Overview: Following in the footsteps of Dick Powell (Murder, My Sweet) and Humphrey Bogart (The Big Sleep), James Garner (The Great Escape) brought iconic private investigator Philip Marlowe into the Age of Aquarius in this 1969 neo-noir based on Raymond Chandler’s classic novel The Little Sister.

When Orfamay Quest hires Philip Marlowe to find her brother, it seems like just another missing persons case. But soon enough Marlowe’s investigation leads him on a trail of blackmail and murder, all of it seemingly linked to a mobster and his TV star mistress. Luscious starlets, pugnacious gangsters, suspicious cops and corpses with ice picks jammed in their necks... welcome to Marlowe country!

Garner’s easy-going style is a perfect match for Chandler’s shop-soiled Galahad, paving the way for his performance in classic TV show The Rockford Files. Meanwhile, the many suspects are brought vividly to life by the likes of Carroll O’Connor (All in the Family), Rita Moreno (West Side Story), Jackie Coogan (The Addams Family), Gayle Hunnicut (The Legend of Hell House) and none other than Bruce Lee (Enter the Dragon) making his American feature debut.

Blu-ray Verdict: In order to appeal to audiences in the late 1960s, a number of new and familiar elements were mixed together to create this updated version of Raymond Chandler’s 1949 novel The Little Sister. Predictably, there’s a complicated plot that involves a missing person, blackmail and a number of murders, there’s a bunch of characters that are generally corrupt and untrustworthy and there’s plenty of sharp, witty and clever dialogue.

Instead of the usual grittiness however, there’s glossiness and bright colors replace the black and white look of earlier Marlowe movies. The creative cinematography of the past is replaced by a style that’s much more contemporary but also by comparison, rather bland.

In time-honored style, Chandler’s legendary detective is just as broke as ever and is rendered unconscious on more than one occasion as well as being hired by a number of different clients (as he was in Murder, My Sweet). This time around though, he’s noticeably less cynical and hardboiled and much more affable and easy-going.

Orfarmay Quest (Sharon Farrell) is the rather staid-looking young blonde from Kansas who hires Philip Marlowe (James Garner) to find her missing brother, Orinn. Marlowe’s investigation leads him to a rundown hotel where the manager (who’s more interested in sleeping than doing any work) gives him a key for Orinn’s room.

To his surprise, Marlowe discovers that Orinn is no longer there and the room is now occupied by a guy called Grant Hicks (Jackie Coogan). A second surprise awaits Marlowe, however, because as he leaves the hotel, he discovers that the manager’s been stabbed to death with an icepick.

Shortly after, Hicks calls Marlowe and wants to hire him. When Marlowe turns up at Hicks’ new hotel, he gets knocked over the head by a mystery woman who promptly disappears leaving him in the room with Hicks who’s been killed by someone who stabbed him with a similar icepick to the one which was used on the previous victim.

Inside Hicks’ toupee, Marlowe finds a ticket for some photos which he then collects from the shop where they’d been developed and discovers that they’re compromising shots of a popular TV star called Mavis Wald (Gayle Hunnicutt) and a notorious gangster called Sonny Steelgrave (H.M. Wynant). Orinn and Hicks had clearly been involved in a scheme to blackmail Mavis Wald.

Through his further investigations, Marlowe meets Mavis’ best friend Dolores Gonzalez (Rita Moreno) and her ex-husband Dr Lagardie (Paul Stevens) and gradually becomes aware of the intricacies of the relationships between them and the various other characters in the case and this soon proves to be the key to solving the mystery surrounding who was responsible for the various murders.

Marlowe has a very light-hearted atmosphere and the comedy potential of many incidents is exploited to the full. A great example of this is the scene in which Bruce Lee as one of Steelgrave’s henchmen, tries to bribe Marlowe and then trashes his office in spectacular style. The quality of the acting is very good throughout and James Garner brings a great deal of charm to his portrayal of Chandler’s famous private investigator. [S.B.]

Limited Edition Special Features:
Brand new restoration from the original 35mm camera negative by Arrow Films High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
Original lossless mono audio
$100 A Day (Plus Expenses), a brand new appreciation by film historian Howard S. Berger
Theatrical trailer
Image gallery
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by John Pearson
Collectors’ booklet containing new writing by critics Jeff Chang and Priscilla Page

Official Purchase Link

www.arrowvideo.com