Edgar Ulmer’s Detour is one of the best noir movies I’ve seen. Ruthless may not fit the noir book of rules (not every clause at least), but it is a cynical, disillusioned film that fits the times. Ruthless is a film about business, the kind of unstoppable force of social and economic progression that has no logic, no real purpose and will show no mercy to attain its ephemeral ends. I suppose this film, cloaked as a tale about moral destruction, is an example of how strikingly anti-business an American movie can get. Because Ulmer, in this movie, has nothing good to say about business. Through flashbacks, the life of Horace Vendig, businessman, is narrated. The women of Vendig’s life, men too, are used as instruments to manipulate and possess. Vendig’s motivation is never explained. He is a force, not a human being. Welcome to the American nightmare. Ruthless is a film that offers no solution of consolation. As in many noir tales, what we have here is simply a story about things going from bad to worse, along a path paved with misery and destruction. I must confess there is something about the utter dullness of Ruthless that I appreciated – maybe this is the right way to craft a movie based on this particular subject matter. No titillation, no entertainment, no nothing: expressionless, unimaginative acting, dull cinematography, static lines. Greed is not exciting. It is boring as hell, just as the system that propulses it. Cheers to you for making films like this, Mr Ulmer!
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