Mark,
Re your question below:
"Jim, I've probably asked you this before, but I can't
remember if you answered, and if so, how (it's shaping up to
be that kind of day, as evidenced by my Sallis lapse): Do you
feel Robert Aldrich's Kiss Me Deadly is as much of an
abomination as Long Goodbye?"
Not as MUCH of an abomination. Aldrich was clearly setting
out to make an anti-Spillane picture in much the same way
that Altman was setting out to make an anti-Chandler
picture.
But, in spite of himself, Aldrich's picture is, inadvertently
perhaps, closer to the spirit of Spillane than Altman's is to
the spirit of Chandler.
Meeker, for example, is a much more forceful presence as
Hammer than Gould is as Marlowe. Ultimately, despite his
director's subversive intentions, he captures aspects of
Spillane's character
(determination, ruthlessness, loyalty to friends, suspicion
of bureaucracy, self-confidence, competence in combat, etc.)
so well that even Spillane, who initially hated the picture,
reportedly said in later years that Meeker was the best
screen Hammer.
KISS ME DEADLY captures other characters from Spillane's
books with greater faithfulness, too. Paul Stewart's Mafia
kingpin, Carl Evello, is a far more faithful rendition of the
book's character than Mark Rydell's is of the film's
counterpart to mobster Mendy Menendez, Marty Augustine.
Similarly, Wes Addy's turn as Hammer's cop buddy, Pat (now
named Murphy instead of Chambers and, IIRC, a lieutenant
rather than a captain) is a far more faithful depiction than
is Steve Coit's turn as Detective Farmer, the film's analog
for Bernie Ohls.
Aspects of KISS ME DEADLY bug the hell out of me as a
Spillane fan, but, despite setting it in LA instead of NYC,
despite making Hammer a divorce specialist, despite depicting
Hammer more as personally pissed off than obsessed with
justice, the film, notwithstanding Aldrich's clear
intentions, is far more ejoyable for Spillane fans than
Altman's TLG is for Chandler fans precisely BECAUSE Aldrich,
though he put his best efforts to the task, is less
successful at trashing Spillane than Altman is at trashing
Chandler.
JIM DOHERTY
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