere. All these cinematographic tricks serve the story that flows smoothly, the film has rhythm and humour. The acting performances are just right. Heston and Leigh are of course the protagonists, but Welles steals the show in a composition role in which he added about 20 years and 30 kilograms to his not very fragile body structure through make-up. Dennis Weaver creates an extremely interesting supporting role. Marlene Dietrich is magnificent in the five key scenes in which she appears. ‘Touch of Evil‘ is one of those classic films that manages the performance of attracting and satisfying both film noir viewers and art film lovers even at over 60 years after its making.