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The Big Sleep (1946)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
31 August 1946 (USA)
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Tagline:
The type of man she hated . . . was the type she wanted ! more
Plot:
Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a rich family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail, and what might be love. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
1 win
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NewsDesk:
(19 articles)
Lauren Bacall, Maria Bello, Alec Baldwin: Governors Awards 2009
(From Alternative Film Guide. 15 November 2009, 5:04 PM, PST)
Lauren Bacall, Annette Bening, Jeff Bridges: Governors Awards 2009
(From Alternative Film Guide. 15 November 2009, 4:13 PM, PST)
(From Alternative Film Guide. 15 November 2009, 5:04 PM, PST)
Lauren Bacall, Annette Bening, Jeff Bridges: Governors Awards 2009
(From Alternative Film Guide. 15 November 2009, 4:13 PM, PST)
User Comments:
Just Ignore That Discombobulated Plot
more (168 total)
US TV Schedule:
Cast
(Complete credited cast) | Humphrey Bogart | ... | Philip Marlowe |
 | Lauren Bacall | ... | Vivian Rutledge |
 | John Ridgely | ... | Eddie Mars |
| Martha Vickers | ... | Carmen Sternwood |
| Dorothy Malone | ... | Acme Bookstore Proprietress |
| Peggy Knudsen | ... | Mona Mars |
| Regis Toomey | ... | Chief Inspector Bernie Ohls |
| Charles Waldron | ... | General Sternwood |
| Charles D. Brown | ... | Norris the Butler |
| Bob Steele | ... | Lash Canino |
| Elisha Cook Jr. | ... | Harry Jones |
| Louis Jean Heydt | ... | Joe Brody |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Pat Clark | ... | Mona Mars (scenes deleted) |
| James Flavin | ... | Capt. Cronjager (scenes deleted) |
| Thomas E. Jackson | ... | District Attorney White (scenes deleted) |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
114 min | 116 min (pre-release version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:
Portugal:M/12 |
New Zealand:PG |
Sweden:(Banned) (original rating) |
Argentina:16 |
Australia:M |
Australia:PG (alternate rating) |
Canada:14A (video rating) |
Chile:18 |
Finland:(Banned) (1947-1949) |
Finland:K-16 |
Germany:16 |
Norway:16 |
Sweden:15 (re-rating) (1961) |
UK:PG |
USA:Approved (PCA #10625) |
Iceland:12
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Charles Waldron's (Gen Sternwood) last film. He died before the film was released.
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Goofs:
Continuity: When Mr. White asked Marlowe, "your willing to lose your license for the case" Marlowe responds by looking directly at him, but when Mr. White asked him another question, the camera immediately cuts to Marlowe looking the other way (as if he never looked at Mr. White in the first time).
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Quotes:
Philip Marlowe:
Oh, Eddie, you don't have anybody watching me, do you? Tailing me in a gray Plymouth coupe, maybe?
Eddie Mars: No, why should I?
Philip Marlowe: Well, I can't imagine, unless you're worried about where I am all the time.
Eddie Mars: I don't like you that well.
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Eddie Mars: No, why should I?
Philip Marlowe: Well, I can't imagine, unless you're worried about where I am all the time.
Eddie Mars: I don't like you that well.
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Movie Connections:
Featured in Two Guys from Milwaukee (1946)
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Soundtrack:
And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine
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FAQ
Is "The Big Sleep" based on a novel?What does the title mean?
Who shot the chauffeur?
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more (168 total)
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Many fans of this classic film are drawn to it because of Bogie and Bacall, who do indeed make a deft acting duo. Here, Bogie plays Philip Marlowe, the tough talking, street savvy PI, who has his roots in the crime novels of writer Raymond Chandler. Bacall plays Vivian Sternwood, the adult daughter of a wealthy man. Vivian is just as tough and cagey as Marlowe. And she has a younger sister named Carmen, who seems to have fallen in with a bad crowd. It's up to Marlowe to investigate, and to save the Sternwood family from financial ruin. "The Big Sleep" is a story of blackmail, murder, multiple motives, lies, and all manner of general mayhem.
Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall are certainly persuasive in their roles. I also like the script's snappy dialogue. For example, in a conversation with General Sternwood, Marlowe responds: "Hmm". Sternwood follows up: "What does that mean?" To which Marlowe fires back: "It means, hmm". Marvelous.
But the film's plot is an incoherent mess. It is hard to follow, disjointed, and has obvious lapses. Further, secondary characters (Geiger, Brody, Mars, et.al.), and their interrelationships, are poorly defined. To some extent that vagueness and lack of precision are fairly common in 1940's pulp detective stories.
The best approach to "The Big Sleep" is to engulf the relationship between Marlowe and Vivian, marvel at the acting of Bogie and Bacall, enjoy the witty dialogue, and ignore the discombobulated plot.