Watch This Film Noir Classic If You Want More Sweaty Desperation Like Uncut Gems
Without spoiling too much, it’s fair to say that Tony Curtis’s character, Sidney, is full of the same kind of sweaty desperation as Howard. Long-held debts, owed favors, blackmail, threats, and intimidation hang in the air of both movies like a fog, as the shattered pieces of important relationships are run over by protagonists who have nearly lost their humanity in the pursuit of a financial windfall. The characters in these films are living on the edge, trapped in cycles that are unknowingly leading to their destruction. The movies also share an overall sense of scuzziness, the kind that makes you shudder at the notion that there could be people out there who are so nakedly covetous of power that they’ll betray the people closest to them to get one more chance at the big time.
One other thing the films have in common? Both were ignored by the Academy when the Oscars ceremony rolled around, but both seem to have gotten the last laugh; it’s only been a few years since “Uncut Gems” came out, but the movie’s frenetic pacing seared its way into the cultural consciousness, while “Sweet Smell of Success” did the same thing with its crackling dialogue and stunning cinematography.
Watch the trailer for Sweet Smell of Success here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zQ6zZQ6Q6Q
Watch the trailer for Sweet Smell of Success on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/p/B9xwQ6iH1ZM/
Watch the trailer for Sweet Smell of Success on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/SlashFilm/status/1094451111111111111
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