Treasure of the Sierra Madre

Bogart plays and anti-hero across from a quirky Walter Huston, and Tim Holt. The movie is a bit obvious with Bogart's character becoming a real life realization of the parable Huston's character told in the shelter relating to the nature of man, greed, and what gold will do to a man's soul. The end of the movie was particularly susceptible to some awkward, forced deus ex machina, such as the Indian's asking Huston to come revive the drowned boy--who displayed symptoms not consistent with either shock, a coma, or water ingestion--and the bandit's not recognizing unrefined gold in the saddle bags and discarding them. Entertaining if you are the mood for spaghetti Tex-Mex.

The Africa Queen

There is something wonderful about formula of Katherine Hepburn as a middle aged, strait-laced, spinster being swept off her feet by an uncouth, drunk everyman played by [insert leading man]. It's a niche Hepburn played well, and her Rose Sayer doesn't disappoint, though I have to admit, I was puzzled by her ethnicity. She initially had an English accent, which she appeared to give up on five minutes into the film. It's also nice to see Boggie playing a rougher, less mysterious character than his more well known Sam Spade and Rick Blaine. The movie is a bit unrealistic, but it's a nice little bit of indulgent, sticking it to the Nazis. Parts can be slow, but overall the bantering between Hepburn and Bogart is a delight to watch.

The Maltese Falcon

Yay San Francisco! Seems like San Fran is the setting of a lot of Femme Fetale/ detective/ film noir type movies (Vertigo being the other). Anyway Humphrey Bogart is good as Sam Spade (seems that Bogart and Gable were the inspiration for bugs bunny, ironic since the last movie I reviewed was It Happened One Night) as is Mary Astor. I do have to say my favorite character is Peter Lorre as the effeminate Joel Cairo (who until today I did not know was in Casablanca also). I like the movie because Spade is sort of the anti-hero, always fighting for the good but leading the police and criminals to think he is also a crook. While he does in the end prove to be an idealist, turning in Brigid O'Shaughnessy, it is sort of hallow since all the while, the audience (and Sam) knows that he had an affair with his partner's wife.