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Murder, My Sweet

  • 19441944
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 1h 35m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
13K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
Trailer for this suspense film
Play trailer2:12
1 Video
99+ Photos
  • Crime
  • Drama
  • Film-Noir
After being hired to find an ex-con's former girlfriend, Philip Marlowe is drawn into a deeply complex web of mystery and deceit.After being hired to find an ex-con's former girlfriend, Philip Marlowe is drawn into a deeply complex web of mystery and deceit.After being hired to find an ex-con's former girlfriend, Philip Marlowe is drawn into a deeply complex web of mystery and deceit.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
13K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Edward Dmytryk
  • Writers
    • John Paxton(screenplay)
    • Raymond Chandler(novel)
  • Stars
    • Dick Powell
    • Claire Trevor
    • Anne Shirley
Top credits
  • Director
    • Edward Dmytryk
  • Writers
    • John Paxton(screenplay)
    • Raymond Chandler(novel)
  • Stars
    • Dick Powell
    • Claire Trevor
    • Anne Shirley
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 133User reviews
    • 68Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Murder, My Sweet
    Trailer 2:12
    Murder, My Sweet

    Photos113

    Dick Powell and Anne Shirley in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Anne Shirley in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Mike Mazurki, Dick Powell, and Dewey Robinson in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Bernice Ahi in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Claire Trevor in Murder, My Sweet (1944)
    Dick Powell and Anne Shirley in Murder, My Sweet (1944)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Dick Powell
    Dick Powell
    • Philip Marloweas Philip Marlowe
    Claire Trevor
    Claire Trevor
    • Helen Grayleas Helen Grayle
    Anne Shirley
    Anne Shirley
    • Ann Grayleas Ann Grayle
    Otto Kruger
    Otto Kruger
    • Jules Amthoras Jules Amthor
    Mike Mazurki
    Mike Mazurki
    • Joe 'Moose' Malloyas Joe 'Moose' Malloy
    Miles Mander
    Miles Mander
    • Leuwen Grayleas Leuwen Grayle
    Douglas Walton
    Douglas Walton
    • Lindsay Marriottas Lindsay Marriott
    Donald Douglas
    Donald Douglas
    • Police Lt. Randallas Police Lt. Randall
    • (as Don Douglas)
    Ralf Harolde
    Ralf Harolde
    • Dr. Sonderborgas Dr. Sonderborg
    Esther Howard
    Esther Howard
    • Jessie Florianas Jessie Florian
    Ernie Adams
    Ernie Adams
    • Bartender at 'Florian's'as Bartender at 'Florian's'
    • (uncredited)
    Bernice Ahi
    Bernice Ahi
    • Dancer at the 'Cocoanut Beach Club'as Dancer at the 'Cocoanut Beach Club'
    • (uncredited)
    George Anderson
    • Detectiveas Detective
    • (uncredited)
    Edward Biby
    Edward Biby
    • Club Patronas Club Patron
    • (uncredited)
    Jack Carr
    • Dr. Sonderborg's Assistantas Dr. Sonderborg's Assistant
    • (uncredited)
    Tom Coleman
    • Police Clerkas Police Clerk
    • (uncredited)
    Ralph Dunn
    Ralph Dunn
    • Detectiveas Detective
    • (uncredited)
    Sam Finn
    • Headwaiteras Headwaiter
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Edward Dmytryk
    • Writers
      • John Paxton(screenplay)
      • Raymond Chandler(novel)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      For the scene in which Marlowe is drugged, Edward Dmytryk showed Dick Powell falling through a sea of faces. He borrowed a trick from "Saboteur (1942)" by having the camera pull back from the actor to make it seem like he was falling. He also had the camera accelerate as it pulled back, to intensify the horror.
    • Goofs
      When Powell leaves the car to look for the person for the payoff, he draws his gun from his left pocket, then replaces it in his left pocket. After he is sapped and woken up, he draws it from his right pocket.
    • Quotes

      Philip Marlowe: She was a charming middle-aged lady with a face like a bucket of mud. I gave her a drink. She was a gal who'd take a drink, if she had to knock you down to get the bottle.

    • Alternate versions
      Exists in color-computerized version.
    • Connections
      Edited into American Cinema: Film Noir (1995)

    User reviews133

    Review
    Top review
    10/10
    The Screen's Best Marlowe
    "I caught the blackjack right behind my ear. A black pool opened up at my feet. I dived in; it had no bottom."- Phillip Marlowe in MURDER, MY SWEET.

    There are plenty of bottomless pools in MURDER, MY SWEET, Edward Dmytryk's outstanding noir. Tapping into a direct line to the dark places of the human psyche, the film raises the curtain on one shadowy scene after another. It leads the viewer on a convoluted trip through a very gloomy and treacherous labyrinth where oily con men, pesky cops, scheming ladies, and at least one gargantuan lovesick Romeo put the down-at-heels private investigator through the wringer.

    Moose Malloy's vanished girlfriend (and a tidy retainer) occupies Marlowe at first. Then, when an expensive jade necklace needs retrieving (with another fat fee offered), Marlowe bites again. But suddenly those too deep pools begin to appear.

    John Paxton's screenplay has the cast of characters thinking out loud a lot, which helps occasionally. But just as in Raymond Chandler's other overly schematic crime story, THE BIG SLEEP, strict attention must be paid. Yet even if you become confused, you can still revel in Harry J. Wilde's sterling cinematography. (As mentioned in another review, Wilde, along with a slew of other people, including Orson Welles, shot additional scenes for THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS for which he and the others received no credit. As Welles himself intones rather solemnly at that film's conclusion: "Stanley Cortez was the photographer").

    The really big draw in MURDER is Dick Powell, not just delivering a career-changing performance (and being the first actor to play Marlowe) but also giving the best interpretation of Marlowe on film- and that includes Bogart's fine outing in Hawks' THE BIG SLEEP(1946), Robert Mitchum's two disappointing films, and Elliot Gould's daring 1973 performance in Altman's THE LONG GOODBYE. Powell projects the detective's weary cynicism and dogged determination without any hint of showy mannerism or overplayed toughness. His presence is completely natural and convincing, far from any Hollywood ham acting.

    In addition, MURDER, MY SWEET presents the polished villainy of Otto Kruger, slithering around Powell with his characteristic reptilian menace; Anne Shirley as a spunky good girl who brightens the gloom somewhat; and, on the femme fatale side, the high voltage glare of Claire Trevor, laminated in heavy make-up like a pricey, megawatt doxy. Literally towering over everything is Mike Mazurki's Moose (far more effective than Jack O'Halloran's catatonic trance in Mitchum's FAREWELL, MY LOVELY). Mazurki's silent entrance into Marlowe's office at the beginning sets the uneasy mood where huge, powerful forces stir and then emerge from the darkness.
    helpful•110
    14
    • Arriflex1
    • Jul 22, 2004

    FAQ9

    • Is "Murder, My Sweet" based on a novel?
    • Why did they change the name of the movie?
    • How closely does the movie follow the novel?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 22, 1945 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Farewell, My Lovely
    • Filming locations
      • Argyle Hotel - 8358 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, California, USA
    • Production company
      • RKO Radio Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    • Budget
      • $400,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 35 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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