The Maltese Falcon

[Dixon Carter Lee]

I just saw it for the 219th time, and I think I've finally got the whole plot figured out.

God what a fucking great movie. It's like "Citizen Kane" in that you see something new each time -- either a camera placement, or a thrown away line, or a character motivation.

This time I noticed Spade's reaction to Gutman's assertion that Thursby was overly loyal to Wonderly. It was a tiny reaction, but it sets up Bogie's whole, "I won't play the sap for you" speech at the end of the film.

Anyway, that's my "out-of-the-blue-doesn't-have-a-thing-to-do-with-sex-or-trolls" post for the day. Great flick. Great flick.

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"When your partner is killed you're supposed to do something about it..."

 

[Scabbers]

Puts an entirely different spin

on the term "dingus."

 

[lobito]

haven't seen that movie since my last year of high school, don't even remember what it's all about, anymore.

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

The Maltese Falcon is an object of enormous wealth that several seedy characters have been chasing after for years. Sam Spade, seedy detective, gets involved, and manipulates them all like a magician working a deck of cards. It's the first film noir, gorgeously written, cast and directed in lush black and white tones, and a hell of mystery.

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"It's the stuff that dreams are made of..."

 

[sexy-girl]

its also lisa's fav film .... she'll be very happy at you're taste DCL ... i like the film very much too

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

The novel is excellent, too. The screenplay follows it nearly word for word.

 

[Rick DeVille]

I think that movies was made from the book at least twice with the Bogey Maltese Falcon the last and the best version. Both movies had the sap speech but Bogart gave it an edge and delivered it the best. Great movie.

 

[Hamletmaschine]

One of my faves, too

But MARY ASTOR!? Gimme a break! Ugly woman who can't act almost ruined the whole thing.

And the book has too many choice narrative passages that the film adaptation cut, for my taste. (Particularly the dream Sam has.)

Thought they did a pretty good job with the homosexual subtext in the book, though.

~H~

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

"Gardenia."

"Shoo him in."

 

[Hamletmaschine]

Uh-huh

"Gardenia."

"Shoo him in."

... and 'gunsel' too--which was a slang term in the '30s....

 

[JazzManJim]

I have a video of movies I taped off of American Movie Classics (no commercials! Yay!), which is my favorite movie tape ever.

It has: The Maltese Falcon, Mister Roberts, and Casablanca.

Damn I love that tape.

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

"It's me, Ensign Pulver, and I just threw your stinkin' palm tree overboard. Now, what's all this crud about no movie tonight?"