Black

Rating: 7/10 (19 December 2007)

AP is more "black satire" than "black comedy". It creates a Manhattan yuppie world where no one does any work therefore appearance is all, symbolized best in a competition for who has the best looking business card. However beneath one man's overlay is a Jack the Ripper character who kills and carves at will. The violence isn't as graphic as in some Peckinpah films but the lead actor does a fine job celebrating his character's bloody hidden personality. That inside killer blends with his "real" persona toward the end till reality and fantasy merge-or were they always merged? Apparently so, as the ending makes it clear the only crimes committed were in his mind, the ultimate satire of a society concerned only with appearances. I can't say I recommend the movie to everyone but it did keep my attention for the most part. There are some clunky moments, especially with the investigator, whose last conversation with the lead probably should have been placed closer to the end of the film. The final clue to the truth of his madness was given by someone who carried no threat, therefore the impact of the message softened. However all the actors did a fine job IMO, production values were fine, there were no clanging goofs, and that world was fun to look at.