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The Big Sleep

1946

Howard Hawks

Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers ...

8.1

24,289

Film noir. Mystery It tells the story of private detective Philip Marlowe (Humphrey Bogart), hired by General Sternwood (Charles Waldron) to deal with a blackmailer. The General has two daughters. One, Vivian (Lauren Bacall), is very pretty and somewhat shady. The other, Carmen (Martha Vickers), is very pretty and totally nuts. Marlowe has to track down the man trying to blackmail Carmen over some gambling debts, but before he can find the man, the man ... [+]

	Author	Review
United States	Variety	"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."	POS
United States	Dave Kehr Chicago Reader	"What you remember here are moments."	POS
United States	Bosley Crowther The New York Times	"It's likely to leave you confused and dissatisfied."	NEG
United Kingdom	Tim Robey Telegraph	"'The Big Sleep' is the best scripted, best directed, best acted, and least comprehensible film noir ever made. (...) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of five)"	POS
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"No screen couple, before or since, had as much chemistry as Bogart and Bacall. (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of five)"	POS
United States	Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"What you sense here is the enjoyable sight of two people who are in love and enjoy toying with one another (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United Kingdom	Jonathan Romney The Independent	"'The Big Sleep' is as fresh and perverse as ever, and remains one of Hollywood's most entrancingly strange bedtime stories."	POS
United Kingdom	Kim Newman Empire	"Bogart as Marlowe is compelling in this classic thriller that is complex but triumph of atmospheric cool (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

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