i think altman's take on marlowe is fascinating-- an
anachronistic loser. while marlowe is my favorite character
in fiction and i was initially offended by this reading, imho
there is validity to it. though i've not done it with all the
novels, i once read farewell, my lovely with altman's POV,
and found it completely defendable: marlowe's refusal to
engage the world and the fact that he's frequently seduced by
those he ought to suspect
(either by them--brunnett--or by his own perception of
them--amthor) don't really say much about him as a
detective....
hope that makes some sense, martha
sakana@stlnet.com <mailto:
sakana@stlnet.com>
-----Original Message----- From:
owner-rara-avis@icomm.ca [mailto:
owner-rara-avis@icomm.ca]On Behalf Of Mark Sullivan Sent:
Wednesday, January 12, 2000 11:47 PM To:
rara-avis@icomm.ca Subject: Re: RARA-AVIS: THE LONG
GOODBYE and...cats?
Giving Marlowe a cat was actually one of the lesser liberties
taken by Altman and/or Brackett in the film adaptation of The
Long Goodbye. I've mentioned elsewhere that Goodbye was my
introduction to HB and remains one of, if not my very
favorite in the genre. So it has a touch of sacred text in my
mind. As such, the first time I saw Altman's movie I was
appalled. In my eyes, it was sacrilege (unlike the protesters
of Last Temptation or Dogma, though, I saw the film before
becoming upset). I was royally pissed when I left the
theater.
Some time later, I decided to see it again, but to meet it on
its own terms, not as the embodiment of a favored text. This
time I loved it and now believe it is one of Altman's
masterpieces. Like many of his films, it is an examination of
genre and it is fascinating to see how out of time Marlowe is
in the 1970s. It is all the more interesting given Brackett's
involvement, considering her work on The Big Sleep did so
much to set the film conventions for the genre in the first
place.
Just don't go to it looking for a direct translation of
Chandler's masterpiece.
Mark
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