Official Movie Website Theatrical Release 09/15/06 Home Video 12/26/06 MPAA Rating Rated R for strong violence, some grisly images, sexual content and language Running Time 2 hours 1 minute Genre Suspense Director Brian De Palma Writer Josh Friedman Cast JJosh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Mia Kirshner, Mike Starr, Fiona Shaw Studio Universal Picures |
THE BLACK DAHLIA
SYNOPSIS
Master storyteller Brian De Palma, known for such
classic crime dramas as The Untouchables,
Scarface and Carlito’s Way, as well as his sus-
pense thrillers Carrie, Dressed to Kill and Blow Out,
directs this adaptation of James Ellroy’s (L.A.
Confidential, American Tabloid) best-selling crime
novel.
The Black Dahlia weaves a fictionalized tale of
obsession, love, corruption, greed and depravity
around the brutal murder of a fledgling Hollywood
starlet that shocked and fascinated the nation in
1947 and remains unsolved today. Two ex-pugilist
cops, Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky
Bleichert (Josh Hartnett), are called to investigate
the homicide of ambitious silver-screen B-lister
Betty Ann Short (Mia Kirshner) A.K.A. “The Black
Dahlia”—an attack so grisly that images of the
killing were kept from the public.
While Blanchard’s growing preoccupation with the
sensational murder threatens his relationship with
Kay (Scarlett Johansson), his partner Bleichert
finds himself attracted to the enigmatic Madeleine
Linscott (two-time Oscar® winner Hilary Swank),
the daughter of one of the city’s most prominent
families—who just happens to have an unsavory
connection to the murder victim.
True crime meets urban legend when De Palma
brings Ellroy’s The Black Dahlia to the big screen.
--© Universal Pictures
Master storyteller Brian De Palma, known for such
classic crime dramas as The Untouchables,
Scarface and Carlito’s Way, as well as his sus-
pense thrillers Carrie, Dressed to Kill and Blow Out,
directs this adaptation of James Ellroy’s (L.A.
Confidential, American Tabloid) best-selling crime
novel.
The Black Dahlia weaves a fictionalized tale of
obsession, love, corruption, greed and depravity
around the brutal murder of a fledgling Hollywood
starlet that shocked and fascinated the nation in
1947 and remains unsolved today. Two ex-pugilist
cops, Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky
Bleichert (Josh Hartnett), are called to investigate
the homicide of ambitious silver-screen B-lister
Betty Ann Short (Mia Kirshner) A.K.A. “The Black
Dahlia”—an attack so grisly that images of the
killing were kept from the public.
While Blanchard’s growing preoccupation with the
sensational murder threatens his relationship with
Kay (Scarlett Johansson), his partner Bleichert
finds himself attracted to the enigmatic Madeleine
Linscott (two-time Oscar® winner Hilary Swank),
the daughter of one of the city’s most prominent
families—who just happens to have an unsavory
connection to the murder victim.
True crime meets urban legend when De Palma
brings Ellroy’s The Black Dahlia to the big screen.
--© Universal Pictures
© 2003 St. Louis Movie Review Weekly. All rights reserved, except where indicated.
All movie titles, pictures, etc...are the property of their respective studios.
All movie titles, pictures, etc...are the property of their respective studios.
| ST. LOUIS MOVIE REVIEW WEEKLY |
