demented_peruvian Review of The Maltese Falcon

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Greenstreet and Lorre liven up non-stop Transatlantic exposition

[6/10 · 20 September 2018]

Film critics seem to easily forgive faults in their childhood classics, which they constantly point out in other films. Case in point is "The Maltese Falcon", essentially a play, in which Humphrey Bogart sneers and gives a monotone delivery in a Transatlantic accent (with the occasional New York thrown in) while engaging in almost non-stop exposition, alternating with his putting down everyone around him, apparently with authority even over the police. It's occasionally enlivened by exchanges with Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet, whom fortunately do not act in the bland generic manner of the most Hollywood actors of the 40s, and get the better lines of dialogue. There's also some brief but unbelievable fight scenes and romance scenes. The editing is uneven and sometimes clumsy, although it improves in the second half. The great John Huston alternates between amateurish direction (unnecessary zooms, awkwardly staged scenes, portrayal of women as weak) and some scenes with better flow, and the occasional interesting shot. The music is 40s standard, and the cinematography is rarely notable.