SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Walter Sloane Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

inspectors71 If it weren't for the always watchable Robert Mitchum, the cool clothes, the lumbering Detroitmobiles, and the smoke and booze flowing like a river, Dick Richards' Farewell, My Lovely would collapse from the clichés, the incoherences, and the feeling that the movie is visually dark to add atmosphere while hiding the fact that the movie was made 30+ years after the book was published.I tried to get mad at this mess, but I just couldn't. It felt cheap, but paying attention to that basset hound of a man, Robert Mitchum, make Charlotte Rampling's greedy whore laugh, a nice touch indeed.I saw FML when it came out in the summer of 1975, and I lucked on it when a senior of mine said she had a couple boxes of VHS tapes that her mom wanted gone. I took 'em, and there was Mitchum on the box cover, looking tough, with a curl of smoke pooling under the brim of his fedora. Look at that! The movie--or Raymond Chandler--brings out the turn of phrase in the hacks among us.

Woodyanders Aging and world-weary private eye Phillip Marlowe (superbly played by Robert Mitchum) gets hired by hulking brute Moose Malloy (a credible portrayal by Jack O'Halloran) to find his missing girlfriend Velma. However, this deceptively simple case ultimately proves to be a lot more complicated than anticipated.Director Dick Richards, working from a sharp script by David Zelag Goodman, keeps the intricate and absorbing story moving at a steady pace, offers a flavorsome evocation of the 1940's period Los Angeles setting, and astutely captures an arrestingly sordid and downbeat tone without going overboard on the sleaziness. Better still, Richards avoids sentimental nostalgia by refusing to sugarcoat the more harsh social realities of the 1940's, with the issue of racism in particular being addressed head on.Mitchum brings a winning blend of dry wit, rumbled grace, and bruised integrity to the character of Marlowe, who yearns to find something worth saving in a rotten world. The rest of the topflight cast are likewise on the money excellent: Charlotte Rampling makes for a deliciously sly and seductive femme fatale as the enticing, yet duplicitous Helen Grayle, Sylvia Miles contributes a heartbreaking turn as booze-sodden rundown floozy Jessie Halstead Fabian, and Anthony Zerbe cuts a suavely sinister figure as slimy mobster Laird Brunette, plus there's praiseworthy work from John Ireland as the hard-nosed Detective Lieutenant McNulty, Harry Dean Stanton as crooked low-rent scuzzball Detective Billy Rolfe, John O'Leary as the effeminate Lindsay Marriott, Kate Murtagh as formidable brothel madam Frances Amthor, and Joe Spinell, Burton Gilliam, and Sylvester Stallone as a trio of vicious thugs. In addition, such folks as Richard Kennedy, Harry Caesar, Logan Ramsey, and Cheryl "Rainbeaux" Smith pop up in small roles. John A. Alonzo's sumptuous cinematography gives this picture a glittery neon look. David Shire's lush score hits the smooth jazzy spot. Essential viewing.

slightlymad22 Continuing my attempt to go through all of Sly's filmography in order, I settled down to watch "Farewell My Lovely" tonight. Plot In A Paragraph: Set in 1941, Private Eye Philip Marlowe's (Robert Nitchum) attempts to locate Velma, a former dancer at a seedy nightclub and the girlfriend of Moose Malloy (Jack O Halloran) a criminal just out of prison. Marlowe finds that once he has taken the case, events conspire to put him in dangerous situations, and he is forced to follow a confusing trail of untruths and double-crosses before he is able to locate Velma.Quite a bit in to the opening credits, Sly gets 'Co starring' billing after Joe Spinnell (Gazzo from "Rocky") and an introducing credit for Jack O Halloran (Non from "Superman" and "Superman 2") Sly doesn't appear until 47 minutes in, has a couple of scenes and doesn't have any dialogue. So getting a Co starring credit is generous to say the least. There is a lot to like in "Farewell My Lovely" and it is a movie I would own, even without it being part of my Sly collection. A great voice over (Something missing from a lot of modern day movies) by Mitchum, O Halloran is imposing and intimidating as Moose, and Harry Dean Stanton has a great role too.I was talking to Ridgo in the Lords Of Flatbush thread about 'Flatbush' being a soothing movie, helping us nod off if we have a touch of insomnia. "Farewell" is another to add to that list, just lay down and listen to Mitchum's voice-over it is very calming.It has a few problems with certain scenes, but that is the fault of director Dick Richards, not the cast. It's easy to see why he didn't have a long career as a director. Mitchum not only punched him, he dragged him on to Pacific Coast Highway and said "Let's see if you can direct traffic." Then on "March Or Die" both Gene Hackman and Carherine Deneuvue both hit him, then in 1986 Burt Reynolds knocked him out cold whilst filming "Heat" in Las Vegas. Six Movies and five punch outs!! Says it all.

LeonLouisRicci Philip Marlowe is the embodiment of a 1930's-40's Private Eye/Film Noir Gumshoe. Raymond Chandler's Cynical, Wise-Cracking Dick has become a cultural Eye-Con. "All I got is a hat, coat, and a gun" says Robert Mitchum's Marlowe and We believe it. We also believe this vision and reflection of Vintage Film Noir. A Retro Look at the Decades old Genre that rarely looked or felt so authentic, a Time Jump for the Modern Generation that dreams in Color.If You're looking for an introduction to this Era's Style (Film-Noir) in its recent incarnations, that have become embraced and revered by Fans and Devotees, this overlooked and Under-Appreciated Film is a great place to begin.