Review of The Maltese Falcon (1941) by Tiffany W — 01 Jun 2009

Fascinating movie. I'm not really heavy into film noir because I've yet to watch, well, any, but this was a very entertaining piece. All of the characters are just mean, gritty folk you'd never want to meet in real life, and that's what's fun about it.

Bogart was definitely the high-point of the film, whose character Sam Spade was electrifying as he went from calm, no-nonsense detective one minute to explosive, emotional hot-head the next. The supporting cast was good as well (Peter Lorre is just so damn creepy, and I really liked Greenstreet, most especially in his first scene with Bogart), and though I was expecting a little more tension and mystery given everything I've heard, I think it was still pretty suspenseful.

So maybe this wasn't as spectacular as some people claim, but I still thought it was a very good movie.