The Detective Film as a Genre

A few new things for Harper like an ex wife, but the plot was pretty much film noir. The novel it was based on by Ross MacDonald is very much Raymond Chandler-ish with a little more contemporary attitude.

Have you read? I want to, but I've been having trouble finding it. I'm aware that it's under the name The Moving Target with Lew Archer as the character. Are you trying to understand why I like Harper and not film noir movies?

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I read The Underground Man, which turned out to be one of the last ones and the first where he received a lot of critical attention. Any well stocked library probably has some Lou Archers, particularly the late ones. Didn't the guy who wrote Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid write the screenplay? He put in some clever, witty dialogue. Ross MacDonald doesn't have much of a sense of humor. Apparently, his earliest novels are even closer to Chandler. I'm not sure If Moving Target was before or after his mature style.

My local library isn't very well stocked. And yes, I believe the same screenwriter did both Harper and Butch Cassidy. I'm glad you told me because Harper's wit is one of my favorite parts naturally.

SEVEn...damn good movie...but a bit slow movie...

I cannot imagine Ben Stiller is serious in this film. Is he really serious or just funny as usual?

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He's both serious and funny. He plays Dr. Watson to Pullman's Sherlock Holmes (in modern-day L.A.). It's definitely a comedy-drama, but at least it has some drama...

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I would recommend that movie... it's really nice..
& mark already put a good explanation...

I like Ben Stiller movies but I never knew about this movie. I add it to my Netflix list. Thanks, markf & genesis-pig.

What are the recommended Mike Hammer movies??
I haven't seen any.

There aren't that many. I guess you saw the TV series with Stacey Keach.

The absolute best one is Kiss Me Deadly directed by Robert Aldrich in the fifties.

Also watchable is Girl Hunters with Mickey Spillane himself playing Hammer.

I,the Jury doesn't quite work, which is why the hoped for series didn't come about. but it's okay.

I was talking about the 1982 I the Jury, forgot there was a little seen version from the fifties.

Thanks, I just saw Kiss Me Deadly... Found it decent.

Haven't seen the Stacy Keach series, is it good?

It's just so-so. There are really two series with Stacy Keach (I'm doing this from memory without looking it up so maybe I get it a little wrong. The first ran on CBS and then there was a syndicated version where I think he had a younger assistant (Keach was getting old). Never saw it, too old even for me, but there was also a series from the fifties with Darren McGavin which is probably better if only because it starred Darren McGavin.

It was MacDonald's first detective novel, Moving Target, back when he was writing as John MacDonald, his father's first and middle names. Later changed to Ross to avoid confusion with another John MacDonald, also a writer.

You're right--MacDonald wrote so much like Chandler, who was already an established author, that it pissed Chandler off. It took MacDonald a long time to get that first novel published as it was rejected by many publishers, including one who advised him to just chalk it off as a loss and write something else. He got better with time, but never in the same class as Chandler and Hammett.

As for the movie Paul Newman made under the title Harper, MacDonald's detective was Lew Archer, but they changed the character's and the movie's name to Harper because after Hud and The Hustler, Newman thought an H in the title was lucky for him. But I think he got over that after Harper and Hombre.

As I recall, Harper wasn't much of a hit at the time it was released. I've never been fond of it--the ending just seemed tacked on because everyone had run out of steam--or maybe they just ran out of time and money for making the movie.

(cop and 1/2 with bert reynolds and that little black boy not to sure of his name right off) LOL hope that one counts i kinda wanna watch it now... oh yea (the bone collector) too

Cop & a half?? It has to be one of the worst films ever.

LOL.. yea I was just kidding, you didnt give your opinion on the second movie i listed?

Honestly I saw Bone Collector ages ago, But I remember liking it.

This was my favorite genre. Missing it a lot. I had been long time I guess that there had been no such release.

Were any of the Father Brown movies any good?