The Long Goodbye (1973)

Detective Philip Marlowe tries to help a friend who is accused of murdering his wife.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

Leigh Brackett (screenplay), Raymond Chandler (novel)

Stars:

Elliott Gould, Nina van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elliott Gould	...	Philip Marlowe
Nina van Pallandt	...	Eileen Wade
Sterling Hayden	...	Roger Wade
Mark Rydell	...	Marty Augustine
Henry Gibson	...	Dr. Verringer
David Arkin	...	Harry
Jim Bouton	...	Terry Lennox
Warren Berlinger	...	Morgan
Jo Ann Brody	...	Jo Ann Eggenweiler
Stephen Coit	...	Detective Farmer (as Steve Coit)
Jack Knight	...	Mabel
Pepe Callahan	...	Pepe
Vincent Palmieri	...	Vince (as Vince Palmieri)
Pancho Córdova	...	Doctor (as Pancho Cordoba)
Enrique Lucero	...	Jefe

Storyline

In the middle of the night, private eye Philip Marlowe drives his friend Terry Lennox to the Mexican border. When Marlowe returns home police are waiting for him and learns that Terry's wife Sylvia has been killed. He's arrested as an accessory but released after a few days and is told the case is closed since Terry Lennox has seemingly committed suicide in Mexico. Marlowe is visited by mobster Marty Augustine who wants to know what happened to the $350,000 Lennox was supposed to deliver for him. Meanwhile, Marlowe is hired by Eileen Wade to find her husband Roger who has a habit of disappearing when he wants to dry out but she can't find him in any any of his usual haunts. He finds him at Dr. Veringer's clinic and brings him. It soon becomes obvious to Marlowe that Terry's death, the Wades and Augustine are all somehow interconnected. Figuring out just what those connections are however will be anything but easy.

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Plot Keywords:

neo noir | private detective | malibu california | suicide | murder | 

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Taglines:

"I have two friends in the world. One is a cat. The other is a murderer." - Elliot Gould as Phillip Marlowe

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 November 1973 (France)

Also Known As:

The Long Goodbye

Filming Locations:

1100 Block, Westwood Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,700,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$959,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

E-K-Corporation, Lion's Gate Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of a number of 1970s spoofs of film noir and hard-boiled detective films of the 1940s from the likes of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, some of which starred Humphrey Bogart, who was the main target of the parodies. The films included Peeper (1975), The Long Goodbye (1973), Woody Allen's Play It Again, Sam (1972), Murder by Death (1976) and The Cheap Detective (1978), both from Neil Simon and The Man with Bogart's Face (1980).

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Goofs

The ink handprints include the palm of Marlowe's hand, but it did not appear that the palm of his hand was on the ink pad.

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Quotes

[Augustine has found a $5000 bill in Marlowe's pocket]
Marty Augustine: What's that?
Philip Marlowe: A picture of James Madison.
Marty Augustine: It's a $5000 bill.
Philip Marlowe: I know.
Marty Augustine: Where'd you get this?
Philip Marlowe: A box of crackerjacks, came as a prize.

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Connections

Referenced in Valerie: The Long Goodbye (1989)

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Soundtracks

The Long Goodbye
by John Williams and Johnny Mercer
Performed by The Dave Grusin Trio, Jack Sheldon, Clydie King, Jack Riley, Morgan Ames, Aluminum Band, The Tepoztlan Municipal Band

User Reviews

No mixed feelings about this one....worked for me

It's true. You can't have mixed feelings about The Long Good-bye; you'll either love it or hate it. I started the movie with what I pretended was an open mind, but a secret hope that I'd be fully justified in hating it. In my defense, The Maltese Falcon is my favorite movie and Bogie is my favorite actor. Noir is my favorite film genre and I love Howard Hawk's The Big Sleep wihich had Bogart as the definitive Marlowe.

Altman's take on Chandler's other book with private eye Marlowe, The Long Good-bye, updates the action to the 1970's. He introduces a very 70's theme song and finds as different an actor as he can from Bogart for the role of Marlowe. From the opening frame, Elliot Gould plays Marlowe like a push-over. He's a man who constantly mutters to himself, suffers nervous tics, can't even fool his cat, is afraid of dog's and seems to be the only man not attracted to his sexy hippie neighbors despite their friendliness towards him and obvious promiscuousness.

However, Gould really creates a unique persona with the way he walks, talks, wise-cracks and operates. He becomes a believable person - which is why the uncharacteristic ending is so impacting. The photography, especially the night scenes, are beautifully filmed. The theme music plays everywhere - a Mexican funeral, a doorbell, a car radio etc and with different singers. There are other layers of flesh added to the telling that really work - like the compound security guards impressions of James Stewart, Barbara Stanwyck, Cary Grant and best of all Walter Brennan aka Stumpy from Rio Bravo.

This movie worked great for me and the plot, intricate though it was, was understandable. I will not compare this Marlowe to Bogart's, but do find it admirable that Altman just stuck to the goal of making a good movie without trying to ape or make obvious references to the noir genre.