The Maltese Falcon | Dashiell Hammett | "THE STUFF THAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF."

The Maltese Falcon | Dashiell Hammett | Hammet

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The Maltese Falcon

	The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammett Vintage, 1989 - 224 pages average customer review:based on 132 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

"THE STUFF THAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF."

THIS REVIEW WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN AS A REVIEW OF THE FILM VERSION OF MALTESE FALCON. THE MAIN POINTS THERE APPLY HERE TO THE BOOK . THE DIALOGUE AND SEQUENCING IN THE MOVIE IS VERY CLOSE TO THE WAY THE ACTION UNFOLDS IN THE BOOK.

In literature and film there have been no lack of private detective-types depicted from the urbane Nick Charles (also a Hammett creation) to Mickey Spillane's rough and tumble Mike Hammer but the classic model for all modern ones is Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade (the Humphrey Bogart role in the film) in Maltese Falcon. Some may argue Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe and may have a point but as for film adaptation Spade wins hands down. Compare, if you will, Bogart's performance in Maltese Falcon with the Big Sleep. Get my point. But enough of that. What make's Spade the classic is his intrepidness, his orneriness, his dauntless dedication to the task at hand, his sense of irony, his incorruptibility, his willingness to take an inordinate amount of bumps and bruises for paltry fees and his off-hand manner with the ladies and a gun. And in Maltese Falcon he needs all of these qualities and then some.

And for what? It is the bird, stupid. You know, the stuff that dreams are made of. This modern tale of greed and desire gets nicely worked with a cast of adventurers, including Sam's love interest, who are serious, inept, and ultimately dangerous. There is a certain amount of off-hand humor as is warranted by some of the situations thrown in to boot. Sam is well up to handling everything thrown at him by is male adversaries. But, the dame (played by Mary Astor in the film), that is a different question. She is as greedy (if not more so) than the rest but she is ready to use her feminine wiles on even the incorruptible Spade in order to get that damn bird. That, dear friends, puts her beyond the pale and she will have many a lonely night in prison to think that through. In the end Sam's honor and the honor of his profession is intact, and that's what counts.

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Hammet

One of the best writings from Hammet, if not the best. I enjoyed it very much. I couldn't stop reading to look for what happens next. A must.

Private Eye Foils Callous Crooks in Frisco

I walked into the Acropolis Bookstore at 7:30 pm, just after a cup of java and piece of apple pie. The evening rain fell steadily. Cars whizzed through the puddles on Washington Street outside. I was wearing a red wool hat, blue parka and old, black sneakers. When I saw that book on the shelf, I knew it had to be the one. I bought it, got the hell out of there. Sam's my man. He don't mess around. Dames, hoods, rogue cops---he knows how to handle'em. Back home, I lay down on the green plush sofa with its musty smell of too many New England winters and turned the pages. A great yarn. Gotta hand it to Hammett. I looked out the window. A kid was standing out under the street light, his collar turned up. I knew he was a plant, hadda get rid of the punk soon or all hell might break loose before I could write up my Amazon review.

THE MALTESE FALCON is a private eye classic---terse, colorful prose, non-stop action with very few philosophical asides, a cynical view of human nature, many twists to the plot which keeps you guessing right to the last page. Hollywood did its usual best to screw it up---a lot of simplification in plot plus whitewashing of Spade's role in the movie, even though many scenes, many lines, are instantly recognizable. Muy macho Sam Spade prevails over a bunch of treasure-hunting crooks who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a black-enamel falcon believed to be hiding a gold and jewel-encrusted treasure inside. Four beautiful `dames', a fat crook and his kid accomplice, a `Levantine" dealer, tough cops, even the D.A. This is an American classic with or without Bogie. There's no predicting life, as the story-within-the-story of Flitcraft shows, so live for today, fear not, and watch out for Number One every time. THE MALTESE FALCON reflects the world view of Americans in its day--seen also in cowboy films---of how the lone hero, if he is strong enough, can overcome all the obstacles thrown up by an unfair and uncaring society and by cruel Fate. He needs nobody else, especially not women (though he uses them at every opportunity), and always rides off into the sunset alone. While on the shelves of world literature, THE MALTESE FALCON may come across as a minor work, for a novel of this type, Hammett has created unforgettable characters in Spade, O'Shaughnessy, Gutman, Cairo, and more. Read it or you'll get what's comin' to ya.

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Very Enjoyable with a Nifty Mystery

I am a huge fan of the police procedural and mystery genre. It was only natural that I go back and read one of the early key novels in this genre.

The book was fun to read, with the good ole fashioned hard boiled talk that one would expect.

Sam Spade makes for a very interesting character. I love the way he can just toss aside would be lovers, friends, and partners as long as it serves his purpose in solving the case and looking good. Spade is not at all sympathetic, in fact few characters in this novel were.

The mystery itself was good clean fun; nothing amazing or incredibly convoluted like a P.D. James novel, but nifty none the less.

Recommended reading for any bibliophile and people interested in the police procedural/private detective genre. I think Spade adequately lays the foundation for the private eyes of today: Elvis Cole and even Kinsey Millhone.

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A Classic Detective Novel

The Maltese Falcon is a classic detective novel that is a great throwback to the private eye days of the 1920's. This book is a classic "who-done-it" mystery without all the implausible conclusions that is often written in current day mysteries. The main character Sam Spade is a street smart private eye that knows how to manipulate people and make up his own morals to get what he wants, including the girl, to solve a mystery. Spade's character simply gushes with Humphrey Bogart mannerisms and thus makes it easy for the reader to envision this guy in action. The author, Dashiell Hammett, has a unique way of developing characters and action with precisely written language that is not overly verbose. If you want to read a classic "who-done-it" mystery, then read The Maltese Falcon.

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