"I Just Cut The Hair," by Tyler Smith

THE MAN WHO WASN’T THERE (2001)
Written and Directed by: Joel & Ethan Coen
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Frances McDormand, James Gandolfini

The work of vintage mystery writers has long been an influence on Joel and Ethan Coen. Upon reading Dashiell Hammett’s “The Glass Key” and “Red Harvest,” it’s almost surprising that he didn’t get a credit on the Coens’ Miller’s Crossing. In The Man Who Wasn’t There, they are inspired by the work of James M. Cain, the writer of “Double Indemnity” and “The Postman Always Rings Twice.” Those books, and subsequent films, are all about ordinary guys drawn into a murderous plot, usually by a beautiful woman and the promise of wealth. Invariably, their crimes catch up with them, and we are left shaking our heads, knowing that these guys never had a chance.

Such is the case of Ed Crain, a mild-mannered barber in an anonymous post-war California town. He’s married to a woman named Doris that is having an affair with her boss, himself a married man. Ed, who, it would seem, locked his emotions away in a drawer somewhere and then lost the key shortly thereafter, doesn’t really seem to care about his wife’s adultery. “It’s a free country,” he says.

However, when he is approached by a shady entrepreneur about investing in a radical new process called “dry cleaning,” Ed has a flicker of hope. The idea of making his fortune gnaws at him, until he makes what could very well be his first proactive decision in ten years. He decides that he will blackmail his wife’s lover, a respected businessman, with the information of his adultery. With the money, Ed will finance the dry cleaner.

At first, all goes well. But, then, doesn’t it always? Soon enough, though, Ed is confronted by his wife’s lover. A fight ensues, and Ed finds that he has killed his attacker.

The following day, as the body is found, Ed is not arrested. In fact, he’s not even a suspect. After all, to most people, Ed is a non-entity. He’s just the guy on the corner that cuts their hair. How could a guy like that be anything other than a barber?

It is this question that underscores the film and, often, the film noir genre itself. People are often trying to advance their lives, either financially or romantically. They try to break the constraints that society has placed on them. They don’t want to be anonymous; they want to be somebody. This attitude often leads to desperation, which then leads to crime, which leads to punishment. The message in film noir is just as clear as it is depressing: good things come at a price that, sooner or later, you have to pay.

Ed Crain leads a very mundane life. Every day is the same. His occupation, by nature, is repetitive. Nothing is every truly accomplished- nothing ever ends- when your job is to maintain something that is always growing.

So, here he is, working a job he doesn’t want, married to a woman that doesn’t like him. While he would never actually say it- maybe not even think it- Ed Crain’s life is terrible. When one really takes the time to think about the rut that Ed has fallen into, it’s enough to make a person scream. If Ed was a different kind of person, he probably would have killed himself years ago.

But, he’s not. He’s the kind of man who just accepts his circumstances and continues on. However, he does realize that there is something deep inside, driving him on to do things he wouldn’t normally do. After the dry cleaning scheme fizzles out, and his wife has passed on, Ed befriends a young girl- an amateur pianist- whom he attempts to sponsor. He pulls strings to try to get her into a prestigious music school. The girl doesn’t particularly care, either way, which just motivates Ed more. He’s seen what “not caring” can lead to- the restlessness, the regret- and he’s not going to let that happen to his young friend. It may be too late for him, but not for her.

We feel sorry for Ed, who is eventually jailed (ironically for a murder he didn’t commit) and sentenced to be executed. As he sits in his cell, telling his story, we realize that the only crime he committed was wanting to be somebody else. Not necessarily somebody great; just somebody of some consequence. Certainly not a barber.

And as he is strapped into the electric chair, Ed drops a bomb on us. As he reflects on the idea of death, he says something we never expected. It’s a twist, of sorts. Not in the vein of The Sixth Sense or The Usual Suspects, but jarring all the same.

I don’t know what I’ll find beyond the earth and sky, but I’m not afraid to go. Maybe the things I don’t understand will be clearer there, like when a fog blows away.
Maybe Doris will be there. And, maybe there, I can tell her all those things they don’t have words for here.

It’s the last line of the film and it almost makes me cry every time I hear it. There is affection and longing here, previously unhinted at. It would seem that, though he never really showed it, Ed truly did love his wife. And, yet, nothing was ever said. In the end, the only regret Ed has is that he wasn’t able to connect with his wife the way he wanted to.

It’s enough to make one wonder how things would have been different had he been able to show his feelings. Perhaps their relationship would have been strong and loving. Maybe then he wouldn’t have minded his job so much. Maybe she wouldn’t have had the affair. Maybe he’d die in her arms, rather than in an electric chair, surrounded by strangers.

That’s the real tragedy of the character. A man desperately wanting to be a different person; not just financially, but emotionally. Wishing he could be vulnerable, that he had the strength to show his weakness.

But, he can’t. And, as is so often the case in film noir, Ed’s flaw is his downfall.