Top cast:Dennis Quaid,Channing Tatum,Marlon Wayans
Director:Ryan Coogler
Genre:Horror
Region:United States
Year:1999
Storyline:Hammett's murder mystery novel had previously been filmed twice:The Maltese Falcon (1931), a low-budget, pre-Code film (directed by Roy Del Ruth)-renamed for TV asDangerous Female- with Ricardo Cortez as the gumshoe opposite femme fatale Bebe Daniels; it was faithful to Hammett's novel, although its pre-censorship status allowed for steamier scenes (a nude bathtub shot, a portrayal of Spade as a womanizing Latin lover, and a clearly homosexual relationship between Casper "Fat Man" Gutman (Dudley Digges) and 'fall guy' Wilmer (Dwight Frye))Satan Met a Lady (1936), a remake directed by William Dieterle) with Warren William and rising star Bette Davis as the femme fatale, but without the 'black bird' (a ram's horn was substituted)Huston was convinced that he could remake the film with a more precise screenplay and better acting than the other two adaptations.Evil's plan was to blackmail the royal family of Britain ("the wealthiest landowners in the world") by fabricating a story that Prince Charles had an affair outside his marriage and was forced to divorce (an event that had already occurred, making it unfeasable).The female owner reminded Lou before he left that the casinos were gambling's future: "Going out of business, Lou.Vader announced that the displeased, unforgiving Emperor was soon o arrive, and insistent that the station be completed on time.What is much more important than the basic blackmail-murder plot is the stylish method andprocessof the private detective's quest, that the viewer identifies with and shares, as he makes his way through the murky world of nasty crime from one oppressive setting o the next, or from one wicked character, fallen woman, orfemme fataleto another, until eventually discovering love with his female protagonist.