In order to really appreciate film, you have to accept its faults. One of its weaknesses, is the short amount of time it has to reach a conclusion. This brevity is a strength in certain situations, when the content of the story benefits from the running time. If the tale is complex or packed with details, it's better suited for a different format.
Classic Movie Trailers - Dressed to Kill (1941)
A cigarette butt by a serving window. A half-burned receipt from a previous transaction. A love letter in a small lock box and a signed portrait, hanging on the wall. All of these clues were joined by several others, in a movie that was less than 90 minutes.
Part of the joy of watching a mystery, is the opportunity to solve the case before the end. If you're lucky enough to guess the right answer, I'm sure that you'll feel gratified. Even if you're not smug about it at first, it's hard to answer a puzzling riddle without a sense of accomplishment. For the rest of us that missed the boat the first time around, we can go back to see what led us astray.
Of course, we'd be assuming that the filmmakers aren't cheating. It's very common for movies to change in the editing room. Any deep mystery has a couple of red herrings, and as a result, they have many plausible outcomes. Since the process of filmmaking is often shrouded in mystery, maybe repeat viewings aren't worth it. I'd even say they're likely to be a waste of time.
There's a good chance, that your opinion of the story won't change. There's also the chance that it will change for the worse. Besides, one of the greatest things about motion pictures, is the small amount of time we need to invest in them. If we're going to examine the plot with a magnifying glass, we'd be better off with the novel.
When it comes to telling stories in the mystery genre, books do it better than anyone else. Their narrative can be as long as it has to be, and they give up control of the pace to the reader. You see, when we take our time and absorb the material, there's a much better chance that we'll retain it. Films are quick; they have to keep moving and we don't get a break to ruminate over the evidence.
There is a place for clues and crime in movies; I'm not suggesting that they should give them up entirely. I just think that mystery should be simplified, if not downplayed in terms of importance. If it's entertaining overall, the resolution may not matter, and a film's first impression is the lasting one. If a movie needs to be seen more than once to be enjoyable, it probably won't be very successful.
However, if we're seeing it again because we loved it the first time, everyone wins in that case. There's nothing wrong with picking things up during a second viewing, but the movie shouldn't need those minor details. If you weren't paying attention, or it wasn't clear before, that tells you all you really need to know. Every form of fiction isn't suited for film, and it isn't something to be placed under a microscope.
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@ChannelSeals
See "Dressed to Kill" on Netflix!
Next week: "Batman" ('66) feat. Adam West & Burt Ward!
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