Uli Edel and Desmond Nakano by intertwining unrelated stories completely warps the past. I was a kid in the 1950s and still can remember. It's bizzarro weird because it never would have happened like it's depicted. Selby wrote stand alone stories. The various worlds written about by Selby never would have interacted as easily as is shown in the film in a working class neighborhood. Gays were closeted because it was, one, back then, against the law and two, being openly flamboyant could get you killed.
In Manhattan is where being gay was more tolerated and accepted, the outer boroughs not so much, but even there in Manhattan it would probably be only in certain neighborhoods.
The way the film plays out putting most of the story in Sunset Park doesn't ring true, and then the way the opening sequence is set up with Vinnie and the boys in cahoots with Tralala makes you wonder where the heck is this hood gang when a local girl gets in trouble on their turf?
(But in the book Tralala is working solo).
The Noir visuals are powerful thanks to Stefan Czapsky's excellent Cinematography, Mark Knopfler's Morricone-ish sounding score is good but the film really should have had a lot diegetic Sinatra, Dino, Tony Bennett, Jo Stafford, Perry Como, in both the luncheonette and Willis's dive bar. Even Selby writes about the locals were complaining about half of the songs on the jukebox were country tunes for the servicemen to play, who frequented the place. Worth at least one watch. 7/10.
In Manhattan is where being gay was more tolerated and accepted, the outer boroughs not so much, but even there in Manhattan it would probably be only in certain neighborhoods.
The way the film plays out putting most of the story in Sunset Park doesn't ring true, and then the way the opening sequence is set up with Vinnie and the boys in cahoots with Tralala makes you wonder where the heck is this hood gang when a local girl gets in trouble on their turf?
(But in the book Tralala is working solo).
The Noir visuals are powerful thanks to Stefan Czapsky's excellent Cinematography, Mark Knopfler's Morricone-ish sounding score is good but the film really should have had a lot diegetic Sinatra, Dino, Tony Bennett, Jo Stafford, Perry Como, in both the luncheonette and Willis's dive bar. Even Selby writes about the locals were complaining about half of the songs on the jukebox were country tunes for the servicemen to play, who frequented the place. Worth at least one watch. 7/10.