12.6 New Hollywood Neo-Noir: The Long Goodbye (out of place)
New Hollywood Neo-Noir: The Long Goodbye
This is the first time I came up with an idea for an answer and didn't follow the directions for the essay. Hopefully, I'll do ok. I also didn't cite any sources.
Directions:
For this Discussion you will dig into your observation and thinking about distinct similarities and differences between examples of Classical Noir we've studied in the course and this new iteration, or re-imagination of noir via New Hollywood.
While you can refer to Module material, resources, readings and the Naremore text I am more interested in your synthesis of this information and your developing thoughts on the topic(s). Please include any proper citations (especially if utilizing quotes). You may wish to revisit Paul Schrader's Notes on "Film Noir," Download Paul Schrader's Notes on "Film Noir,"earlier assigned readings and/or Module materials. I encourage uploading a still and/or clip to help illustrate your claim(s).
What is distinctly different/new in Robert Altman's approach to Phillip Marlowe and the overall structure/execution of The Long Goodbye in terms of it's relationship to Classical Noir?
What (if anything) remains constant in Altman's neo-noir The Long Goodbye in relation to Classical Noir? How so? Or why not?
My Essay:
Philip Marlowe is a likeable chain-smoking private investigator (fictional character) created by Raymond Chandler that he wrote about in a series of detective novels. The Philip Marlowe novels have been made into film adaptations including Murder, My Sweet (1944) with Dick Powell and The Big Sleep (1946) with Humphrey Bogart. In the 1970’s film director Robert Altman resurrected the detective and it was played by Elliot Gould. Robert Altman played with the noir genre and placed the detective in the 1970s in The Long Goodbye (1973).
I found similarities between the New Hollywood Robert Altman’s (Gould) Marlowe and the Classical noir of Howard Hawks’s (Bogart) Marlowe. I believe Altman’s film was an homage to noir but particularly to the Bogart version in The Big Sleep.
In The Big Sleep when people ask Bogart why he is a private investigator, he says that he was on the police force, but was kicked out due to insubordination. In The Long Goodbye Gould was very insubordinate to the police during their questioning of him. The police were treating him rough and trying to force a confession out of him. He wasn’t taking them seriously even after being booked as a murder suspect.
Bogart’s Marlowe didn’t take a lot of things seriously either, like the rich. He had a cool comeback for all of them even the ladies. In The Big Sleep, Carmen Sternwood looks him up and down and says, “You’re not very tall, are you?” Marlowe says, “Well, I uh, I tried to be.” She was in judgment of him and he didn’t care.
Just as Gould didn’t care wearing his dated outfit with a wrinkly shirt and tie to the wealthy home of Mr. Wade. Mr. Wade tells him, “You know what I wish you would do? I wish you would take off that goddam JC Penney tie off and settle down with me and what you are I are going to do is have an old fashioned man-to-man drinking party.” Gould replies, “That’s okay with me, but I’m not going to take my tie off.”
I find this scene similar in both films. It is the meeting with the wealthy men in their estates. In The Big Sleep Bogart meets General Sternwood, a wealthy, respected and difficult man. He has Bogart meet him in an uncomfortable overheated greenhouse. The heat is good for the older man’s body. The General can no longer drink, but he likes to watch a man drink. Bogart is just as tough as the old man and not intimidated by him at all and drinks. The General gives Bogart the job and they both visibly like and respect each other at the end.
In The Long Goodbye, Gould has a meeting with Mr. Wade in his estate in Malibu Colony. He is a different sort of tough man; he is loud and alcoholic and a bit physically menacing. In a similar scene, Mr. Wade sits Gould down to speak to him in the yard, but asks him to sit in the sun facing him and to drink with him. Wade’s arrogance does not intimidate Gould. He sits there and Gould actually takes the upper hand in the questions. They both drink together and at the end, Wade likes Gould. I think Gould is just sympathetic toward him.
One big similarity is that both these men put their visitors in an uncomfortable position during their conversations. The General could have taken a little time out of his Orchid room to make Bogart comfortable. Wade could have offered for them to both sit in the shade. It was kind a power move by two rich men doing it because they could and perhaps vetting out a weaker man.
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