Touch of Evil (1958)

Genre: Thriller

Directed by: Orson Welles

Starring: Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, Orson Welles

Running time: 95 minutes

While walking around with his young wife on the US-Mexico border, Miguel Vargas, an officer in the Mexican government, witnesses a car exploding after a time bomb has been planted in the trunk. Realizing the implications, he takes an interest in the investigation. In the process, he will have to contend with various people, including Hank Quinlan, an aging police captain who is known around town as one who will not hesitate to manipulate the law to get his way.

The opening sequence of the film noir, that goes from the time the bomb is planted to the explosion of the car, lasts over three minutes and is a great bit of filmmaking. The rest of the movie is also very well done. Orson Welles had to fight to get this film cut the way he envisioned it, something that only came to fruition decades later.

With a cast comprising of Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh and Orson Welles, it is no surprise that this film has gained such a reputation over the years, especially considering the fact that all parties involved carried their respective loads and then some. Welles was particularly convincing as a disheveled aging dirty cop, used up by years of abuse done to his body.

Touch of Evil truly is a movie to see in its 1998 restored version, especially for the fans of the film noir genre. Some of the acting was over the top, especially as far as the supporting cast goes, but this film was really well done across the board.

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