The Big Sleep

(book in English)

Add to my list

by David Thomson

Type

Studies

Subject

One Film > The Big Sleep

Keywords

Howard Hawks, analyse, Raymond Chandler, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall

Publishing date

1997
   > See the newer edition (2020)

Publisher

BFI Publishing

Collection

BFI Film Classics

Language

English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Paperback • 96 pages • 11,64 €
5 ¼ x 7 ¼ inches (13.5 x 18.5 cm)
Also available as an eBook.

ISBN-10
ISBN-13

0-85170-632-0
978-0-85170-632-0

User Ratings

(0 vote)

X

Average rating:

0	rating	= We can do without
0	rating	= Good book
0	rating	= Excellent book
0	rating	= Unique / a reference

Your rating: -

Report incorrect or incomplete information

Book Presentation:
This text shows how The Big Sleep signalled a change in the nature of Hollywood cinema, as the director Howard Hawks shot extra scenes, "fun" scenes, to replace the ones in which the murders are explained, and in so doing left the plot unresolved.

Book Presentation:
This is the first book-length consideration of the classic 1946 movie The Big Sleep and the first published book to compare it to the 1945 cut of the movie, which has been restored and released. David Thomson discusses the making of the film as well as the careers and romance of its stars, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. He also looks into the psyches of its director and screenwriters. Thomson beautifully describes a classic in progress, tracking "the way in which fantasizing, power plays, and maneuver affected the making of the film." Along the way, Thomson meditates about why The Big Sleep has attained its mythic status and why it continues to move him so powerfully.

Press Reviews:
"Superb . . . by the world's greatest film critic." -- The Guardian

See the publisher website: BFI Publishing

See The Big Sleep (1946) on IMDB ...