"Oh Mexico"
When looking back on any movie directed by Orson Welles, one's thoughts are almost always overpowered by a fascination for his meticulous and almost suave directing style. Touch of Evil is no
different and if anything, this one of his films boasts probably the single most famous piece of camerawork in Welles’
career and the history of film. As memorable as that swooping
tracking shot maybe, it holds no further discussion here as it fits all too
well into another category. And as I look back, I am happy things worked
out this way because had it not, the following topic would have
been ignored completely.
Coming in at a close second to Welles' fine camerawork in my after thoughts of Touch of Evil would be the delightfully pomp original soundtrack composed by Henry Mancini. Often considered the last true noir film, Touch of Evil defined itself by how it differed from the great noirs before it, felt clearly through its score. Bent on an unsolved crime filled with seedy villains, corruption, and cops smoking cigarettes, Touch of Evil is a true and timeless noir. But what sets this one apart from all the others is its location. Touch of Evil is one of the few noir films to not take place in Los Angeles, instead departing south from the incumbent high rises and dark alleyways of the big city in favor of a small border town known as Los Robles.
