Movie Information
Overall Rank: 216
Average Rating: 3.2/4
# of Ratings: 327
Theatrical Release Date: 10/03/1941
Language: English
Genre: Mystery, Crime
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: John Huston
Actors: Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre, Mary Astor, Gladys George, Barton MacLane, Sydney Greenstreet
Plot: A private detective gets mixed up in a hunt for a valuable item. As he searches for the loot, plot points are exposed.
Quick Movie Reviews
Rating of
4/4
SteelCity99 - wrote on 04/21/2018
Grab the legendary and iconic film-noir genre, insert an inert entity in the middle of circumstances and let and extraordinarily well-developed screenplay unleash the typical thematic elements that the Golden Age of American cinema had introduced us through gangsters, starting with obsession, violence, femme fatales and greedy ambition.. A wonderful, almost unbelievable cast and a top direction by John Huston is what is his first masterpiece, The Maltese Falcon is a meticulously directed crime masterpiece that any human being should behold and treasure. 98/100
Rating of
2.5/4
Unknown - wrote on 10/07/2012
The most iconic example of the hard-boiled private eye noir film. Bogart plays it cool and is the driving force of this fast talking mystery. A decent watch, but far from being my favorite noir.
Full Movie Reviews
Rating of
4/4
The Maltese Falcon review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 05/01/2013
"But business should be transacted in a businesslike manner." Viewing this again for better appreciation, the effect was positive. Sometimes simplicity is best in presenting a great story. Private investigators Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) and Miles Archer were approached by Ruth Wonderly (Mary Astor), who was looking for her sister. Archer has been shot so Police Detective Tom Polhaus (Ward Bond) and Lieutenant Dundy (Barton MacLane) investigates Sam. Ruth admits her real name is Brigid O'Shaughnessy. Joel Cairo (Peter Lorre) meets Spade to recover an ornament by means of force. Brigid talks to Sam about the Falcon. Kasper Gutman (Sydney Greenstreet), the "Fat Man" gives Sam a call.
One minor detail that this critic found mysterious was an unknown Captain Jacobi of the La …
Rating of
4/4
"The Maltese Falcon" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 03/15/2012
A lot of films that are considered "classic" are viewed because you feel you ought to rather than because you want to, and the result can be disappointment. The Maltese Falcon is an all-time classic that not only deserves to be seen, but demands it. Bogart's cynical anti-hero was far from the square-jawed do-gooder that was the staple of the crime story of the time, and Huston's own adaptation of Hammet's novel has barbed dialogue zinging off every character like a hail of ricocheting bullets. Some examples of this type of film can be too convoluted for their own good, but the comparatively straightforward plot of The Maltese Falcon makes it the perfect entry point for anyone interested in Film Noir, and what you'll find is a wealth of taut, witty dialogue, timeless characters and one of …
Rating of
3.5/4
Fantastic Film Noir!!!
mdtinney - wrote on 10/04/2009
I wish film were so pure these days. This is a simple (on the surface) murder case which when looked at, has multiple layers of deceit and deception. The "bird" itself carries a curse, but where is the bird--is there really a bird? Those who hunt for it form a tenuous bond, devoting their very existences to the search. Bogart stumbles into the case, the lonely, baggage carrying private eye--intrepid to the bitter end. A man not to be bought. Sidney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre, multidimensional bad guys--Mary Astor--cool--confident--certain her charms will out. Everyone knows what happens. Comic relief comes in the form of Elisha Cook, the gunsel, overconfident and violent, and in way over his head. This is no longer a movie to me. It's a series of memorable lines, facial expressions and …
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