March 6,
1998, release date
Directed
by Robert Benton
Screenplay
by Robert Benton, Richard Russo
Music by
Elmer Bernstein
Edited by
Carol Littleton
Cinematography
by Piotr Sobocinski
Susan Sarandon as Catherine Ames
Gene Hackman as Jack Ames
Reese Witherspoon as Mel Ames
Stockard Channing as Lt. Verna
Hollander
Giancarlo Esposito as Reuben Escobar
Liev Schreiber as Jeff Willis
Margo Martindale as Gloria Lamar
(aka Mucho)
John Spencer as Capt. Phil Egan
M. Emmet Walsh as Lester Ivar
James Garner as Raymond Hope
Clint Howard as an EMS worker
Distributed
by Paramount Pictures
Produced
by Cinehaus
No vampires in this
film, just Paul Newman in the starring role in a neo-noir that I enjoyed more
than I thought I would. There is probably a generation of moviegoers who find
it very difficult to forget they are watching Paul Newman when he is in a
movie. I am one of those moviegoers. That inability to see past the star and
focus on the film’s narrative is often a fault for a film, but not so for Twilight. It’s about murder, betrayal,
blackmail, corrupt cops and private investigators (the film has so many noir
elements); it is also a fun movie. And it is a bit of relief to know that Paul
Newman—I mean, Harry Ross—does his best to stick to his moral compass in spite
of all the betrayal and corruption around him, and there is plenty of both.
Harry Ross is a
retired Los Angeles police officer and occasional private detective who is down
on his luck, so down on his luck that he lives over the garage at his friends’
estate. His friends are Jack and Catherine Ames, popular actors who can afford
to take in their friend and give him some odd jobs so he can maintain some
sense of dignity. The film opens with Ross looking for the Ames’ daughter Mel
in Mexico. He finds her, in the company of her boyfriend Jeff Willis, and
attempts to bring her home. Ross has no trouble with Jeff Willis, but he didn’t
count on Mel’s feistiness: She manages to get Ross’s gun and accidentally shoot
off a round, which hits Ross in the thigh.
Cut to two years
later, and Ross is being led into an interrogation room at a Los Angeles police
station. Former coworkers recognize him as he passes by, and many talk in
whispers about his unfortunate accidental shooting in Mexico. Rumor has it that
he was shot in the groin and thus has lost his manhood. This misunderstanding
becomes something of a running joke throughout the film because (a) the rumor
is false and (b) Ross and the viewers are the only ones who know that
throughout most of the film.
(This blog post about
Twilight contains almost all the spoilers.)
Harry Ross is in the
police station to discuss what he knows about the death of Billy Sullivan,
Catherine Ames’s first husband. Sullivan died under mysterious circumstances
years ago, and some in the law enforcement community aren’t happy that his
death was never investigated more thoroughly. Ross is also there to tell what
he knows about the death of Raymond Hope, another retired police officer and
private investigator who once did a lot of work for the Ameses.
Ross tells his story
to two police detectives as a recorded statement, which the film provides in
flashback; in fact, most of the story is told in flashback, another hallmark of
noir. The flashback allows viewers to see events from Ross’s perspective. We
learn the extent of the betrayals and the corruption as he does. The film
occasionally uses Harry Ross’s voice-over, which reinforces the narrative
perspective from his point of view and lets us see some of what he is thinking.
This narrative perspective makes it very easy to identify with Harry Ross and thus
to root for him.
I should admit here
that Paul Newman in the lead role of Harry Ross in Twilight adds a lot to the enjoyment of the film, at least for me. I
do have some misgivings, however, about Newman in this role. Newman was
seventy-three when he starred in Twilight,
and it is a little unbelievable that, as a private investigator, he outshoots
and outmaneuvers many of the (younger) characters he is trailing. Stockard
Channing plays Lieutenant Verna Hollander, Newman’s former partner on the Los
Angeles police force and also his former love interest. Channing is nineteen
years younger than Newman, and it was also hard for me to believe that the two characters
Channing and Newman play might renew their former romance at the end of the
film. Lieutenant Verna Hollander’s little maneuver to discover whether Harry
Ross still has his manhood struck me as tasteless. But I was able to overlook
the negatives and enjoy the story, misgivings included.
I saw Twilight years ago, a DVD rental, I think, before the vampire franchise existed. I've always enjoyed the movie. I agree with you on some of its flaws/drawbacks, but really enjoyed James Garner, Susan Sarandon, Gene Hackman, Stockard Channing...the cast is deep in talent, including a very young Reese Witherspoon and a youthful Liev Shreiber. It's a good if not great neo-noir. As you mention, it is difficult to forget that Newman is Newman, but it doesn't really matter in this film and he does do a fine job in the role of Harry Ross.
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