99 of 1001 Movies: The Big Sleep (1946)

Howard Hawks directed The Big Sleep in 1946, and he brought to big stars together to make critics talk about it after in a positive way. Humphrey Bogart is one of the most classic, and hugest actors of his time, and he was thought to have great chemistry with on screen romance Lauren Bacall. Her deep voice, and singing talents made her a stand out to watch. The Big Sleep though stretches on for a while, and the story is really complex, almost so complex it's difficult to keep up with since it has so many characters and turns.

Philip Marlowe is a private investigator and he has been hired by the Sternwoods, a wealthy family, to find out who is behind a blackmailing. Marlowe investigates but find both the daughters have their own trouble that may be bringing it their way. Someone is definitely getting blackmailed, but it may not be in the way the man who hired him, General Sternwood, thought. Carmen is involved with men and her activities now are being threatened to leak to the public. Vivian is a gambler, and now has some debts catching up with her. Before it's all over, Marlowe will find himself wrapped up in murder and a new love.


The Big Sleep has everything there to make it a classic. There is the romance, and the suspense that surround it plus the catchy lines that you won't hear anywhere else anymore. Humphrey Bogart seems to have been in more movies so far than any other actor I've watched. Whether he is a guy who drives a boat in Africa, or most popularly a detective he seems to find many roles. For some reason though he is still lacking the appeal to me that would make me want to see a movie with him in it. So far everything I've seen him in beside The African Queen has just seemed to drag.

Lauren Bacall though has a lot about her that makes her interesting though. She seems to have a lot of attitude, and probably the only negative is that she never mixes it up by being a bit lighter. She always seems to be very serious in The Big Sleep. Martha Vickers actually outshines her a bit, and it's sort of a shame she wasn't in the movie more because she seemed to have an interesting story surrounding her, and her acting was quirky. There was something about her that just seemed wilder. The cast is also filled with other people like Bob Steele and Dorothy Malone who stars in the roles of suspicious people he is investigating.

The plot never becomes something you can't follow, but it does get really complex and takes close following. It's a little slow though, and does seem longer than it's right under 2 hours run time. You almost feel you're sitting longer to finish it out. It just never caught me enough to enjoy it intently for that long, and constantly having to keep up with the always changing environment that Marlowe was in could get confusing. The Geiger case gets solved in the first hour, and then from there it is almost like another movie almost begins taking place.

The Big Sleep has all the characteristics of a classic. You have strong acting and a well shot film. The setting is done great to make it film noir. You have night scenes that are lit suspenseful but also have a romantic vibe to them. Also, Bogart was a strong actor, and he seems to just have a way of portraying the guy who is somehow tied in some bad events without actually having caused them.

Rating 6 of 10.