Hell's Half Acre (1954)

 From the fancy clubs to the squalid slums of Honolulu, 'Hell's Half Acre' is a flawed experiment in making a Hawaiian set (and shot) Film Noir, or 'Tiki Noir' as I've read it called. I started this as part of a Marie Windsor movie kick, she's fourth billed but dosen't appear on screen until 43 minutes in, she turns out to be a relatively minor character. There is also a character here called "Tubby" Otis, a name I consider to be a virtue in and of its self. The plot concerns a woman coming to Hawaii when she learns the husband she thought she lost in Pearl Harbor might still be alive, only to find that he has reinvented himself as a kind of mid level gangster. Does he even remember her?, the film keeps you guessing, but first it drags you through some mostly dull times, punctuated by Elsa Lanchester trying to provide some light moments. I did however rather like the ending, which earns this film an extra half a star, leaving us with a rating of **