Farewell, My Lovely (1975 film)

Farewell, My Lovely
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Dick Richards
Produced by	Elliott Kastner Jerry Bruckheimer George Pappas
Screenplay by	David Zelag Goodman
Story by	Farewell, My Lovely Raymond Chandler
Starring	Robert Mitchum Charlotte Rampling John Ireland Sylvia Miles Anthony Zerbe
Music by	David Shire
Cinematography	John A. Alonzo
Editing by	Joel Cox Walter Thompson
Distributed by	AVCO Embassy Pictures
Release date(s)	August 8, 1975 (1975-08-08) (United States)
Running time	95 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$2,000,000 (US)

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) is a neo-noir film directed by Dick Richards and featuring Robert Mitchum and Charlotte Rampling. The picture is based on the novel Farewell, My Lovely (1940) by Raymond Chandler.

Plot

Set in Los Angeles in 1941, against a seamy backdrop of police corruption, cheap hotel rooms, illegal gambling and jewel trafficking, private detective Philip Marlowe is holed up in a hotel room and growing more weary by the hour. As he explains to his police lieutenant friend Nulty: "I've got a hat, a coat and a gun, that's it."

Marlowe has been hired by a huge and surly ex-convict, Moose Malloy, to find his old girlfriend Velma, whom he hasn't seen in years. At the same time, Marlowe is investigating the murder of a client who was a victim of blackmail and a stolen necklace made of jade.

While encountering connections to both cases, Marlowe develops an attraction to the married but seductive Helen Grayle. As the body count mounts, Marlowe survives numerous attempts on his life which include being drugged and held captive by a psychotic madam. The action comes to a head with a shootout on a gambling boat off the L.A. coast.

Cast

• Robert Mitchum as Philip Marlowe
• Charlotte Rampling as Helen Grayle
• John Ireland as Lt. Nulty
• Sylvia Miles as Jessie Halstead Florian
• Anthony Zerbe as Laird Brunette
• Harry Dean Stanton as Detective Billy Rolfe
• Jack O'Halloran as Moose Malloy
• Joe Spinell as Nick, Brunette's thug
• Sylvester Stallone as Jonnie
• Kate Murtagh as Frances Amthor
• John O'Leary as Lindsay Marriott
• Walter McGinn as Tommy Ray
• Jim Thompson as Judge Baxter Wilson Grayle

Production

Mitchum reprised the role of Philip Marlowe three years later in The Big Sleep although that film was set in the present day and in England rather than shot as a period piece in the detective's customary setting of Los Angeles.

Marlowe's client, Moose Malloy, is played by Jack O'Halloran, a former professional prizefighter. Sylvester Stallone, in an early role prior to Rocky, has a small role as an employee of the brothel's sadistic madam (played by large actress Kate Murtagh).

Jim Thompson, author of popular crime novels like The Getaway and The Grifters, appears in the film as Judge Grayle.

Reception

Critical response

Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film a positive review and wrote, "These opening shots are so evocative of Raymond Chandler's immortal Marlowe, archtypical [sic] private eye, haunting the underbelly of Los Angeles, that if we're Chandler fans we hold our breath. Is the ambience going to be maintained, or will this be another campy rip-off? Half an hour into the movie, we relax. Farewell, My Lovely never steps wrong...in the genre itself there hasn't been anything this good since Hollywood was doing Philip Marlowe the first time around. One reason is that Dick Richards, the director, takes his material and character absolutely seriously. He is not uneasy with it, as Robert Altman was when he had Elliot Gould flirt with seriousness in The Long Goodbye. Richards doesn't hedge his bet.

The staff at Variety was more critical of the film, writing, "Farewell, My Lovely is a lethargic, vaguely campy tribute to Hollywood's private eye mellers of the 1940s and to writer Raymond Chandler, whose Philip Marlowe character has inspired a number of features. Despite an impressive production and some firstrate performances, this third version fails to generate much suspense or excitement."

Film critic Dennis Schwartz believes that actor Robert Mitchum was well cast and wrote, "The film's success lies in Mitchum's hard-boiled portrayal of Marlowe, its twisty plot and the moody atmosphere it creates through John A. Alonzo's photography. Los Angeles looms as a nighttime playground for hoods, beautiful women and suckers ready to be taken by all the glitzy signs leading them astray."

Awards

Nomination

• Academy Awards: Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Sylvia Miles; 1976.
• Edgar Allan Poe Awards: Best Motion Picture, David Zelag Goodman; 1976.

Previous Adaptations

See: Farewell, My Lovely -- Film adaptations

The novel had been adapted for the screen twice before: in 1942, as The Falcon Takes Over directed by Irving Reis and featuring George Sanders as The Falcon in place of Philip Marlowe; and in 1944, as Murder, My Sweet, featuring Dick Powell as Marlowe and directed by Edward Dmytryk.

Mitchum would go on to play Marlowe again in another movie, 1978's The Big Sleep, becoming the only actor to play the character in two different feature films. Actors who played Marlowe in earlier movies include Dick Powell (1944), Humphrey Bogart (1946), Robert Montgomery (1947), George Montgomery (1947), James Garner (1969) and Elliot Gould (1973).

Soundtrack

An original motion picture vinyl soundtrack album composed by David Shire was released in 1975 by United Artists Records. The album contained 11 tracks.

Track listing

• 1. Main Title (Marlowe's Theme)
• 2. Velma / Chinese Pool Hall / To the Mansion
• 3. Mrs. Grayle's Theme
• 4. Amthor's Place
• 5. Mrs. Florian Takes the Full Count
• 6. Marlowe's Trip
• 7. Convalescence Montage
• 8. Take Me to Your Lido
• 9. Three Mile Limited
• 10. Moose Finds His Velma
• 11. End Title (Marlowe's Theme)

External links

• Farewell, My Lovely at the Internet Movie Database
• Farewell, My Lovely at Rotten Tomatoes
• Farewell, My Lovely at the TCM Movie Database
• Farewell, My Lovely trailer at You Tube