Derek Winnert

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This article was written on 25 Jan 2014, and is filled under Reviews.

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Farewell, My Lovely **** (1975, Robert Mitchum, Charlotte Rampling, John Ireland, Harry Dean Stanton, Anthony Zerbe, Joe Spinell, Sylvia Miles) – Classic Movie Review 740

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Director Dick Richards just caught Robert Mitchum, aged 58, while he was still in his world-weary prime in 1975 to play classic private eye Philip Marlowe in this enjoyable, taut and atmospheric remake of Raymond Chandler’s brilliant hardboiled thriller Farewell, My Lovely.

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The 1975 Farewell, My Lovely is the third movie of the novel, after George Sanders’s original version as The Falcon Takes Over in 1942 and Dick Powell’s classic version in 1944, Farewell, My Lovely, aka Murder, My Sweet.

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Satisfyingly, David Zelag Goodman’s screenplay follows Chandler’s plot quite closely this time as Marlowe tries to locate the long-missing Velma, a former dancer at a seedy nightclub and the old girlfriend of Moose Malloy (Jack O’Halloran), a petty criminal newly out of jail now searching for her. Murder and mayhem follow. John Ireland plays Detective Lieutenant Nulty and Harry Dean Stanton is Detective Billy Rolfe, the cops on the case, also looking for Velma and the killer.

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Perhaps ‘old snake eyes’ Mitchum should have played the role sooner, but he is very engaging and involving as the world-weary detective (and he sure does look properly weary!). And there are just the right star character actors for the support cast, with Charlotte Rampling as Mrs Grayle / Velma, Ireland, O’Halloran, Stanton, Anthony Zerbe as Brunette, Joe Spinell as Nick and Kate Murtagh as Amthor.

Sylvia Miles was Oscar-nominated as Mrs Florian and Sylvester Stallone has a bit part, just a tiny role as a hood called Jonnie in the film he made immediately before becoming a superstar with Rocky in 1976.

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Avoiding parody and going for respectful homage, director Richards whips up a heady 1940s nostalgic feel and period atmosphere with the hardboiled first-person narration, sleazy urban trappings and the casting of Charlotte Rampling as the slinky femme fatale. Rampling is very much in the Lauren Bacall mould as Mrs Helen Grayle, aka Velma Valento, also memorably played by Claire Trevor in the 1944 version.

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Farewell, My Lovely is set in 1941 but when Mitchum returned to the role of Marlowe in director Michael Winner’s The Big Sleep in 1978, it was set in 1977.

Also in the cast are John O’Leary, Walter McGinn, Burton Gilliam, Jim Thompson, Jimmy Archer, Ted Gehring, Logan Ramsey, Margie Hall and Jack Bernardi.

Farewell, My Lovely is directed by Dick Richards, runs 97 minutes, is made by EK Corporation and ITC Films, released by Avco Embassy Pictures (1975) (US) and Fox-Rank (1975) (UK), is written by David Zelag Goodman, based on Raymond Chandler’s novel, shot in Technicolor by John A Alonzo, produced by George Pappas and Jerry Bruckheimer, scored by David Shire and designed by Dean Tavoularis and Angelo Graham, with special effects by Chuck Gaspar.

http://derekwinnert.com/the-big-sleep-mitchum-1978-classic-film-review-742/

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 740

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