'Dahlia' shows worst of De Palma

THE BLACK DAHLIA — ** — Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Hilary Swank; rated R (violence, profanity, gore, nudity, sex, vulgarity, drugs, racial epithets).

At first glance, "The Black Dahlia" would seem to be ideal material for filmmaker Brian De Palma, if only because it's a period thriller, as was "The Untouchables" — his last really good film.

However, De Palma instead showcases his worst, most self-indulgent tendencies — a sleazy obsession with sex and a proclivity for campy, over-the-top melodrama (as with his films "Scarface" and "Femme Fatale").

"Dahlia" feels like two completely different movies accidentally smooshed together. It doesn't work, though it does become more entertaining as it gets more ludicrous and convoluted.

Loosely based on the best-selling novel by James Ellroy ("L.A. Confidential"), this mystery-thriller is a heavily fictionalized version of real-life events — the 1947 murder and mutilation of aspiring actress Elizabeth Short (played in flashbacks by Mia Kirshner).

Two of the investigating officers are LAPD detectives Dwight "Bucky" Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) and Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart), partners who were once opponents in the boxing ring. And as it turns out, they share more than a need for justice. Lee's neglected girlfriend Kay Lake (Scarlett Johansson) has turned her attentions to Bucky. But Bucky winds up sleeping with a possible witness/suspect in the case, Madeleine Linscott (Hilary Swank), the sexually adventurous daughter of a sleazy developer (John Kavanagh).

Screenwriter Josh Friedman's adaptation of the Ellroy novel is ridiculously overplotted and features a couple of false endings — one of them overdirected by De Palma and so full of histrionics that it makes "Mommie Dearest" seem subtle by comparison.

In the lead role, Hartnett is dramatically flat. At least Swank and Eckhart (a replacement for Mark Wahlberg) seem to understand what their roles require. And Kirshner's sad-eyed, tragic victim is the most watchable of all.

"The Black Dahlia" is rated R for violence (shootings, fisticuffs and boxing, as well as violence against women), strong sexual language (including profanity and crude slang terms), some fairly graphic gore, female and partial male nudity, simulated sex and other sexual contact (both gay and straight), drug content (mostly Benzedrine use and references), and use of racial epithets and ethnic slurs. Running time: 121 minutes.

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com