The Maltese Falcon

Dashiell Hammett invented the hard-boiled detective, and The Maltese Falcon was his greatest book. No one but Raymond Chandler could have written this perfect screenplay, adapted from Hammett's novel with such fidelity. Another actor could have portrayed Sam Spade, but Humphrey Bogart did it with such conviction that we can't imagine anyone else in that role all these years later. And no one but Director John Houston could have put all the pieces together. The Maltese Falcon reveals the light and darkness of the American soul as no other book and film ever have.