I Love Trouble (1948)

(On Cable TV, May 2021) The late 1940s were a high-water mark for classic film noir, and I Love Trouble clearly revels in the big guns of the genre: a cynical Private Investigator, a femme fatale (or two), a corrupt client, a bunch of organized criminals and seedy Los Angeles underworld locations. But where the film distinguishes itself is its refusal to play by the dark, fatalistic tone of the genre. Instead, I Love Trouble harkens back to the comedic sleuth films of the 1930s by having an unflappable protagonist suavely played by Franchot Tone, wisecracking his way through tense situations (all the way to the gun-pointing finale) and managing to get the girl by the final moments of the film. As a result, I Love Trouble almost plays as a parody — it’s not really meant as such (more of a playful take, I’d say), but the change in tone can act as a tonic for those jaded viewers beaten-down by the archetypical world-weary noir tone. Despite the amusing approach, the film is as convoluted as any other noir — the pithy plot summary on Wikipedia is hilariously deceptive in that regard. The image quality is not good even on best-of-show TCM, but I can see myself revisiting this one in a while, simply to take in the witty repartee once again. But why wait? Best of all, I Love Trouble is in the public domain — there’s no reason not to watch it now if you’re interested in it.