The Black Dahlia

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The Black Dahlia

R

2006

2h 1m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

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Popcornmeter

32%

Tomatometer

192 Reviews

27%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Two cops in the 1940s Los Angeles investigate the murder of a Hollywood starlet (Mia Kirshner), and one (Aaron Eckhart) puts his marriage in jeopardy by obsessing over the crime, while the other (Josh Hartnett) becomes involved with a woman (Hilary Swank) from a prominent family, who happens to have an unsavory tie to the victim.

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Critics Consensus

Though this ambitious noir crime-drama captures the atmosphere of its era, it suffers from subpar performances, a convoluted story, and the inevitable comparisons to other, more successful films of its genre.

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Brian Tallerico

UGO

Mar 24, 2007

You have to wonder just how vibrant the film would have been during the Reagan or Clinton administration, when De Palma was in his prime.

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Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Sep 30, 2006

1.5/5

Forty-five minutes in, I was already glancing at my watch and wondering why the only lively actress in this film was playing the dead girl. Go figure.

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Ben Walters

Time Out

Sep 23, 2006

Ellroy's prose crawls into characters' secret hearts and under the reader's skin, but its foetid horrors become kitschy here, the script too streamlined and the lead performances too shallow to dredge the story's depths.

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Joe Lipsett

Murder Made Fiction Podcast - Bloody Disgusting

May 19, 2026

2.5/5

A curious, but good looking mess. Hilary Swank and Fiona Shaw steal every scene, but the competing storylines don't often mesh well. The film should have just pulled the trigger on the central throuple

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Noah Berlatsky

Splice Today

May 22, 2025

De Palma should be the perfect choice to helm a seedy neo-noir, but the script meanders, and the director ends up turning a story of greed, lust, and betrayal into an exercise in tedious moralism.

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

Nov 17, 2024

6/10

De Palma pours some of his aesthetic adjustments on it, but unfortunately its narrative often loses track of police intrigue and remains situated in common places in its uchronia about The Black Dahlia's nefarious murder case. [Full review in Spanish]

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Alan Z.

@Alan_Z Jun 25, 2026

Could have been better, could have been worse.

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Javier O.

@J.Osuna20 Apr 27, 2026

…listen to me when i say…don’t watch it PLEASE

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Ed B.

@EdLee Apr 12, 2026

The Black Dahlias a murder mystery based on true events, but, story built around the famous 1940s murder , mostly fiction. It has great potential with the great sets and designs from the era. However it seems labored and frankly not that compelling.

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Lau F

@LauSouthBay Mar 7, 2026

I should've believed the reviews. It was absolutely horrible. How could a director with Brian De Palma's stature be responsible for this mess. The two male leads should be wearing paper hats and serving fries. They certainly aren't actors. From the first scene, the picture had no credibility. I want my $3.99 rental fee back.

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Julian S.

@akajulianscott Feb 22, 2026

It’s wild that the case the film is named for — the reason you press play — feels like a footnote.

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Daniel M

@MazzaQuePasa Nov 9, 2025

I liked that it was set in the 40’s and it was recreated well, but the story was pretty boring and the characters weeny interesting at all. Couldn’t finish the movie.

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Brian De Palma

Director

Josh Hartnett

Officer Dwight Bleichert

Scarlett Johansson

Kay Lake

Aaron Eckhart

Sgt. Leland Blanchard

Hilary Swank

Madeleine Sprague

Mia Kirshner

Elizabeth Short

The Black Dahlia: Official Clip - The Boxing Match

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Synopsis

Two cops in the 1940s Los Angeles investigate the murder of a Hollywood starlet (Mia Kirshner), and one (Aaron Eckhart) puts his marriage in jeopardy by obsessing over the crime, while the other (Josh Hartnett) becomes involved with a woman (Hilary Swank) from a prominent family, who happens to have an unsavory tie to the victim.

Director: Brian De Palma
Producer: Art Linson, Moshe Diamant, Rudy Cohen
Screenwriter: Josh Friedman
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Signature Pictures
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Language|Some Grisly Images|Strong Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 15, 2006, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 20, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $22.5M
Runtime: 2h 1m
Sound Mix: Dolby SRD, DTS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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