The Maltese Falcon: John Huston, director / Edition 1

by William Luhr

Overview

Few films have had the impact or retained the popularity of The Maltese Falcon. An unexpected hit upon its release in 1941, it helped establish the careers of John Huston and Humphrey Bogart while also helping both to transform the detective genre of movies and to create film noir. This volume includes an introduction by its editor and a shot-by-shot continuity of the film, as well as essays on its production, on literary and film traditions it drew upon, and on its reputation and influence over the last half century. Included are reviews from the time of the film's original release, the enthusiastic French response in 1946 that helped define film noir, and a close formal anaylsis of the film. In addition, the volume contains a comparison of this version to earlier film versions of the Dashiell Hammett novel, and helpful explorations of cultural, historical, and psychoanalytic issues. Like Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon has attained iconic status; this volume will contribute to the pleasure its many fans find in viewing the film again and again. William Luhr is a professor of English at St. Peter's College in New Jersey. He is the author of Raymond Chandler and Film and co-author of Blake Edwards and other books.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813522371
Publisher:	Rutgers University Press
Publication date:	12/01/1995
Series:	Rutgers Films in Print series , #22
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

William Luhr is an American film author and professor and the author of such works as Thinking About Movies: Watching, Questioning, Enjoying, World Cinema Since 1945: An Encyclopedic History and Returning to the Scene. He is also currently a professor of English at Saint Peter's College in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Table of Contents

The Maltese Falcon, the Detective Genre, and Film Noir / William Luhr
John Huston: A Biographical Sketch / William Luhr
Credits and Cast
The Continuity Script
The Story of Samuel Spade and Mr. Flitcraft / Dashiell Hammett
"The Stuff That Dreams Are Made of": The Maltese Falcon / Rudy Behlmer
Review: The New York Times / Bosley Crowther
Review: The New Republic / Otis Ferguson
Review: "An Exciting ... Put-You-to-Sleep Story," L'Ecran Francais / Nino Frank
Review: "A New Kind of Detective Story," L'Ecran Francais / Nino Frank
"Undirectable Director," Life / James Agee
John Huston and The Maltese Falcon / James Naremore
Tracking The Maltese Falcon: Classical Hollywood Narration and Sam Spade / William Luhr
On the Trail of Dashiell Hammett (The Three Versions of The Maltese Falcon) / Jean-Loup Bourget
The Beam That Fell and Other Crises in The Maltese Falcon / Ilsa J. Bick
Huston Filmography, 1931-1987