Nowhere to Run, nowhere to hide

THE BIG CLOCK (1948) and NO WAY OUT (1987): 

NOIR COMPANIONS CUT FROM A DIFFERENT CLOTH

By Jerry Saravia

Remakes are in such ubiquity nowadays that it is rare to see one that enhances its original incarnation. 1987's "No Way Out" is one of those that succeeded admirably, a deeper, deeply suspenseful and outright knockout of a thriller that delivers much more panic and fatalistic touches than its predecessor. 1948's "The Big Clock" would be the original template which "No Way Out" borrowed, a film noir thriller that plays fast and loose with its noirish trappings with delightful coincidences and a sunnier finish. "No Way Out," however, is the true noir (though advertised as a thriller) with a slightly bleaker outlook.

1948's "The Big Clock" (based on Kenneth Fearing's novel) has Ray Milland as George Stroud, a crime reporter and editor-in-chief for Crimeways Magazine, who has a special knack for catching criminals. The repugnant Earl Janoth (Charles Laughton) is the newspaper tycoon who owns Janoth Publications, which is the home for Crimeways. Stroud deservedly expects to go on vacation with his wife (Maureen O'Sullivan) to West Virginia yet the ever tyrannical Earl expects Stroud's total commitment to the magazine. Stroud is abruptly fired and spends his time at a bar with Pauline (Rita Johnson), Earl's mistress, who wants to conspire with Stroud to blackmail his former boss. One thing leads to another when Earl has his rendezvous with Pauline and kills her. Stroud doesn't realize what is happening until late, and then he is assigned to find the killer by Janoth! Since Stroud went about town with Pauline at various clubs and shops, witnesses come forward to identity Pauline's date. Meanwhile, there are reparations to be made with Stroud's long-suffering wife and delayed vacations.

1987's "No Way Out" is a whole other affair, a political thriller with not much politics but plenty of thrills in a setting far removed from the publishing world. Kevin Costner (in clearly the best role of his career) is Commander Farrell, a Navy Lieutenant with a background in intelligence. He is also something of a hero after a hazardous boat rescue. Farrell is selected as liaison for Secretary of Defense Brice (Gene Hackman) to investigate the proposed project of a phantom sub. Unfortunately, such project investigations come to a halt when Brice accidentally kills his mistress (Sean Young, an animated actress early in her career) and blames it on Yuri, a Russian mole working in the Pentagon. Farrell has been assigned to find Yuri except he has also had an affair with the same woman! To make matters complicated, witnesses to Farrell's romantic getaways with Susan are coming forward, and there is the matter of Brice's top assistant, Scott Pritchard (Will Patton), who has assassins on hand to terminate Yuri and anyone associated with the mole.

If I have a preference between the two films, it would be "No Way Out" because its dependence on the machinations of its plot do not overwhelm the characters' dilemmas. Laughton's Janoth expresses no remorse over the death of his mistress, and consequently neither does Stroud who is only friends with the mistress - he is not carrying out an affair. In contrast, Hackman's Brice expresses guilt and shame over the killing. Farrell was deeply in love with the mistress and can't handle losing her (though the final twist brings up a few more questions about his devotion to the woman). "No Way Out" also ends with a touch of fatalism, imbuing its narrative with ambiguity over Farrell's role in the Pentagon and some measure of sympathy for Brice and his assistant, whose handling of certain matters is handled by assassins. Laughton's Janoth is a fascinating, repulsive creature but it is hard to care about his plight. Milland's Stroud just wants to protect his hide and seems to be a good man overall, in way over his head.

The biggest difference between "The Big Clock" and "No Way Out" is the former's sense of humor - it is practically a fast-paced screwball comedy with Hawksian overtones (not to mention the use of the witty Elsa Lanchester as a wacky painter). The supporting cast in "The Big Clock" is more colorful but the ones in "No Way Out" are far more grounded, more realistic (it is hard to forget George Dzundza's wheelchair-bound computer expert who is sympathetic yet unsure of Farrell's seeming paranoia). "The Big Clock" is a fun suspense yarn with a shocking climax. "No Way Out" is far more entertaining with an even more shocking climax yet its roots are firmly planted in the world of noir. Let's say Milland's Stroud escapes any sort of doomed fate. Costner's Farrell faces an ambiguous future - one that may result in getting out of the United States altogether. He's wracked with guilt over the loss of a loved one, something conspicuously missing from "The Big Clock."