The Maltese Falcon Reviews and Ratings


  • jackgbowman
    October 28, 2009
    jackgbowman
    Classic Bogie-Sam Spade.
  • queenofpalmtree
    October 15, 2009
    queenofpalmtree
    This is an other great film
  • undeadfeature
    October 7, 2009
    undeadfeature
    Agressive and engaging. The Maltese Falcon is pure noir purely executed. Back then I don't think the conventions were established so there's no way anything this production team did that was done before. I hear it's word-for-word from the novel, which I have to give browni...( read more)e points to. Bogart is a fast talkin', hard punchin' private eye. This Sam Spade character is a classic example of the anti-hero, or the emerging idea thereof. Peter Lorre is equally compelling and creepy. How he can balance the two is beyond me. Oh, the plot, the story. Wow. Such dialoug. It weaves the story so intricately. I probably didn't catch the best parts of it either. This was my thousanth film watched and it's the stuff that dreams are made of.
  • nemesis638
    October 3, 2009
    nemesis638
    Humprey Bogart in the movie that launched to the fame
  • elviraalejandro
    October 3, 2009
    elviraalejandro
    Excellent.An automatic classic of ever times.
  • byby5
    October 1, 2009
    byby5
    Really good plot and acting by Humphrey Bogart
  • ElCochran90
    September 20, 2009
    ElCochran90
    An exquisite American noir gem with top notch performances.

    94/100
  • jopael
    September 16, 2009
    jopael
    just not extra impressed by the movie, I know it's beloved and probably great for it's time but I've seen too many other shows that are this old that really do blow me away
  • jscottcorley
    September 5, 2009
    jscottcorley
    The quintessential hardboiled detective film. Too much for me to say. Not a single throw-away moment.
  • ristrawn
    September 2, 2009
    ristrawn
    a fave Humphrey Bogart was captivating & bold... Peter Lorre was good as usual...
  • SageSlowdive
    August 21, 2009
    SageSlowdive
    Pretty good mystery.
  • pzavlaris
    August 19, 2009
    pzavlaris
    Bogard at his finest, plus "Brick" is an excellent remake
  • MajorWhitlock
    August 15, 2009
    MajorWhitlock
    It was a classic film noir I had to seen in order to call myself a film nerd. I really loved Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre was nice and creepy. Very nicely done - which is why it is a classic.... duh.
  • fluturash
    July 17, 2009
    fluturash
    bogie ! bogie! bogie!:)
  • Paris2Australia
    July 12, 2009
    Paris2Australia
    I was a bit confused but great detective movie
  • DoctorXQuinzel
    June 27, 2009
    DoctorXQuinzel
    i found this film to be soo boring
  • svet4
    June 24, 2009
    svet4
    Excellent old thriller
  • ahhh1989
    June 22, 2009
    ahhh1989
    The characters are so brilliantly defined and developed and the attention to detail is just mind blowing. You have to love this one.
  • daremba
    June 9, 2009
    daremba
    Sam Spade, YES! Probably the original film noir. Bogart is Sam Spade, Private Detective. Mary Astor is a true femme fatale in every sense of the word. Greenstreet's first film and old favourite Peter Lorre and all get involved in the quest to obtain The Maltese Falcon. It must be...( read more) rated as THE DEFINITIVE film of its time, a must see!
  • nowaknowak
    June 8, 2009
    nowaknowak
    Zawsze zasne po kwadransie.
  • xXxXHorrorFanxXxX
    June 7, 2009
    xXxXHorrorFanxXxX
    Private eye Sam Spade and his partner Miles Archer are approached by Miss Wonderly to follow a man, Floyd Thursby, who allegedly ran off with her younger sister. The two accept the assignment because the money is good, but Spade also implies that the woman looks like trouble, tho...( read more)ugh she projects wholesome innocence.

    That night, Detective Tom Polhaus informs Spade that Archer has been shot and killed while tailing Thursby. Even later that night, two officers visit Spade at his apartment and inquire about Spade's whereabouts in the last few hours. Spade asks what the visit is really about. The officers say that Thursby was also killed and that Spade is a suspect, since Thursby likely killed Archer. They have no evidence against Spade at the moment, but tell him that they will be conducting an investigation into the matter.

    The next day, Spade gets a visit from Archer's wife, with whom he has been having an affair. The widow asks Spade if he killed Miles so that they could be together. Spade dismisses her and tells her to leave, and coldly orders his secretary Effie to remove all of Archer's belongings from the office. He then goes to a new address left in a note from his client, whose name he learns is Brigid O'Shaughnessy. He also finds out that Brigid never had a sister, and Thursby was her acquaintance who had betrayed her.

    Later, Spade is visited by another man, Joel Cairo, who offers Spade $5000 if the private eye can retrieve a figurine of a black bird that has recently arrived. While Spade has no idea what the man is talking about, he plays along. Suddenly, Cairo pulls a gun on Spade, and declares his intention to search Spade's office. But when he approaches Spade to search his person, Spade disarms him and knocks him unconscious. After cataloguing Cairo's belongings and questioning him in return, Spade returns Cairo's firearm and allows the man to search his office. Following this, Spade is again contacted by Brigid O'Shaughnessy. She offers her sympathies for the death of his partner. Spade senses a connection between O'Shaughnessy and Cairo, and casually mentions that Cairo has contacted him. O'Shaughnessy gets extremely nervous when she hears this. She tells Spade that she must meet with Cairo, and asks Spade to arrange a meeting. Spade agrees. Cover of the magazine "Black Mask", September 1929, featuring part 1 of its serialization of The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett. The illustration is of detective Sam Spade by Henry C. Murphy, Jr. Cover of the magazine "Black Mask", September 1929, featuring part 1 of its serialization of The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett. The illustration is of detective Sam Spade by Henry C. Murphy, Jr.

    When Cairo and Brigid O'Shaughnessy meet, they make references that the reader and Spade don't initially comprehend. Cairo says he is ready to pay for the black figurine. Brigid O'Shaughnessy, however, says she does not have it at the moment. They also refer to a mysterious figure, "G" ("the fat man" in the film), whom they seem to be scared of. The two then continue to talk about some events that happened overseas. Eventually, O'Shaughnessy insinuates that Cairo is a homosexual, and Cairo insinuates that O'Shaughnessy simply uses her body to get what she wants, and the two begin to fight. At this point, the police show up, coincidentally, to talk to Spade. Spade greets them at the door, but refuses to let them in. The officers say they know Spade was having an affair with Archer's wife; just as they are about to leave, they hear Cairo screaming for help. They force their way into Spade's apartment, and Spade invents a story that involves describing how Cairo and O'Shaughnessy were just play-acting. The officers seem to accept, if not believe, Spade's story, but they take Cairo with them down to the station for some "grilling". Spade sends Brigid to stay with Effie, where she will be safe.

    The next morning, Spade makes his way to the hotel where Cairo is staying. Cairo shows up disheveled, saying that he was held in police custody through the night. Meanwhile, Spade notices that he's being tailed by some kid named Wilmer Cook. He confronts the gunsel[1], and tells him that both he and his boss, "G," will have to deal with him at some point. He later receives a call from Casper Gutman, who wishes to meet with him. Gutman, a huge person weighing over 300 lbs, says he will pay handsomely for the black bird. Spade implies that he can get the item (though at this point this is a bluff), but wants to know what it is first.

    Gutman tells him that the figurine was a gift from the Island of Malta to the King of Spain a few hundred years ago, but was lost on ship in transit. It was covered with fine jewels, but acquired a layer of black enamel at some time, to conceal its value (estimated to be in the millions). Gutman learned of its whereabouts seventeen years ago, and has been looking for it ever since. He traced it to the home of a Russian General, then sent three of his 'agents' (Cairo, Thursby and Brigid O'Shaughnessy) to get it. The latter supposedly did retrieve the figurine, but learned of its value and decided to keep it for themselves. Spade starts to get dizzy at this point (Gutman has drugged him), and when he goes to leave, Wilmer trips him and knocks him out by kicking his temple. Bebe Daniels as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in the 1931 film adaptation Bebe Daniels as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in the 1931 film adaptation

    When Spade awakens, he returns to his office and tells the story of the Maltese Falcon to Effie. Soon afterwards, an injured man, identified as Captain Jacobi of "La Paloma," shows up at the office; he drops a package on the floor and then dies of gunshot wounds. Spade opens the package, and finds the figurine falcon. Sam is called away from the office. To prevent losing the item, Spade stores the package at a bus station lost luggage counter and mails himself the collection tag. He first goes to the dock where "La Paloma" was anchored, but learns that a fire had been started on board. He then proceeds to the place Rhea Gutman said she was when she phoned earlier. There he finds a drugged-up, seventeen-year old girl, her stomach all scratched up by a pin in attempts to keep herself awake, who just manages to give him some information about the whereabouts of Brigid, which turns out to be a false lead.

    When he arrives back at his apartment, he finds O'Shaughnessy in a shadowy doorway. Inside, Wilmer, Cairo, and Gutman are there waiting. Gutman hands Spade $10,000 in cash in exchange for the bird. Spade takes the money, but in addition says that they need a "fall guy" to take the blame for the murders of at least Thursby and Jacobi, if not Archer as well. Reluctantly, both Cairo and Gutman agree to make Wilmer the fall guy. Gutman proceeds to tell Spade the missing pieces of the story. The night that Thursby was killed, he was first approached by Wilmer and Gutman. The latter attempted to reason with him, but Thursby remained loyal to Brigid O'Shaughnessy and refused to cooperate. Later things escalated, then Wilmer shot Thursby. Also, Brigid O'Shaughnessy had seduced Captain Jacobi and hid the Falcon with him. Later, Brigid O'Shaughnessy instructed Jacobi to deliver the package to Spade. Once Gutman learned of this fact, he attempted to remove Spade from the situation with the spiked drink. Wilmer managed to shoot the captain, but Jacobi still got to Spade's office to deliver the figurine. After finishing his story, Gutman warns Spade to be very careful with Brigid O'Shaughnessy as she is not to be trusted. Bette Davis and Warren William in Satan Met a Lady (1936), a loose adaptation of The Maltese Falcon Bette Davis and Warren William in Satan Met a Lady (1936), a loose adaptation of The Maltese Falcon

    Spade places a call to his secretary, Effie, and asks her to go the office and pick up the figurine. Effie brings it to Spade's apartment, and Spade hands the package to Gutman, who at this time is overwhelmed with excitement. He checks the figurine, but quickly learns that it is a fake. He realizes with dismay that the Russian must have discovered the true value of the falcon and made a copy. During this time, Wilmer manages to escape from Spade's apartment. Gutman quickly regains composure, and decides to go back to Europe to continue the search. Before he leaves, Gutman asks Spade for the $10,000. Spade returns $9000, saying he's keeping the remainder for his time and expenses. Then Cairo and Gutman leave Spade's apartment.

    Immediately after Cairo and Gutman leave, Spade phones the police department and tells them the entire story. Wilmer killed Jacobi and Thursby. He also tells them what hotel Gutman is staying at and urges them to hurry, since Gutman and Cairo are leaving town soon. Afterwards, Spade angrily asks Brigid O'Shaughnessy why she killed Miles Archer. At first, Brigid O'Shaughnessy acts horrified at this accusation, but seeing that she cannot lie anymore, she drops the act. She wanted to get Thursby out of the picture so that she could have the Falcon for herself, so she hired Archer to scare him off. When Thursby didn't leave, she killed Archer and attempted to pin the crime on Thursby. When Thursby was later killed himself, she knew that Gutman was in town and that she needed another protector, so she came back to Spade. Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade in the 1941 film adaptation Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade in the 1941 film adaptation

    However, she says that she's also in love with Spade and would have come back to him anyhow. Spade coldly replies that the penalty for murder is most likely twenty years, and he'll wait for her until she gets out. If they hang her, Spade says that he'll always remember her. He goes on to say that while he despised Miles Archer, the man was his partner, and that he's going to turn her in to the police for his murder as that was a line he could not cross in the industry of detective work. Brigid O'Shaughnessy begs him not to, but he replies that he has no choice. When the police get Gutman, Gutman will finger Sam and Brigid as accomplices. Thus the only way Spade can avoid getting charged is to say he played both sides against each other. He tells Brigid O'Shaughnessy that he has some feelings for her, but that he simply can't trust her. Just before the police arrive, Brigid O'Shaughnessy asks Spade if the Falcon had been real, and he'd gotten the entire $10,000, would it have made a difference. Spade replies that, while she shouldn't be so sure that he's crooked, more money would have been one more item on "her side."

    When the police finally show up at Spade's apartment, Spade immediately turns over Brigid O'Shaughnessy as Archer's killer. They tell Spade that the kid Wilmer was waiting for Gutman at the hotel and shot him when he arrived. Spade also hands over the $1000 bill, and the falcon to the police as evidence.
  • reytutiver
    June 7, 2009
    reytutiver
    Bogart is Sam Spade. Iconic film.
  • alexar2393
    June 2, 2009
    alexar2393
    Oh, good old 40's fun. Humphrey Bogart was, as always, totally delightful. The ending was perfect, it was intriguing all the way through, and it wasn't littered with gratuitous crap that fills movies today. Where did good quality go? It was left in the days of the Maltese Falcon.
  • matheuslacerdaf
    May 2, 2009
    matheuslacerdaf
    Meu film noir favorito, se nenhum filme do Hitchcock for considerado desse estilo =P
    Além de divertido, o papel do Bogart merece destaque: esse filme foi responsável pela sua ascensão ao topo da minha lista de atores preferidos, depois de já ter assistido Casablanca.
  • PoofyPuff1000
    April 17, 2009
    PoofyPuff1000
    Great movie. Humphrey Bogart is legendary as detective Sam Spade.
  • serendipity4u2luv
    April 5, 2009
    serendipity4u2luv
    I loved the book and I love the movie too.
  • RThornhill
    April 2, 2009
    RThornhill
    great with lots of surprises...
  • berigan
    March 7, 2009
    berigan
    A favorite classic. Not much wrong with it.
  • IzzyGlow
    February 20, 2009
    IzzyGlow
    7/10
    The Maltese Falcon is an essential piece of film-noir even if it is a little unsatisfying in the end.
  • bmcguir
    February 18, 2009
    bmcguir
    the stuff that noir is made of.
  • battleaxeofdoom
    February 7, 2009
    battleaxeofdoom
    Massively overrated, but still good
  • TastyCrayons
    February 4, 2009
    TastyCrayons
    This was probably thee original film noir movie without even meaning to be film noir. Good movie with lots of guns and mystery.
  • JasonDennis91786
    January 22, 2009
    JasonDennis91786
    great script, great pacing. not even close to becoming boring in any scene. and remember this movie is going on seventy years old. great acting all around. practically the cast of casablanca. i thought bogart and lorre were better in this than in casablanca, honestly.
  • muchevil
    December 26, 2008
    muchevil
    classic crime noir - nuff said
  • Saxia
    December 25, 2008
    Saxia
    I know it's a classic, but it's just not my thing. All detective, no depth.
    Bogart didn't really do it for me either.
  • COINRETURNSLOT
    December 19, 2008
    COINRETURNSLOT
    humphrey bogart, plays a detective well, and his attitude towards women makes him all the more intriguing. good story, and it somehow manages to have funny notes to it. one of bogarts best.
  • jameshammacott88
    December 14, 2008
    jameshammacott88
    The ultimate film noir- a slick, fast talking, slighty-dodgy (but with a good heart) detective, a femme fatale, and plenty of lies, mystery and murders.
    Very interesting that this was Sydney Greenstreet's very 1st acting role and he ended up with an Oscar for it. He, Bogart and ...( read more)Lorre are all fantastic. An amazing film, and a true classic.
  • MightySparks
    December 11, 2008
    MightySparks
    I HATE Humphrey Bogart. I can't describe in words my hatred for him. He can't act and he's extremely ugly. All the movies I've seen with him in are boring and lame and this was the worst of the lot. I was so bored throughout the whole thing, I had to start creating my own dialogu...( read more)e to keep myself amused or I would've had to slit my wrists.
  • HarleenQuinzel
    December 7, 2008
    HarleenQuinzel
    Man alive Bogart is cool.
  • 01MovieMan
    December 7, 2008
    01MovieMan
    This is a good movie

    Plot: Sam Spade, a private detective, gets involved in a murderous hunt for a valuable statuette.
  • luiser2gh
    November 23, 2008
    luiser2gh
    "Detective Tom Polhaus: [picks up the falcon] Heavy. What is it?
    Sam Spade: The, uh, stuff that dreams are made of. "
  • lovablemisanthrope
    November 17, 2008
    lovablemisanthrope
    One of my favorite 40s movies.
  • HotHair29
    November 17, 2008
    HotHair29
    every guy except the lead is gay?!! how lame is that?!
  • nickg329
    November 11, 2008
    nickg329
    My only complaint is Mary Astor as the femme fatale. Other than that this film is one of the best noirs ever. Bogart is the man like usual.

Summary

The Maltese Falcon Summary