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Movies / On DVD / The Big Sleep
The Big Sleep

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The Big Sleep (1946)

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Reviews Counted:8

Fresh:7

Rotten:1

Average Rating:7.2/10

Runtime: 3 hrs 50 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Chandler's first novel introduced private detective Philip Marlowe, and THE BIG SLEEP set the standard for private detective movies. Down-at-the-heels private eye Marlowe gets the assignment to... Chandler's first novel introduced private detective Philip Marlowe, and THE BIG SLEEP set the standard for private detective movies. Down-at-the-heels private eye Marlowe gets the assignment to clean up after the daughters of a dying millionaire, but dead people have a nasty habit of trailing in their wake. The famously tortuous story line (Hawks supposedly asked Chandler to clarify a plot point about the murder of the family chauffeur; the novelist hadn't a clue as to who did the deed) seems beside the point when Bogart and Bacall are onscreen. The final release was recut to include more of their scenes together. A must! Remade in 1978. [More]

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Dorothy Malone, John Ridgely

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Dorothy Malone, John Ridgely, Louis Jean Heydt, Elisha Cook, Regis Toomey, Sonia Darrin, Bob Steele, Martha Vickers, Tom Rafferty, Charles Waldron, Charles D. Brown, Peggy Knudsen

Director: Howard Hawks

Director: Howard Hawks
Screenwriter: William Faulkner, Jules Furthman, Leigh Brackett
Producer: Howard Hawks
Composer: Max Steiner

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Jul 25, 2006

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Big Sleep, The
  • L.A. private eye Phillip Marlowe takes on a blackmail case...and a trail peopled with murderers, porographers, nightclub rogues, the spoiled rich and more. Humphrey Boart plays Raymond Chandlers' legendary gumshoe and director Howard Hawkes serves up snappy character encounters (particularly involving Lauren Bacall), brisk pace and atmosphere galore in the certified classic.
  • Source: Warner Home Video
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for The Big Sleep

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    1 - 8 (sorted by date)
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    Brittle Chandler characters have been transferred to the screen with punch by Howard Hawks' production and direction, providing full load of rough, tense action most of the way.

    Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
    07/18/08
    Variety Staff
    Variety Staff
    Variety
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    What you remember here are moments.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
    07/18/08
    Dave Kehr
    Dave Kehr
    Chicago Reader
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    It's likely to leave you confused and dissatisfied.

    Full Review Source: New York Times | comment 2 Comments
    05/20/03
    Bosley Crowther
    Bosley Crowther
    New York Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Don¡¯t try too hard to follow the story, just get swept away by the mood of the film.

    Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
    01/22/02
    Eric Brace
    Eric Brace
    Washington Post
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    An unqualified masterpiece.

    Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Washington Post
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    A movie that every film student should study and every movie lover should watch at least once.

    Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    James Berardinelli
    James Berardinelli
    ReelViews
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Fascinating if not necessarily improved edition of Howard Hawks' 1946 detective classic.

    comment Comment
    01/01/00
    John Hartl
    John Hartl
    Film.com
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    It is typical of this most puzzling of films that no one agrees even on why it is so puzzling. Yet that has never affected The Big Sleep's enduring popularity, because the movie is about the process of a criminal investigation, not its results.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Roger Ebert
    Roger Ebert
    Chicago Sun-Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
     
     
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