On 2/2/06, Brian Thornton <
tieresias@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
> Bill Denton wrote:
>
>
> > Here's something to look forward to: this year
Warner Brothers will be
> > reissuing the 1941 movie version of THE MALTESE
FALCON on DVD and
> > including the two earlier adaptations: THE
MALTESE FALCON (1931, with
> > Ricardo Cortez as Spade) and SATAN MET A LADY
(1936, with Bette Davis as
> > the Brigid character). I saw SATAN MET A LADY
years ago but I've never
> > seen the first version.
>
> I saw them both on the same day on TCM a couple of
years back. They both
> stank in completely different ways. The second one
took way too many
> liberties with the plot, and the Spade character was
this jaunty, cowboy
> hat
> wearing clown. Also, Davis was all wrong for the
Brigid character, played
> it brassy all the way, which, as anyone who has read
the book knows, is not
> how Brigid gets men to do her dirty work for her. I
don't recall much
> about
> the Ricardo Cortez version plot-wise, because I was
utterly distracted by
> the wooden acting of the less-than-stellar cast. On
the other hand, it is
> entertaining to watch them, knowing what the story
was in store for once
> Huston got his hands on in, first as screenwriter,
then as director. Can
> it
> be possible that even at this late date, we
underestimate the ability of
> John Huston as a director? Watch those three films
together, and see how
> he
> frames a shot, the angles and lighting he chooses. I
don't think budget
> has
> much to do with it. He was just a genuine student of
the craft.
>
> Thanks for the head's up on this, Bill. I already
own THE MALTESE FALCON
> on
> DVD, but I'm definitely going to keep my eyes peeled
for this version.
>
> Brian Thornton
>
At Crime Scene in London last summer they had a panel on The
Maltese Falcon that featured discussions of both the book and
all the movies. Mark Billingham was one of the participants
and it was fantastic.
Mary
-- http://nycphoto.interactivenyc.com
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 02 Feb 2006 EST