| View Larger Image | The Big Sleep | DVDStarring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers, Dorothy Malone
Directed By: Howard Hawks
Also With: Sidney Hickox (Cinematographer), Howard Hawks (Producer), Jack L. Warner (Producer), Jules Furthman (Writer), Leigh Brackett (Writer), Raymond Chandler (Writer), William Faulkner (Writer)
| List Price: | $19.98 | | Price: | $5.79 | | You Save: | $14.19 (71%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | DVD | | Rating: |  | | Run Time: | 114 minutes | | Format: | Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC | | Studio: | Warner Home Video | | Number of Discs: | 1 | | Aspect Ratio: | 1.33:1 | | Release Date: | July 25, 2006 | | Sales Rank: | 2,184nd |
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FEATURES | - L.A. private eye Phillip Marlowe takes on a blackmail case.and a trail peopled with murderers, pornographers, nightclub rogues, the spoiled rich and more. Humphrey Boart plays Raymond Chandlers' legendary gumshoe and director Howard Hawkes serves up snappy character encounters (particularly involving Lauren Bacall), brisk pace and atmosphere galore in the certifiedic.Running Time: 114 min. For
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Description
L.A. private eye Phillip Marlowe takes on a blackmail case...and a trail peopled with murderers, porographers, nightclub rogues, the spoiled rich and more. Humphrey Boart plays Raymond Chandlers' legendary gumshoe and director Howard Hawkes serves up snappy character encounters (particularly involving Lauren Bacall), brisk pace and atmosphere galore in the certified classic. |
Amazon.com essential video
Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall made screen history together more than once, but they were never more popular than in this 1946 adaptation of Raymond Chandler's novel, directed by Howard Hawks (To Have and Have Not). Bogart plays private eye Philip Marlowe, who is hired by a wealthy socialite (Bacall) to look into troubles stirred up by her wild, young sister (Martha Vickers). Legendarily complicated (so much so that even Chandler had trouble following the plot), the film is nonetheless hugely entertaining and atmospheric, an electrifying plunge into the exotica of detective fiction. William Faulkner wrote the screenplay. --Tom Keogh |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 144 reviews)
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"You're trying to find out what your father hired me to find out, and I'm trying to find out why you want to find out..." by Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service)  5 Stars
November 28, 2009
The Big Sleep is certainly an excellent film; but I would be mighty impressed if you could follow one hundred percent of that plot with all those characters getting murdered by the second! Please don't misunderstand; just as others have noted this will be very interesting and even entertaining for you; it's truly one of the better films I've ever seen. The acting is uniformly superb and very convincing; the casting was great; the script is well written with plenty of lines that have more than one meaning; and the choreography shines bright right along with the cinematography. However, the plot meanders quite a bit and so when you watch this just relax and enjoy it without trying too hard to worry exactly who's after whom and why.
When the action starts (and believe me, you're going see a LOT of action), we quickly meet private investigator Philip Marlowe (Humphrey Bogart) who is hired by the elderly General Sternwood (Charles Waldron) because a man is blackmailing Carmen (Martha Vickers), one of his two rather pretty and somewhat loose daughters. The General wants Philip to get this guy off Carmen's back so that the family will not be disgraced publicly; Philip also meets the General's other daughter who's already a divorcee, Vivian (Lauren Bacall); and they don't exactly hit it off.
Now of course it all be neat and clean if that was the bulk of the plot; but it isn't. We eventually find out why that man wanted money from Carmen; and we also see the connection between Eddie Mars (John Ridgely) and Carmen as well as Vivian. There is much to speculate about along the way--it isn't all just murder after murder--why are so many people involved in this scenario, all of them trying to get a piece of the action (as in "money") for themselves. We get great performances by Elisha Cook Jr. as small time crook Harry Jones who follows Philip Marlowe in his car; Louis Jean Heydt as Joe Brody, another small time gangster who's in on at least part of the deal; and Sonia Darrin does just great as Agnes Lowzier who is also mixed up in all this.
The DVD comes with two versions of the film: we get the original version of the film and we get the version of the film that was released to mass audiences in 1946. There were changes in the script to enhance Lauren Bacall's character as well as a few other things. There's also a terrific documentary that illustrates the differences between the two versions of the film.
The Big Sleep may have a plot that is rather complicated to follow, but the magic is that it all works anyway and it has some incredibly fine acting with magical chemistry between Bogart and Bacall. I highly recommend this film for fans of the actors in this movie; and people who enjoy film noir will not be disappointed.
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Classic film noir... by Edmonson (Canada)  4 Stars
November 25, 2009
"The Big Sleep" is one of the great film noir films. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall star in this convoluted, and atmospheric, tale of blackmailing and murder. This particular DVD has the 1945 (film noir) and 1946 (movie star/theatrical) versions of the movie on Sides A and B. A year after the film was initially finished it was thought that Lauren Bacall's character could use a little more edge, so before the movie was actually made into prints, scenes with Bacall and Bogart were completely remade. It is believed that these changes have enhanced what was already a great movie. Though a scene, between Marlowe and the Los Angles District Attroney, was also cut out of the theatrical release, which could had aided in the coherence of the story up to that point. Because of a backlog of WWII war films the release of this film was delayed, even though initially it was finished in 1945. The revised film was released in August 1946.
This DVD has an excess of dust spots throughout the entire movie. The film also has diminished contrast on the left side of the frame on numerous scenes of the film. It is surprising that some of these obvious imperfections were not rectified before being released onto DVD.
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Murder and Mayhem. by L. K Reyes (Warrenton, Virginia) 5 Stars
September 11, 2009
This movie features a lot of murders a confusing plot and terrifying gun shot scenes. Thankfully, the stars are Humphrey Bogart who plays a down to the nitty gritty private investigator and Lauren Bacall. Who portrays a well-to-do girl who it turns out is trying to protect her sister. Their chemistry is legendary and deservedly so. Although, Humphrey Bogart as is noted several times in the movie, is not much to look at. Lauren Bacall portrays class with ease. It is intriguing and worth the while.
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Bogart and Bacall At Their Best by Maxwell Smart 5 Stars
September 04, 2009
The Big Sleep magically captures all the legendary magic of Bogart and Bacall - this was the peak of their collaborations. This set includes the earlier version of the film that has a more linear story, but less chemistry between the stars. If you want to learn why Bogart and Bacall are considered the ultimate screen couple, this is the film to see.
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Great old movie by LDS (Corning, CA) 5 Stars
June 27, 2009
I have seen this movie over and over again. The writing is great, so different from today. The movie has depth and you can actually understand what the characters are saying. Great chemistry with Bogart and Bacall. I wish Hollywood made more movies like the old classics and not so much flashing and action without substance.
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SIMILAR PRODUCTS |
| To Have and Have Not (Keepcase)
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan, Dolores Moran, Hoagy Carmichael
Directed By: Howard Hawks
Also With: Howard Hawks (Producer), Jack L. Warner (Producer), Cleve F. Adams (Writer), Ernest Hemingway (Writer), Jules Furthman (Writer), Whitman Chambers (Writer), William Faulkner (Writer)
Help the Free French? Not world-weary gunrunner Harry Morgan (Humphrey Bogart). But he changes his mind when a sultry siren-in-distress named Marie asks, "Anybody got a match?" That red-hot match is Bogart and 19-year-old first-time film actress Lauren Bacall. Full of intrigue and racy banter (including Bacall's legendary whistling instructions), this thriller excites further interest for what it has and has not. Cannily directed by Howard Hawks and smartly written by William Faulkner and Jules...
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| Murder, My Sweet
Starring: Dick Powell, Claire Trevor, Anne Shirley, Otto Kruger, Mike Mazurki
Directed By: Edward Dmytryk
Also With: Harry J. Wild (Cinematographer), Joseph Noriega (Editor), Adrian Scott (Producer), Sid Rogell (Producer), John Paxton (Writer), Raymond Chandler (Writer)
A collection of classic film noir.
Genre: Suspense
Rating: NR
Release Date: 6-JUL-2004
Media Type: DVD
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| Dark Passage (Keepcase)
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Bruce Bennett, Agnes Moorehead, Tom D'Andrea
Directed By: Delmer Daves
Also With: Sidney Hickox (Cinematographer), Delmer Daves (Writer), David Weisbart (Editor), Jack L. Warner (Producer), Jerry Wald (Producer), David Goodis (Writer)
Bogey's on the lam and Bacall's at his side in Dark Passage, Delmer Daves' stylish film-noir thriller that's the third of four films Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall made together. Bogart is Vincent Parry, a prison escapee framed for murder who emerges from plastic surgery with a new face. Bacall is Irene Jansen, Vincent's lone ally. In a supporting role, Agnes Moorehead portrays Madge, a venomous harpy who finds pleasure in the unhappiness of others. The chemistry of the leads is undeniable,...
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| The Maltese Falcon Three-Disc Special Edition (1941 & 1931 versions / Satan Met a Lady)
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Mel Blanc, Bette Davis, Warren William
Directed By: Friz Freleng, Jean Negulesco, John Huston, Robert Clampett, William Dieterle
Also With: John Huston (Writer), Brown Holmes (Writer), Dashiell Hammett (Writer)
No description available for this title.
Item Type: DVD Movie
Item Rating: NR
Street Date: 10/03/06
Wide Screen: no
Director Cut: no
Special Edition: no
Language: ENGLISH
Foreign Film: noSubtitles: no
Dubbed: no
Full Frame: no
Re-Release: no
Packaging: Sleeve
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| Key Largo (Keepcase)
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Lauren Bacall, Lionel Barrymore, Claire Trevor
Directed By: John Huston
Also With: Karl Freund (Cinematographer), John Huston (Writer), Rudi Fehr (Editor), Jerry Wald (Producer), Maxwell Anderson (Writer), Richard Brooks (Writer)
A hurricane swells outside, but it's nothing compared to the storm within the hotel at Key Largo. There, sadistic mobster Johnny Rocco (Edward G. Robinson) holes up - and holds at gunpoint hotel owner Nora Temple (Lauren Bacall), her invalid father-in-law (Lionel Barrymore) and ex-GI Frank McCloud (Humphrey Bogart). McCloud's the one man capable of standing up against the belligerent Rocco. But the postwar world's realities may have taken all the fight out of him. John Huston co-wrote and...
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