The Crimson Kimono

Friday, May 18, 2012 | 9:25 pm
The Sun Sets in the West: Mid-Century California Noir
1959/b&w/82 min.
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Scr/dir: Samuel Fuller; w/ Victoria Shaw, Glenn Corbett, James Shigeta; cinematography: Sam Leavitt

A vital force in American cinema, Samuel Fuller faces ethnic prejudice head-on in this gritty policier by wrapping a murder mystery in an interracial romance. Charlie Bancroft (Glenn Corbett) and Joe Kojaku (James Shigeta) are detectives in the Los Angeles Homicide Squad, partners and old war buddies since they served together in Korea. While working on the case of a slain Little Tokyo stripper named Sugar Torch, the duo becomes embroiled in a love triangle as both gumshoes fall for the beautiful Christine Downes (Victoria Shaw), a key witness. Shot on location in and around downtown Los Angeles (note how many times City Hall appears in the Scope frame), the film intermingles pulp—a cigar-chomping Skid Row muralist named Mac, shadowy interrogations, a primal kendo match—with an often lyrical romance.

Bing Theater | Included with admission to Kiss Me Deadly, $5 for this film only. Tickets: 323 857-6010 or purchase online.