The Maltese Falcon (1941 Film) Background

The Maltese Falcon (1941 Film) Background

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Written by Claire Cornwall

The Maltese Falcon is a 1941 film noir based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett. It was directed by John Huston and it was with this movie that he made his directorial debut. The film follows the story of a San Francisco private detective called Sam Spade (played by Humphrey Bogart) and his dealings with three unscrupulous adventurers, all of whom are trying to obtain a jewel-encrusted falcon statuette.

Hammett himself worked for a time as a private detective for the Pinkerton Detective Agency in San Francisco, also using his own birth name of Samuel for his story's protagonist. Despite this Hammett called Sam a "dream man" with "no original" indicating that the detective was a work of fiction and in no way autobiographical. Hammett did draw on his years with Pinkerton Detective Agency as inspiration for some of the other characters in The Maltese Falcon.

This 1941 version is the third film version of the novel. Humphrey Bogart was not the first choice for the role of Sam Spade but accepted it quickly, something for which John Huston was always grateful, and paved the way for their lifelong friendship. Bogart's performance became the archetype for film noire private eyes and earned him instant acclaim. This film is widely considered to be the first major film noire and received three Academy Award nominations including first-time director John Huston.