Noir Alley

[Dargo]

That sequence was filmed on a set!

Yeah, and in fact and as Eddie mentioned in his wraparounds, the entire movie was filmed on Universal's Hollywood set, and another aspect of this film which I found very impressive considering how well the look of the film never seems to belie this fact.

I also got to wondering which of SoCal's old horsetrack racing venues might have been used for those particular scenes where the races are shown being run in British clockwise fashion.

(...the old and now gone Hollywood Park or maybe Santa Anita, perhaps?...the IMDb webpage "filming location" page for this movie only specifies that the zoo scene was filmed at L.A.'s Griffith Park Zoo, but other than that just "Los Angeles")

[MilesArcher]

I noticed that the opening chase scene where Burt is running from the police showed off Burt's incredible athleticism with all of the jumping and
climbing that he had to do. Those skills were also showcased in "The Crimson Pirate" and "Trapeze" which have been shown on TCM in the recent past.

Eddie Muller made a remark that Burt's supporting cast was all British, but I noticed that the ship's captain was played by Jay Novello, who was an
American actor of Italian descent.

By the way, Wikipedia says that the horse racing scenes were filmed at Hollywood Park Race track.

[Dargo]

...By the way, Wikipedia says that the horse racing scenes were filmed at Hollywood Park Race track.[/b]

Thanks, Miles. Appreciate you finding this.

(...didn't think of looking for this info on Wiki, and considering that the IMDb website usually has a lot more specifics such as this sort of thing located there)

[Hibi]

I noticed that the opening chase scene where Burt is running from the police showed off Burt's incredible athleticism with all of the jumping and
climbing that he had to do. Those skills were also showcased in "The Crimson Pirate" and "Trapeze" which have been shown on TCM in the recent past.

Eddie Muller made a remark that Burt's supporting cast was all British, but I noticed that the ship's captain was played by Jay Novello, who was an
American actor of Italian descent.

By the way, Wikipedia says that the horse racing scenes were filmed at Hollywood Park Race track.

Yes, I noticed Jay in that small part.

[Dargo]

I noticed that the opening chase scene where Burt is running from the police showed off Burt's incredible athleticism with all of the jumping and
climbing that he had to do. Those skills were also showcased in "The Crimson Pirate" and "Trapeze" which have been shown on TCM in the recent past.

Eddie Muller made a remark that Burt's supporting cast was all British, but I noticed that the ship's captain was played by Jay Novello, who was an
American actor of Italian descent.

By the way, Wikipedia says that the horse racing scenes were filmed at Hollywood Park Race track.

Yes, I noticed Jay in that small part.

I might be wrong here, but I thought it was mentioned at one time during the film that he and his ship's registration were Portuguese.

[Hibi]

I noticed that the opening chase scene where Burt is running from the police showed off Burt's incredible athleticism with all of the jumping and
climbing that he had to do. Those skills were also showcased in "The Crimson Pirate" and "Trapeze" which have been shown on TCM in the recent past.

Eddie Muller made a remark that Burt's supporting cast was all British, but I noticed that the ship's captain was played by Jay Novello, who was an
American actor of Italian descent.

By the way, Wikipedia says that the horse racing scenes were filmed at Hollywood Park Race track.

Yes, I noticed Jay in that small part.

I might be wrong here, but I thought it was mentioned at one time during the film that he and his ship's registration were Portuguese.

Yes, I guess that gave them an out!

[Bronxgirl48]

I saw KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS years ago but (mercifully) hardly remembered any of it. Seeing it Sunday morning after all that time made me realize why, lol. Outre, bizarre, awkward, silly, just plain weird. The cinematography is outstanding, though, and certainly contributes to the overall surreal, nightmarish quality of the story. "Sure, Burt, come right in through my window as I'm sleeping, do some gentle, goofy terrorizing then greet me politely the next day with "Hello, would you like to go on a date?"

I cannot get over the medieval punishment he receives in post-WWII England. Were they really whipping first-time offenders with cat-o-nine tails in 1948?

[Dargo]

Hi Bronxie! Glad to see you're feeling better now. Welcome back.

And in regard to this question of yours here...

I cannot get over the medieval punishment he receives in post-WWII England. Were they really whipping first-time offenders with cat-o-nine tails in 1948?

...I'd say Burt's character would have probably been one of the very last to have suffered this type of punishment, as it seems according to what I was able to find on the internet, this practice was surprisingly only abolished in England the same year of 1948 that this film was released.

From the Wikipedia page entitled "Flagellation":
In some circumstances the word flogging is used loosely to include any sort of corporal punishment, including birching and caning. However, in British legal terminology, a distinction was drawn (and still is, in one or two colonial territories[citation needed]) between flogging (with a cat o' nine tails) and whipping (formerly with a whip, but since the early 19th century with a birch). In Britain these were both abolished in 1948.

[Andree]

Burt, being the professional he was, insisted that only an authentic whipping could produce the facial contortions he
wanted to make the whole thing look real in KTBOMH. In the name of practicality he did agree to a cat o' nine tails lite.

Lancaster was known for executing his own stunts throughout his career and in Kiss the Blood Off My Hands he wanted to perform the cat o' nine tails whipping scene as authentically as possible. He knew that his facial expression could never replicate the pain unless he was truly experiencing lashing and he insisted that actor Harold Goodwin (playing the role of the whipper) "really lay it on him". The scene was not done with an actual leaded cat o' nine tails, but rather with a split leather belt. Still, Lancaster's back was so blistered and welted the next day that he was unable to wear a shirt.
{Wiki}

Wiki has a very long entry on KTBOMH which covers every aspect of the movie.

[Bronxgirl48]

Hi Bronxie! Glad to see you're feeling better now. Welcome back.

And in regard to this question of yours here...

I cannot get over the medieval punishment he receives in post-WWII England. Were they really whipping first-time offenders with cat-o-nine tails in 1948?

...I'd say Burt's character would have probably been one of the very last to have suffered this type of punishment, as it seems according to what I was able to find on the internet, this practice was surprisingly only abolished in England the same year of 1948 that this film was released.

From the Wikipedia page entitled "Flagellation":
In some circumstances the word flogging is used loosely to include any sort of corporal punishment, including birching and caning. However, in British legal terminology, a distinction was drawn (and still is, in one or two colonial territories[citation needed]) between flogging (with a cat o' nine tails) and whipping (formerly with a whip, but since the early 19th century with a birch). In Britain these were both abolished in 1948.

Hi, Dargo, thanks so much.

Wow, that is mind-boggling. I always associate flogging/whipping with the British Navy in the 18th century or thereabouts.....Captain Bligh, Billy Budd, etc.

I wonder if there would have been such a scene had Robert Donat, who was considered instead of Lancaster, played the role. Probably not. (interestingly, in GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS Donat canes a student)

[Hibi]

I saw KISS THE BLOOD OFF MY HANDS years ago but (mercifully) hardly remembered any of it. Seeing it Sunday morning after all that time made me realize why, lol. Outre, bizarre, awkward, silly, just plain weird. The cinematography is outstanding, though, and certainly contributes to the overall surreal, nightmarish quality of the story. "Sure, Burt, come right in through my window as I'm sleeping, do some gentle, goofy terrorizing then greet me politely the next day with "Hello, would you like to go on a date?"

I cannot get over the medieval punishment he receives in post-WWII England. Were they really whipping first-time offenders with cat-o-nine tails in 1948?

That was indeed shocking, brutal for a 1948 film and brutal for a civilized country in 1948.

Well they were still hanging people in England in the early 60s!

[Bronxgirl48]

Burt, being the professional he was, insisted that only an authentic whipping could produce the facial contortions he
wanted to make the whole thing look real in KTBOMH. In the name of practicality he did agree to a cat o' nine tails lite.

Lancaster was known for executing his own stunts throughout his career and in Kiss the Blood Off My Hands he wanted to perform the cat o' nine tails whipping scene as authentically as possible. He knew that his facial expression could never replicate the pain unless he was truly experiencing lashing and he insisted that actor Harold Goodwin (playing the role of the whipper) "really lay it on him". The scene was not done with an actual leaded cat o' nine tails, but rather with a split leather belt. Still, Lancaster's back was so blistered and welted the next day that he was unable to wear a shirt.
{Wiki}

Wiki has a very long entry on KTBOMH which covers every aspect of the movie.

Eeeeek! I am assuming it only took one take.

[Bronxgirl48]

HANGOVER SQUARE is an old favorite of mine. An excellent period melodrama-thriller but in my opinion it does not qualify as noir (and I have an expansive interpretation of this genre that goes beyond the hard-boiled detectives and dames scenario) For me, George Harvey Bone's obsession with Netta Longdon is not fatalistic -- he is just a very sick individual who cannot help his murderous rages.

George's obsession was in the completion of the concerto. That was what was fatalistic; anyone that got in the way had to be dealt with. We see that at the end. What is unrealistic is that the Doctor doesn't. I.e. if he would have let George go and perform his concerto, George would have gone quietly to a mental facility. But then we would not have had that one-for-the-books ending.

Great points I hadn't immediately thought of, james. So do you think HANGOVER SQUARE could be considered noir?