Thursday, March 21, 2013

The Big Sleep 1946


     The cynical private eye Philip Marlowe is the creation of Raymond Chandler.  General Sternwood is a very wealthy man and he summons Marlowe to his home because of a blackmailer.  Marlowe gets mixed up in the murder of Arthur Geiger and a gambling-house owner Eddie Mars.
     The plot is so complicated and twisting that the screenwriters consulted with Chandler for advice.  In the original movie, there was a long scene featuring Detective Bernie Ohis explaining a lot of the plot details but this was eliminated.  The dialogue is common for the period but I found it grating and so ridiculous that as an actor in this film, I would not have been able to complete the scenes without hysterical laughing.  I might possibly have held up feminist signs in protest also.  3* (This movie is OK)

114 min, Drama directed by Howard Hawks with Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers, Charles D. Brown, Elisha Cook, Jr.

Note:  Blockbuster 4*, imdb 8.2 out of 10, 96% critic 90% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

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