The Maltese Falcon (Three-Disc Special Edition) |  | Directors: Friz Freleng, Jean Negulesco, John Huston, Robert Clampett, William Dieterle
Actors: Mel Blanc, Bette Davis, Warren William, Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor
Studio: Warner Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $29.98
Buy New: $18.95
as of 2/9/2010 20:25 EST details
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Seller: moviemars
Rating:  189 reviews
Sales Rank: 5798
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, NTSC
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled)
Rating: Unrated
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number Of Discs: 3
Running Time: 178 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: WARD67601D
UPC: 012569676015
EAN: 0012569676015
ASIN: B000GIXLW0
Theatrical Release Date: July 22, 1936
Release Date: October 3, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Disc One:Sam Spade is a partner in a private-eye firm who finds himself hounded by police when his partner is killed whilst tailing a man. The girl who asked him to follow the man turns out not to be who she says she is, and is really involved in something to do with the Maltese Falcon', a gold-encrusted life-sized statue of a falcon, the only one of its kind. Disc Two:Adhering closely to D |
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Product Description
Hard-drinking private eye Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) sleuths the backyard of San Francisco in search of an elusive black bird statuette while evading the setups of three disparate miscreants: the duplicitous Brigid, the perfumed Mr. Cairo, and the scheming Fat Man. John Huston's brilliant directorial debut is aided by first-rate performances, excellent camera work, as well as the director's acute attention to detail while shooting the film. Based on the crime novel by Dashiell Hammett. Academy Award Nominations: 3, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Sydney Greenstreet), and Best Screenplay. Previous versions of the story were filmed in 1931 (a.k.a. DANGEROUS FEMALE) and in 1936 (as SATAN MET A LADY, starring Bette Davis), and poorly redone in 1975 (THE BLACK BIRD).
Amazon.com essential video
Still the tightest, sharpest, and most cynical of Hollywood's official deathless classics, bracingly tough even by post-Tarantino standards. Humphrey Bogart is Dashiell Hammett's definitive private eye, Sam Spade, struggling to keep his hard-boiled cool as the double-crosses pile up around his ankles. The plot, which dances all around the stolen Middle Eastern statuette of the title, is too baroque to try to follow, and it doesn't make a bit of difference. The dialogue, much of it lifted straight from Hammett, is delivered with whip-crack speed and sneering ferocity, as Bogie faces off against Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet, fends off the duplicitous advances of Mary Astor, and roughs up a cringing "gunsel" played by Elisha Cook Jr. It's an action movie of sorts, at least by implication: the characters always seem keyed up, right on the verge of erupting into violence. This is a turning-point picture in several respects: John Huston (The African Queen) made his directorial debut here in 1941, and Bogart, who had mostly played bad guys, was a last-minute substitution for George Raft, who must have been kicking himself for years afterward. This is the role that made Bogart a star and established his trend-setting (and still influential) antihero persona. --David Chute
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 189
 good seller January 11, 2010
E. Pope (Chicago)
Good seller, would buy from them again. Only complaint--when I got the DVD, the little thing in the middle that holds the DVD in place broke. But I highly doubt that the seller had anything to do with that, probably had more to do with the mailing process. Anyway, have no worries about buying from this person!!
 Classic Movie of a Classic Novel December 28, 2009
Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States)
It's mid-afternoon when a woman (Mary Astor) walks into the detective agency of Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) and Miles Archer (Jerome Cowan) with a tale of a wayward sister she wants them to track down. This sister has taken up with a no good named Thursby. Archer agrees to do the stake out and hopefully follow Thursby to the sister.
In the middle of the night, Spade is wakened by a phone call. Archer has been shot. A little later, Thursby is also shot. The police seem intent on pinning one of those crimes, if not both, on Spade. Meanwhile, the client has disappeared and a man (Peter Lorre) holds Spade a gun point demanding the Maltese Falcon. What in the world is going on?
After I listened to this book on tape, I fully intended to watch the classic movie version. It only took my three and a half years. As such, my recollection of the book might be a little dim, but this movie version didn't deviate too wildly from what I remember. In fact, it improved by tightening up several scenes near the climax that dragged in the book. The story is still compelling and the characters seriously flawed. Yes, the plot is now a cliche in many ways, but this story did it first.
My only real complaint with the movie is the dated acting. The characters speak too fast most of the time, not giving us time to process or emotions time to be fully explored. Of course, that would be a blessing for Mary Astor who over acts all her emotional scenes, and she's got plenty of them. The style of acting here would work well for the stage or a silent movie, but it's caught up in the transition to talking movies, still.
Even so, this movie is well worth watching. It is definitely a classic for a reason.
Yeah, he's a tough guy. December 13, 2009
Joseph M. Kerska (Maui, HI USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Like a fine wine or a single malt, this movie ages well. Watch and enjoy something that they can't do anymore.
a timeless classic November 2, 2009
Ross Kelsay
Just watched the DVD a second time, what a fine story, a great cast and just the best direction. What ever happened to Hollywood that we don't get this kind of film anymore from there?
Classic October 27, 2009
B. Bates (Santa Fe, NM USA)
Classic, one of Bogart's best. They don't make them like this anymore. Highly recommended. I didn't want the other movies, but had to buy the package set to get The Maltese Falcon. Wish Amazon would have offered the movie as a stand-alone.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 189
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