Even if you've never seen a black-and-white movie or imagined yourself as a world-weary detective out of options, you've likely heard the phrase "film noir." Generally speaking, it usually refers to a certain style of filmmaking that came about in the 1940s and 1950s. Stark lighting, a lot of rain-filled streets and late night clubs. Crooked cops, cynical private eyes and a sultry mystery woman or two were part of the mix, but mostly it was about attitude. That the world was broken somehow, that the powerful were able to do what they wanted while the average down-on-their-luck person was just lucky to stick around for another day.
In the 70 or so years since it was originated, "noir" has been used in all sorts of off-topic ways - dare I mention "Nordic Noir?" But fans of the genre still see those old movies as the real thing. And they're right.
Odd are, many of the people reading this have never seen any of those classic film noir movies. And I get it. They're in black-and-white, the music is brash and uncomfortable. Everyone smokes and let's say that there are moments when misogyny and racism are not exactly just bubbling under the surface.
But the best film noir movies are also just amazingly well-constructed movies. The lead actors were tough on screen. But most of them had been tough off-screen as well. Former soldiers and manual laborers who brought an authentic feel to the movie you don't see in a lot of modern-day actors. And while it's tempting to see the women in the films as nothing more than empty vessels for male fantasies, these characters were often much more than that. Lauren Bacall was sexy as hell. But you could also see she was smart and unafraid of anyone. If anything, the woman of film noir were often as tough or tougher than the men. And almost always a lot more conniving.
Each day in November, I'm going to be suggesting a noir film you should watch. Each one will be available for streaming, some on subscription services and some on free, ad-supported platforms. With the actor's strike still going on, this is a great time to fall in love with movies that are probably as old (or older) than your parents. But don't think of this films as old. Think of them as vintage entertainment options.
"The Big Sleep" (1946)
If I was forced to choose one film noir title that I had to watch every day for a year, The Big Sleep would be my choice. It is as perfect a noir movie as you can find, in part because it's the ideal example of a movie whose world view overwhelms the flaws in the story.
Based on a novel by Raymond Chandler, Humphrey Bogart plays Phillip Marlowe, a former chief inspector for the district attorney's office who now works as a private detective. He's hired by a wealthy widower (Charles Waldron) who is being blackmailed by a man who claims to hold gambling debts ran up by the youngest of his two daughters (played by Martha Vickers and Lauren Bacall). That investigation opens up a whirlwind of encounters with killers, blackmailers and every other type of criminal that it was possible to find in the mid-1940s.
I won't bother you with the details. Not only do they not matter, The Big Sleep includes plot holes so big you could drive a stolen milk truck through them. Sean Regan, who previously worked for the millionaire as his fixer, disappears before the movie even starts and despite a big build-up early on, his story is basically discarded. People die for unexplained reasons and in many scenes its a fine line between a character being mysterious and the screenwriters just not knowing what to do next.
Part of the problem was that the writers were trying to work with a book that was much more sexual than the Hays Board (which were essentially the censors of the period) would allow. In the book, one main character sells pornography and is involved in a homosexual relationship. Neither of which could be addressed on screen. And also in the book, the younger Sternwood daughter is being drugged and then filmed naked. In the movie, she is shown as being fully clothed and wearing a "Chinese dress," which was supposed to connote something salacious. But it somehow all works in a way that makes you overlook all of its flaws.
It certainly didn't help that the production of The Big Sleep was convoluted and often chaotic. The film was originally produced in 1945, but Warner Brothers delayed the release while it burned off some of the movies it had produced by World War II. But by the time the studio was ready to release the film, a lot had changed.
Lauren Bacall's screen debut was in 1944's To Have And Have Not and her on-screen chemistry with the older Bogart leapt off the screen. The film included one of the most memorable quotes from any movie in the era - "You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and blow" and The Big Sleep would be the on-screen return of the couple.
But there were problems. Bacall's second film - 1945' Confidential Agent - had been a failure. And there were major concerns about The Big Sleep. Unlike her role in To Have And Have Not, Bacall's character was cool and reserved in a way that felt stand-offish at times. There wasn't that onscreen spark in enough scenes and there certainly wasn't enough of the sly wordplay that made the duo so memorable in her earlier role.
But Bacall had some powerful people on her side. Her agent at the time was Charles Feldman, who badgered studio head Jack Warner to reedit and reshoot parts of the movie. There was also the fact that by this point, Bacall and Bogart were married, with Bogart drinking heavily and apparently not in a great spot mentally. Bogart was the studio's biggest draw, so keeping him happy was important and if that meant reshooting or adding some scenes, that's what the studio would do.
Part of the problem was that film is filled with strong female performances from women who aren't Lauren Bacall. Dorothy Malone is captivating as the book clerk who finds herself fascinated by Marlowe. But the biggest issue was Martha Vickers.
Vickers originally had a much larger role in the film as the hard-living younger sister Carmen Sternwood, but she was so powerful on screen she threatened to overshadow Bacall. She is the first women Marlowe encounters in the film and she is so captivating you might suspect she was the star of the film. The decision was made to cut her role down substantially, but the problem was that editing her mostly out of the film (she is ultimately in just a couple of scenes) made the choppy plot even more difficult to follow.
The cast was brought together for reshoots and part of the changes involved adding scenes between Bogart and Bacall. One of the new scenes turned out to be the moment most people remember from the film.
The couple are in a noisy nightclub and are having a conversation that is in theory about horseracing:
Bacall: "Speaking of horses, I like to play them myself. But I like to see them work out a little first. See if they're front-runners or come from behind... I'd say you don't like to be rated. You like to get out in front, open up a lead, take a little breather in the back stretch, and then come home free...."
Bogart: "You've got a touch of class, but I don't know how far you can go."
Bacall: "A lot depends on who's in the saddle."
Despite all of the problems getting the film to the screen, the final version of The Big Sleep is a classic of the genre. The script by William Faulkner, Leigh Brackett and Jules Furthman is sharp and crackling in a way that nicely captures the original feel and energy of Chandler's book. And of course there is the direction of the iconic Howard Hawks, who helped define what made noir movies so great.
While the process was messy, The Big Sleep was a hit and it prompted two more Bogart/Bacall movies at Warner Brothers: 1947's Dark Passage and 1948's Key Largo.
The Big Sleep is available for streaming on the subscription streaming service Max.