'Dark Streets' review

Hollywood's bum year for musicals continues to disappoint

By Geoff Berkshire

Posted December 11, 2008

Metromix

It's the 1930s in an unnamed American city and wealthy playboy Chaz Davenport (Gabriel Mann) owns the hottest club in town. Torn between an on and off relationship with star singer Crystal (Bijou Phillips) and the advances of enticing newcomer Madelaine (Izabella Miko), Chaz's romantic dilemmas soon take a backseat to a mysterious conspiracy that claims the lives of people close to him.

The verdict: This musical/noir hybrid aims for the savvy style of a classic like "Chinatown" but winds up closer to the gimmicky pre-teen gangster musical "Bugsy Malone," minus the irony. Unfortunately cast, poorly lit (someone took "Dark Streets" too seriously) and so leaden and obvious it doesn't even work as camp, everything about the movie falls flat. The most generous thing to be said for director Rachel Samuels' effort is that she's not afraid to take risks, but when the result is so embarrassingly awkward it never seems worth the trouble.