Mean Streets on the Silver Screen

Abstract

The Marlowe movies overarch several decades; the first of note being The Falcon Takes Over of 1942, and the latest Poodle Springs of 1998 with the ageing James Caan (Sonny Corleone of The Godfather). These movies are not just artistic creations; they also serve as case studies of the era they were made in. From the long list of Marlowe movies, I have chosen three, Marlowe (1969), The Long Goodbye (1973) and Poodle Springs (1998), to analyze and serve as the core of my thesis. The reason behind my choice was, first and foremost, that from this pool of films, these are my favorite ones, and, in my opinion, they bear the most artistic value. Secondly, the scope of a BA thesis does not allow me to compare and contrast all movies in one paper.