Film Noir HoF - Part 2

Bogart once again just knocking it out of the park, with a brilliant performance, subdued, but still can be vulnerable at times. This film starts with Bogart meeting a client who is being threatened with blackmail and upon taking the case it reveals itself to be much deeper than he thought. Something that I found to be more apparent in this film than the other noirs I've watched on this list, is the memorability of the different characters that come into contact with Bogart. They all have their little quirks, so that when you are reintroduced with them later in the film you can remember them by their speech patterns and the way they perform. Thought that was interesting, considering this film asks the audience to really follow what's going on so you can get the most out of the ending, once the end plot is finally revealed, much like Falcon.

Looking at the other performances, Elisha Cook Jr. who I had a problem with in The Maltese Falcon in this was actually rather enjoyable in his limited performance. Lauren Bacall at first I thought was gonna be the weak point of the film and she surprised me as well, she was able to match Bogarts charm and charisma on screen. I don't remember if I addressed this before in my Scarlet Street review, but I'm not a fan of how infatuated these characters get with each other so quickly, in my experiences love doesn't just happen in a matter of days, it takes time, so I don't like that aspect in these films. I also found the way they link some of the storylines to be a little odd, like the whole bookstore woman thing that comes up later in the film seemed like an easy way to further the story that didn't really add up.

From a technical perspective this film is very well made. The score is engrossing and hits all the right beats during the moments in the film. The editing is much stronger than the Maltese Falcon. You can't talk about this film as well without mentioning the amazing cinematography that captures this mystery so well, very beautifully shot.

The Big Sleep is a film that is enjoyable and has many memorable characters that keep your attention as this mystery unfolds.

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I posted on the 1st post, the official Deadline to get the movies watched and have your ranked voting list sent to me by PM...Deadline Sept 27th

That's 11 weeks from the start (if I counted right). I can be done faster. So if you joes and our one doll,can be done faster, this can wrap sooner, but if you need the time, you got it.

OK cole, so what did you think about all the gay characters in The Maltese Falcon? Spade takes delight in roughing them up. What did you think about Marlowe impersonating a gay in The Big Sleep?

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I'll for sure need the time, so at least there is quite a bit.

Wait hold on what do you mean by gay?

Homosexual.


Wilmer, the gunsel
1. A young man kept for homosexual purposes; a catamite. 2. (street and prison slang) A passive partner in anal intercourse.

Mark I gotta be honest with you, they never really triggered in my brain as homosexuals. I don't really think there is a clear indication they are to be honest, maybe it's just me. It wouldn't matter to me regardless though.

Did you look at the YouTube videos? Sam Spade obviously dislikes homosexuals, and John Huston just basically used the Dashiell Hammett dialogue along with some visuals (Joel Cairo sucking a cane) to beat censorship. Then Howard Hawks did the same thing. Looking at your objections to Elisha Cook's acting as Wilmer, doesn't it explain some of his actions and behavior?

Good topic point Mark, I remember everyone had some opinions on the gay character subject for the movie Laura and it made for good conversation.

It's true that these old movies sometimes have gay characters that most modern viewers would miss, because thanks to the Hays Production Code, they can't come out and say they were gay. On the other hand if you go to IMDB and win the comments in the question section, there's hardly any old movie characters that someone things is gay.

The Maltese Falcon, I knew right away that Peter Lorre's character was gay, when Bogie smelt his calling card and remarked "gardenias" and he was quite the dandy. I'm sure he was meant to be taken as gay. I never thought of the characters as gay. The gunmen Wilmer was kind of effeminate. Did John Houston every speak about this?

Wilmer is called a gunsel in the novel and the script, and back then, it meant what I put in my first explanatory post, a kept gay man. In fact it was a Yiddish word meaning something similar to what "punk" originally meant. Gunsel only came to mean a gunman after it was popularized by those who misunderstood its real meaning. Gutman, being Wilmer's "boss", is the likely keeper of the young man. As far as Laura's Waldo Lydecker being gay, I don't see it anywhere in the film. Just because Clifton Webb was gay doesn't make his characters gay.

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Yes, your post does make think about Elisha Cook's acting in Maltese Falcon. During the movie I thought he acted odd and I assumed that was just the way he played his character, but now that you mention it he was quite the 'sissy' for being a film noir gunmen. And so what you say about him being a gay character makes sense. Come to think of it Sydney Greenstreet did say Wilmer (Elisha Cook) was like his 'boy' and yet it was more like Wilmer was owned by Gutman (Sydney Greenstreet).

I don't know if you remember this, but I was one of the few who thought that Laura's Waldo Lydecker(Clifton Webb) was not a gay character.

I will finally start this HOF tomorrow or late tonight with Kansas City Confidential.

Kansas City Confidential

The beginning of the movie prior to the heist was my favorite part. I especially liked how the main characters were brought into the heist, and it was interesting that they all never saw each other without their masks on. I don't necessarily think the acting was on or near the top level, but it was ok enough, the movie felt pretty well directed but it did seem a bit drawn out at times. A good film but not one that will be very well remembered. Had a gritty feel to it but wasn't purely badass either,

I've never seen, Kansas City Confidentialso I can't say much until I watch it.

I just updated the 1st post with a bunch of links to your guys reviews. Sorry I didn't have that up to date, the last few days have been crazy.

I agree that the acting in Kansas City Confidential wasn't the best, but it wasn't terrible either. I liked the idea that nobody knew who the other guys were because of the masks because it set up some great conflicts later in the movie

The biggest problem for me is that I thought a lot of the movie was kind of predictable. About half way into the movie, (shortly after Joe arrived in Mexico), I was pretty sure that I knew how it was going to end.

But overall, I thought it was a very good movie, it just has a few flaws. The biggest problem for me was that I always picture Jack Elam as the crazy doctor in the movie The Cannonball Run, so it was kind of strange seeing him so young.

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Oh yes, a decent movie, but just far from a masterpiece. And like I said the acting was good, but albeit unmemorable.

Agreed. I'm not sure that it's up to the level of some of the other movies that were nominated in this HoF, but it's definitely an interesting movie, and it's worth watching.

I can't really comment on "Kansas City Confidential" just yet (and it is my nomination ). I haven't seen it in years. I remember liking it, but I actually had another film in my mind that starred John Payne, and was directed by Phil Karlson, to nominate called "99 River Street", but that isn't available anywhere (at least from doing my "research" to make sure it was available - except for Amazon, but that isn't a guarantee that everyone will be able to watch it, of course - I wouldn't have been able to!). I just happened to watch that one not that long ago, but I had to go with this one instead.

I also nominated this film because it is a typical film noir. It may not be a so-called classic, and it may not be a well-known film, but that made me want to nominate it even more.


Anyway, I will finally start this one this weekend. I will be watching "The Killers" and "Kiss Me Deadly". Along with KCC, these are two more that I have not seen in years. So I am looking forward to watching them again.

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