(c)1976 Faces Distribution Corporation.
“The Killing of a Chinese Bookie” A pseudo-family story wrapped in film noir *Note! Contains spoilers.
*This article touches on the ending of the story, so we recommend watching the movie before reading it.
“The Killing of a Chinese Bookie” Synopsis
Cosmo Vitelli (Ben Gazzara), the owner of a run-down club, loses big while gambling at a private club and ends up in huge debt to the mafia. Then, the mafia offers Cozmo a request in exchange for canceling the debt. It was to kill the underworld boss, Chinese Bookie...
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A very strange film noir
``The Killing of a Chinese Bookie'' (1976) is a very strange film noir. Since John Cassavetes, known as the father of independent film, was working on this film, it's obvious that it's not going to be easy, but it's still very strange. In other words, while the outer shell is certainly covered in something reminiscent of noir, the core feels like it's pointing in a completely different direction.
Film noir is a French word that means "black film." It is said that the term originated from film critic Nino Frank, who called crime films made in America in the 1940s "Film Noir." John Huston's `` The Maltese Falcon '' (1941), Otto Preminger's `` Laura Murder '' (1944), Billy Wilder's `` Midnight Confessions '' (1944)... There was murder, betrayal, and the existence of a femme fatale. A nihilistic story is told, colored by the intense contrast between light and darkness.
So, how about ``The Killing of a Chinese Bookie''? If you just look at the plot, ``Nightclub manager Cosmo Vitelli (Ben Gazzara) has incurred a huge debt from poker, and in exchange for canceling the debt, he is ordered by a gangster to kill a Chinese flea shop.'' It's a true crime movie. The grainy, grainy look and extremely shaded tones are full of noir-like charm. John Cassavetes himself even described the film as a gangster story.
“The Killing of a Chinese Bookie” (c) 1976 Faces Distribution Corporation.
"I wrote ' The Killing of a Chinese Bookie' as an effort to get out of the distribution business. I started writing it two weeks before we started shooting. I talked to Martin Scorsese a few years ago and he said, I spent an evening crafting this gangster story. Years later, when I didn't know what to make, I wrote a story about a nightclub owner who borrows a lot of money and is persuaded to kill someone he doesn't know. I thought about it.'' (*1)
However, this film definitely deviates from the classic film noir tradition. The climax is a one-on-one fight with a gangster in a parking lot. Cassavetes depicts the film's most exhilarating moments in an incredibly flat tone. Those who chase and those who are chased. The suspense, which is full of tension, is not driven. What there is is nothing more than a series of indifferent shots, where the extraordinary of ``killing each other'' invades the ordinary.
John Cassavetes' interest probably isn't in telling dry crime stories. His eyes are fixed on everyone at Crazy Horse, which Cozmo runs...the host who calls himself Mr. Date Man, the half-naked dancers, and the bartenders. He has a boundless love for the helpless lives of helpless people.
``The Killing of a Chinese Bookie'' is the story of a pseudo-family that lives side by side in a corner of Los Angeles.
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