Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
Director: Dick Richards
Starring: Robert Mitchum, Charlotte Rampling, John Ireland
Synopsis:
When Philip Marlowe agrees to find a released bank robber's old flame, he gets more than he bargained for as the bodies pile up and the police want him to take the rap for it.
Impressions:
I'll admit to being a little underwhelmed by Robert Mitchum's performance as Philip Marlowe in the '78 version of The Big Sleep, but I had to remind myself that he did noir back in its heyday and was really good at it, so what gives? Well, then I saw that he played Marlowe three years earlier in this film, so I checked it out and while he is playing a much older version of the character, the performance was far more on-point, so I guess it was a matter of direction and/or him just not being sufficiently into it at the time. Well, if you want a better take of Mitchum as Marlowe, I recommend this film. I went back and rewatched the '44 adaptation Murder, My Sweet for comparison purposes and read the original novel as well. In some aspects, this is closer to the book, such as actually allowing black people into the story (though with a much softer touch than the book), but they also make some bizarre choices such as conflating Amthor and Sonderberg and making the composite character a madam (though one quite well-played by Kate Murtagh). Similar to how they used wrestler Mike Mazurki in '44, here boxer Jack O'Halloran does a great job of delivering the physicality of Moose Malloy. If you tried to make me choose between the '44 version and this one, I don't think I could. Both go off on their own directions from the source material yet generally do a pretty good job in the final assessment. If you've seen Robert Mitchum in '78's The Big Sleep and thought he's lost his mojo, turn back the clock a bit and give him another chance with this one. Oh, and also look for Sylvester Stallone in an early role as one of Amthor's mooks. Give it a watch.
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