In an opening sequence that immediately appeals to film noir fans, the camera gradually moves up and back from a night-time street-scene in L.A. before gently swooping down towards a posh residence in the Hollywood Hills where a pianist can be seen through a patio window. The camera then proceeds to visually pass through the window, dropping its audience straight into the movie's very dramatic prologue. This impressive introduction displays the kind of moody atmosphere, noirish lighting and care in the composition of scenes that proves to be typical of all that follows. Shots of its main character (played by George Raft) seen from a low-angle talking to his boss, from a higher angle climbing up a shadowy flight of stairs and later, searching through a photographer's studio, are just a few examples of these qualities.
The movie's visual style and atmosphere also prove to be perfect for this well-paced murder mystery that features violence, humour and a number of characters who seem to know a lot more than they're prepared to admit.
"Nocturne" begins in the luxurious home of successful composer Keith Vincent (Edward Ashley) who's sitting at his piano, working on his latest composition whilst also talking to a mystery lady who's sitting silently on a sofa some distance away from him with her face hidden in shadow. Vincent is explaining his decision to end their relationship whilst also talking about his previous conquests whose photos he keeps displayed on one of his walls. He has composed musical pieces dedicated to each of his ex-lovers and the one he's presently working on is for the mystery lady. When he's still in conversation, a gunshot rings out and Vincent falls to the floor.
When the police arrive, the officer in charge deduces from the available evidence that Vincent's death was a suicide but Homicide Detective Joe Warne (George Raft) isn't convinced. He thinks it's more likely that the dead womanizer was killed by one of the ladies he'd dumped and so, when he finds that the manuscript that Vincent had been working on at the time of his death had "For Dolores" hand-written on it, he assumes that this might be a useful lead. It transpires, however, that Vincent called all his women by the same name. No-one thinks that there's any substance to Joe's suspicions but his sympathetic Captain allows him some time to make some investigations. After tracing the nine ladies whose photos adorned Vincent's wall, Joe draws a blank and is taken off the case.
Joe's hunch becomes an obsession which leads to him ignoring his superiors' instructions and continuing his investigation. He discovers that there was a tenth lady whose photo had been removed from Vincent's wall and she turns out to be small-time actress Frances Ransom (Lynn Bari). Things get progressively more difficult for Joe as he gets suspended from his job and finds himself falling for his prime suspect. Through knowing Frances, he also meets her sister Carol (Virginia Huston), pianist Ned "Fingers" Ford (Joseph Pevney) and Erik Torp (Bern Hoffman) who all work at the "Keyboard Club". None of these characters appear to be entirely straight-forward but when Joe eventually finds the clue he needs to prove his theory; it comes from the most unexpected source.
Although "Nocturne" doesn't currently enjoy a high profile and isn't regarded as being in the top echelon of film noir movies, it was nevertheless, a great commercial success when it was first released and part of its appeal must have been attributable to the quality of its script which contains plenty of entertaining wisecracks. One that stands out comes from Vincent's housemaid who says of her employer that "he was a lady-killer but don't get any ideas. I'm no lady".
George Raft does well as he gets thrown about violently by the big, muscle-bound Torp and indulges in some witty exchanges with Lynn Bari and the actors in the supporting roles maintain their good standards pf performance throughout.
The movie's visual style and atmosphere also prove to be perfect for this well-paced murder mystery that features violence, humour and a number of characters who seem to know a lot more than they're prepared to admit.
"Nocturne" begins in the luxurious home of successful composer Keith Vincent (Edward Ashley) who's sitting at his piano, working on his latest composition whilst also talking to a mystery lady who's sitting silently on a sofa some distance away from him with her face hidden in shadow. Vincent is explaining his decision to end their relationship whilst also talking about his previous conquests whose photos he keeps displayed on one of his walls. He has composed musical pieces dedicated to each of his ex-lovers and the one he's presently working on is for the mystery lady. When he's still in conversation, a gunshot rings out and Vincent falls to the floor.
When the police arrive, the officer in charge deduces from the available evidence that Vincent's death was a suicide but Homicide Detective Joe Warne (George Raft) isn't convinced. He thinks it's more likely that the dead womanizer was killed by one of the ladies he'd dumped and so, when he finds that the manuscript that Vincent had been working on at the time of his death had "For Dolores" hand-written on it, he assumes that this might be a useful lead. It transpires, however, that Vincent called all his women by the same name. No-one thinks that there's any substance to Joe's suspicions but his sympathetic Captain allows him some time to make some investigations. After tracing the nine ladies whose photos adorned Vincent's wall, Joe draws a blank and is taken off the case.
Joe's hunch becomes an obsession which leads to him ignoring his superiors' instructions and continuing his investigation. He discovers that there was a tenth lady whose photo had been removed from Vincent's wall and she turns out to be small-time actress Frances Ransom (Lynn Bari). Things get progressively more difficult for Joe as he gets suspended from his job and finds himself falling for his prime suspect. Through knowing Frances, he also meets her sister Carol (Virginia Huston), pianist Ned "Fingers" Ford (Joseph Pevney) and Erik Torp (Bern Hoffman) who all work at the "Keyboard Club". None of these characters appear to be entirely straight-forward but when Joe eventually finds the clue he needs to prove his theory; it comes from the most unexpected source.
Although "Nocturne" doesn't currently enjoy a high profile and isn't regarded as being in the top echelon of film noir movies, it was nevertheless, a great commercial success when it was first released and part of its appeal must have been attributable to the quality of its script which contains plenty of entertaining wisecracks. One that stands out comes from Vincent's housemaid who says of her employer that "he was a lady-killer but don't get any ideas. I'm no lady".
George Raft does well as he gets thrown about violently by the big, muscle-bound Torp and indulges in some witty exchanges with Lynn Bari and the actors in the supporting roles maintain their good standards pf performance throughout.