Touches You

Sorry, this movie sucks

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

THE LIST OF ADRIAN MESSENGER is an incredibly inventive murder mystery/thriller, made by John Huston and shot on his estate in Ireland. It's quite unlike any other film I've watched, the stark black-and-white shooting style accompanying the action quite nicely. It's one of those films where the mystery is deliciously ambiguous until around the halfway mark.I found the early scenes to be the best part of the film as you have no idea what's going to happen next. Evil Kirk Douglas proves a master of disguise as he goes around bumping people off and making it look like they were killed in accidents. George C. Scott is a delight as the amateur detective who gets drawn into the proceedings and Jacques Roux is even better as the warm-hearted Frenchman and Watson character.Eventually the story begins to make sense but it continues to engage anyway thanks to the strong performances. The latter half of the story gets bogged down a bit in the fox hunting scenes but it still picks up for a climax tying it all together nicely. One of the most interesting things about the production are the elaborate disguises worn by characters; the make-up which includes face masks and even false eyes is really something special. I found most of the celebrity cameos to be a bit of a distraction, but all of the winking and grinning at the end is irresistible.

for the actors in cameo roles. for Kirk Douglas and George Scott. for the story and its old fashion flavor. for the details and for the levels of way to the truth who reflects a manner to build a film noir who could be almost fascinating. a film of keys, crimes and theories. and not only a good script but splendid performances for define events, meetings, plots, errors. the similarities with Sherlock Holmes' stories is one of pillars of this seductive film about a rich family and the danger around it. and it is only the beginning. the mark of John Huston is basis for a dark film who remains memorable for the status of game with masks, for the ambiguity and for the great job of Kirk Douglas .

American director John Huston had a long as well as illustrious career as an intelligent filmmaker.If film critics were to draft a list of his important films then nobody would doubt that 'The List of Adrian Messenger' would easily find a place on that list.Although it boasts of some important names of Hollywood,The list of Adrian Messenger is able to surprise us all with its focus on suspense.This is one reason why this film's suspense elements appear to be more enjoyable than mere presence of big stars such as Burt Lancaster,Kirk Douglas,Robert Mitchum and Frank Sinatra.For a film which flirts effortlessly between different genres namely suspense and thriller,The list of Adrian Messenger throws its biggest surprise when it embraces comedy with natural ease.The pace of the film is fast with no scope for any type of dull moments.The end result is an important film which would be an inspiration for other thrillers.

This film is really one of a kind and handled with such aplomb by Huston, taking elements of film noir and mixing it with off-beat comedy. Describing the film as unorthodox might be right but scary is way off the mark. It's not the sort of film that makes you feel uneasy. It's just strange. It's a straight laced murder mystery with some bizarre disguises and cameos. I think the most unsettling feature is the remarkable resemblance between most of Kirk Douglas' disguises and the Jigsaw Killer in the Saw movies. Maybe that was one source of inspiration for Saw's makers? And to top this all, you've got some of the greatest screen legends, the beautiful Dana Wynter and a superb Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack. What more could you ask for?