Suggest Some Robert Mitchum

[Teasing the Korean]

I have only seen a few of his films, including the iconic:

Cape Fear

and

Night of the Hunter.

I have also seen "White Witch Doctor," mainly to hear the Bernard Herrmann score; "Thunder Road," which I should have liked more than I did; and "Dead Man."

I also have his calypso album on Capitol, as well as the Capitol hot rod comp "Shut Down," featuring "Ballad of Thunder Road."

What did Mitchum do in the 70s and 80s?

I'd like suggestions on early films too.

[Shawn]

Out of The Past. Also, another great teaming with Jane Greer in "The Big Steal".

MANY great Mitchum flicks, he's one of my favorites.

[ghost of miles]

Out of The Past. Also, another great teaming with Jane Greer in "The Big Steal".

Same two I would've suggested for starters--here's a brief write-up I did for the Night Lights site several years ago on The Big Steal.

[BERIGAN]

Since the main one's have been mentioned...

An interesting movie. And Mitchum does a very admirable job of sounding Australian (at least to this American's ears)

A good early role, but more Robert Ryan's movie.

Never seen it, but for a later role, I hear good things about The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973)

[Dan Gould]

I don't have anything to add but the topic made me think of this:

"Mitchum!"

[GA Russell]

TTK, my two favorites are his two Philip Marlowes, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

If you like Chinatown, you will like Farewell My Lovely even more.

Mitchum's Big Sleep is far superior to Bogart's IMO - better acting and much better script.

[Neal Pomea]

Heaven Knows Mr. Allison

[Larry Kart]

The Wonderful Country:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053453/fullcredits#writers

An excellent western, with Julie London and a superb score by Alex North.

[Quincy]

of Never seen it, but for a later role, I hear good things about The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973)

Saw the Criterion a couple of weeks ago. It does a great job of capturing seedy Boston of the early '70s.

I'd see the noir recs above first, but El Dorado is a fun western w/ John Wayne and James Caan.

As for a later, one of his last was Dead Man. He's not in it for long but it's memorable, and then there's Iggy Pop in a dress...

Edited September 27, 2010 by Quincy

[Teasing the Korean]

You guys are quick!

Thanks for the suggestions!

I will see all of these.

I had no idea there was another "The Big Sleep" - I'd seen only the Bogart.

I LOVE Raymond Chandler but have not yet read "Farewell, My Lovely." I think I'll wait until I've read it to see the film.

And the Mitchum-Julie London-Alex North triumvirate sounds amazing.

THANKS!

[kinuta]

I'd suggest these. All are highly rewatchable.

Out Of The Past

Blood On The Moon

The Big Steal

His Kind Of Woman

Angel Face

The Enemy Below

The Lusty Men

Man With The Gun

El Dorado

[medjuck]

You've already seen two of his best performances. I'd go with Out of the Past next and since you've already heard him sing the title song: "Thunder Road".

[Michael Weiss]

The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973) is a must.

[brownie]

Heaven Knows Mr. Allison

Seconded.

Also 'River of No Return' (with Marilyn Monroe) and 'Yakuza'...

[JohnJ]

TTK, my two favorites are his two Philip Marlowes, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

If you like Chinatown, you will like Farewell My Lovely even more.

Mitchum's Big Sleep is far superior to Bogart's IMO - better acting and much better script.

Don't think your opinion would be shared by many! The Bogart/Bacall version is one of the greatest movies ever made. The Mitchum version is not bad but not a patch on the original (including the acting).

[brownie]

TTK, my two favorites are his two Philip Marlowes, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

If you like Chinatown, you will like Farewell My Lovely even more.

Mitchum's Big Sleep is far superior to Bogart's IMO - better acting and much better script.

Don't think your opinion would be shared by many! The Bogart/Bacall version is one of the greatest movies ever made. The Mitchum version is not bad but not a patch on the original (including the acting).

Agree the Bogart/Bacall version is better but its script does not make much sense. A priceless movie in any case!

[Larry Kart]

TTK, my two favorites are his two Philip Marlowes, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

If you like Chinatown, you will like Farewell My Lovely even more.

Mitchum's Big Sleep is far superior to Bogart's IMO - better acting and much better script.

Don't think your opinion would be shared by many! The Bogart/Bacall version is one of the greatest movies ever made. The Mitchum version is not bad but not a patch on the original (including the acting).

Agree the Bogart/Bacall version is better but its script does not make much sense. A priceless movie in any case!

No script of the "The Big Sleep" could make that much sense plot-wise because Chandler's novel famously does not. The particular anomaly is, Who killed the chauffeur of Bacall's nymphomanic sister and why? Chandler was asked that question during the making of the film (I think by director Howard Hawks and Bogart), and he had no answer, saying "Damned if I know." I would assume that Hawks wisely realized that it hardly mattered.

BTW the original problem perhaps arose for reasons similar to those that were in play with "Farewell, My Lovely," which Chandler assembled out of several separate and previously published novellas. As it happens, the places where the separate plots are welded together in FML are among the most effective and "poetic" passages in that book IMO. As far as I know, "The Big Sleep" did not have that novella-first history (at least not anything that Chandler completed and previously published), but such rhythms of plotting and joining plots together may have been habitual for him, and sometimes, as in "The Big Sleep," there were loose ends. In any case, with Chandler mood is 98 percent of it.

My memory of the Mitchum FML was that it was pretty bad. By then Mitchum's face had essentially collapsed, as had (so it seemed) his spirit. Sarah Miles did have a nice broad turn as Jessie Florian, but even if one leaves Mitchum's performance aside, the whole film lacked conviction, perhaps because it was conceived and played as a period piece.

[BruceH]

Lots of excellent suggestions here. I must second the ones for "Out of the Past," "The Big Steal," and "The Friends of Eddie Coyle." His performance in the latter is truly remarkable, one of his best.

[medjuck]

TTK, my two favorites are his two Philip Marlowes, Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

If you like Chinatown, you will like Farewell My Lovely even more.

Mitchum's Big Sleep is far superior to Bogart's IMO - better acting and much better script.

Don't think your opinion would be shared by many! The Bogart/Bacall version is one of the greatest movies ever made. The Mitchum version is not bad but not a patch on the original (including the acting).

Agree the Bogart/Bacall version is better but its script does not make much sense. A priceless movie in any case!

No script of the "The Big Sleep" could make that much sense plot-wise because Chandler's novel famously does not. The particular anomaly is, Who killed the chauffeur of Bacall's nymphomanic sister and why? Chandler was asked that question during the making of the film (I think by director Howard Hawks and Bogart), and he had no answer, saying "Damned if I know." I would assume that Hawks wisely realized that it hardly mattered.

BTW the original problem perhaps arose for reasons similar to those that were in play with "Farewell, My Lovely," which Chandler assembled out of several separate and previously published novellas. As it happens, the places where the separate plots are welded together in FML are among the most effective and "poetic" passages in that book IMO. As far as I know, "The Big Sleep" did not have that novella-first history (at least not anything that Chandler completed and previously published), but such rhythms of plotting and joining plots together may have been habitual for him, and sometimes, as in "The Big Sleep," there were loose ends. In any case, with Chandler mood is 98 percent of it.

My memory of the Mitchum FML was that it was pretty bad. By then Mitchum's face had essentially collapsed, as had (so it seemed) his spirit. Sarah Miles did have a nice broad turn as Jessie Florian, but even if one leaves Mitchum's performance aside, the whole film lacked conviction, perhaps because it was conceived and played as a period piece.

The Big Sleep is based on two unrelated short stories. (Don't have the names with me right now.) The film, even more than the book, seems to be in two parts: Marlowe solves one crime then they vamp a bit before he gets going again. However the vamping is great! It's one of the scenes shot later Bacall comes to see him and they discuss horse racing.

Ooops: just discovered that it's based on 3 stories. Found this on-line.

"He uses the plot and details from three of these stories, "Killer in the Rain," "The Curtain," and "Finger Man" in The Big Sleep.

[Cliff Englewood]

I've been wanting to see "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" for a long time now, never found a copy over this side of the pond. :angry:

Edited September 27, 2010 by Cliff Englewood

[P.L.M]

There is two versions of The Big Sleep.

The one that everybody know who was realised in 1946 ; Where they have add more scenes between Bacall and Bogart.

And the original version, never show before 10 years ago in Paris.

The film have been shot in 1944 (what makes him one of the earlier Film Noir, should have been out in 1944, like Double Indemnity or Laura . But he was only released after they have done the retakes as late as 1946, same year than The Killers and one year before Mildred Pierce.

The "original " version was more close to the book but the "retakes version" is better over all.

Aniway I hope than the two versions could be reunited in one DVD, one of these day.

And, by the way, the remake with Mitchum is absolutely terrible. The worst thing they have done was to relocated the story in... contemporary England.

Edited September 27, 2010 by P.L.M

[Larry Kart]

Ooops: just discovered that it's based on 3 stories. Found this on-line.

"He uses the plot and details from three of these stories, "Killer in the Rain," "The Curtain," and "Finger Man" in The Big Sleep.

Thanks for the detective work.

[Larry Kart]

There is two versions of The Big Sleep.

The one that everybody know who was realised in 1946 ; Where they have add more scenes between Bacall and Bogart.

And the original version, never show before 10 years ago in Paris.

The film have been shot in 1944 (what makes him one of the earlier Film Noir, should have been out in 1944, like Double Indemnity or Laura . But he was only released after they have done the retakes as late as 1946, same year than The Killers and one year before Mildred Pierce.

The "original " version was more close to the book but the "retakes version" is better over all.

Aniway I hope than the two versions could be reunited in one DVD, one of these day.

And, by the way, the remake with Mitchum is absolutely terrible. The worst thing they have done was to relocated the story in... contemporary England.

I've seen both versions. The first one was fascinating to see, but I think you're right about the familiar second version being better. Which reminds me -- in several ways, the most "perfect" movie I know is "To Have and Have Not," directed by Hawks and with Bogart and Bacall (and Walter Brennan, who is just great in his role, and Hoagy Carmichael). Bogart and Bacall were falling in love in real life, and it's so obvious and in the best way -- the screen seems to glow. Interesting too that Hawks' then wife, Slim Keith, did so much to shape the young Bacall of that film in her own "man's woman" image. Her autobiography "Slim: Memoirs of a Rich and Imperfect Life" is worth tracking down, an entertaining, enlightening book. She was one of the great (though unconsummated) loves of Ernest Hemingway's life.

[ghost of miles]

There is two versions of The Big Sleep.

The one that everybody know who was realised in 1946 ; Where they have add more scenes between Bacall and Bogart.

And the original version, never show before 10 years ago in Paris.

The film have been shot in 1944 (what makes him one of the earlier Film Noir, should have been out in 1944, like Double Indemnity or Laura . But he was only released after they have done the retakes as late as 1946, same year than The Killers and one year before Mildred Pierce.

The "original " version was more close to the book but the "retakes version" is better over all.

Anyway I hope than the two versions could be reunited in one DVD, one of these day.

They have been, at least on the 2000 DVD release that I have. My wife prefers the earlier version, while I still like the second better (although the deleted scene from the earlier version with Bogart in the prosecutor's/DA's office is a pleasure to watch).

The backstory on why the earlier version was shelved is interesting. Bacall had, as Larry notes, turned in an excellent, star-making performance in TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT. Her followup movie, however--CONFIDENTIAL AGENT, based on a lesser-known Graham Greene novel--was a bomb (I've never seen it, but reports are that Bacall and co-star Charles Boyer did not strike any sparks together onscreen). There was a lot of concern about whether or not Bacall's career was finished, and so some of THE BIG SLEEP's sexier scenes--particularly the "depends on who's in the saddle" conversation in the bar--were added, with the (ultimately successful) goal of burnishing her cinematic image.

[Larry Kart]

Slim Keith in 1945:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3460/3715678061_e3120b5cb7_z.jpg%3Fzz%3D1&imgrefurl=http://www.flickr.com/photos/likeabalalaika/3715678061/&usg=__YZLVD5ac56bkLBdiUoxWPjNMCnw=&h=640&w=447&sz=151&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=VDp9rhDLk2mrNM:&tbnh=143&tbnw=100&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dslim%2Bkeith%2Bphotos%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26biw%3D971%26bih%3D830%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=600&vpy=478&dur=372&hovh=199&hovw=139&tx=81&ty=255&ei=FwOhTMirBcmonQeR49GVDQ&oei=FwOhTMirBcmonQeR49GVDQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:21,s:0