The Maltese Falcon (1941)

There’s not much, if anything that needs to be added to the discussion over John Huston’s masterful 1941 neo noir thriller. Humphrey Bogart’s private eye Sam Spade is hired by a lady named Ruth, who asks him to track down her sister, who has disappeared with another man. When Spade’s partner Miles Archer, who had begun to track Ruth’s sister, winds up dead, Sam goes on the hunt for Miles’ killer, delving into a web of intrigue and deceit, and most notably a certain statuette known as the Maltese Falcon, one of the greatest McGuffin’s in cinematic history. As I said, there’s not much more one can say about Huston’s film; over eighty years later it’s now one of the most influential noir thrillers in film history, wonderfully acted and superbly directed. 8.1/10