The Maltese Falcon is a 1941 film noir with screenplay by and directed by John Huston in his directorial debut, and based on Dashiell Hammett's 1930 novel of the same name. It stars Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor and co-starring Gladys George, Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet.
Plot
Detective Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) gets more than he bargained for when he takes a case brought to him by a beautiful but secretive woman (Mary Astor). As soon as Miss Wonderly shows up, trouble follows as Sam's partner is murdered and Sam is accosted by a man (Peter Lorre) demanding he locate a valuable statuette. Sam, entangled in a dangerous web of crime and intrigue, soon realizes he must find the one thing they all seem to want: the bejeweled Maltese falcon.
Cast
- Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade
- Mary Astor as Ruth Wonderly/Brigid O'Shaughnessy
- Gladys George as Iva Archer
- Peter Lorre as Joel Cairo
- Barton MacLane as Lieutenant Dundy
- Lee Patrick as Effie Perine
- Sydney Greenstreet as Kasper Gutman
- Ward Bond as Detective Tom Polhaus
- Jerome Cowan as Miles Archer
- Elisha Cook Jr. as Wilmer Cook
- James Burke as Luke, hotel detective
- Murray Alper as Frank Richman, taxi driver
- John Hamilton as District Attorney Bryan
- Walter Huston as Captain Jacoby (uncredited)