I love a good plot twist, and "Strange Bargain" delivers one that I did not see coming.
Jeffrey Lynn gives a really good performance as a clenched, strait-laced suburban husband and father whose boss ropes him into a scheme to help his suicide look like murder in exchange for a pay off. A running theme in the film is financial desperation -- all of these guys trying to live up to the American dream and finding that it's too expensive.
This is one of those noirs with a protagonist who's not cut out for the mess he's landed himself in, and watching him dig himself deeper and deeper into a hole is like watching a car accident in slow motion.
And then there's that plot twist that had me tipping my hat and saying "well played, sir" to my television.
In the world of film noir, this one is much more on the modest side of the enjoyment scale, but it's fun.
Grade: B+
Jeffrey Lynn gives a really good performance as a clenched, strait-laced suburban husband and father whose boss ropes him into a scheme to help his suicide look like murder in exchange for a pay off. A running theme in the film is financial desperation -- all of these guys trying to live up to the American dream and finding that it's too expensive.
This is one of those noirs with a protagonist who's not cut out for the mess he's landed himself in, and watching him dig himself deeper and deeper into a hole is like watching a car accident in slow motion.
And then there's that plot twist that had me tipping my hat and saying "well played, sir" to my television.
In the world of film noir, this one is much more on the modest side of the enjoyment scale, but it's fun.
Grade: B+