--- Dick Lochte <
dlochte@gmail.com> wrote:
> Another point in the Cortez Falcon's favor is
that
> it reflects the period in
> which the novel itself was set. Most of us tend
to
> see the novel as a
> Forties piece because of the fame --
certainly
> justified -- of the Huston
> movie. My guess is the lounge lizard sleaziness
of
> Cortez may even have been
> closer to Hammett's idea of Spade than Bogart's
more
> rugged interpretation.
> I always had a problem with Bogart playing
around
> with his partner's wife,
> but with Cortez, you kinda expect it.
***************************************************** I don't
get that from the book. Spade is a tough, no bullshit guy who
drinks wiskey and uses women when one's available. Hammett
describes him physically on the first page and he could be
describing Bogart. Archer's wife is throwing herself at Spade
in the Huston version. Its played as though the affair is
entirely her "fault." I get a similar feeling from the book.
Spade is using Mrs. Archer because he has no respect for his
partner. He never comes off as a Romeo. He apparently has a
vibe that make women feel he'll protect them. He never lives
up to this vibe and they all come away disappointed, even
Effie, who's the only one he has any regard for. As to the
time, it's not as important to THE MALTESE FALCON as it is to
THE THIN MAN, much of which takes place in speakeasies.
Outside of the quality of the film making, I don't get a
specific temporal feel from the earlier version of the
story.
Patrick King
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