Respond to these rapid questions in our Marlowe quiz and we will tell you which Marlowe character you are. Play it now.
Even if he had played Philip Marlowe thirty or forty years earlier, 70-year-old Liam Neeson would be an unusual choice. In Raymond Chandler’s novel L.A. Whatever his mood might have been (and it was frequently not good), the detective was capable of striking a vivacious figure. The majority of the great actors who have portrayed Marlowe over the years, such as Humphrey Bogart, Dick Powell, James Garner, and Elliott Gould, have all embodied this in Chandler’s books and Marlowe himself. Neeson has a weight to him that doesn’t let up, even when he’s playing a comedic role—clearing chain fences in thirteen slashes in seven seconds, or whatever it was. It can result in performances that lack gravitas when used in the incorrect situations.
The truth is that Neeson, 70, is back with “Michael Collins” director Neil Jordan to play the lead character in “Marlowe,” which was authorized by the estate of Raymond Chandler and adapted from a John Banville novel rather than one by Chandler. The film, which is set in Bay City, Los Angeles in 1939, begins with a shot of palm palms in the sun before showing us Marlowe feigning awakening.
Marlowe was never a character who was light or intended to be taken lightly, despite having a sprightly appearance. Marlowe is not a happy person. The detective was envisioned by Chandler as a type of contemporary knight. There was a feeling of duty concealed behind his biting one-liners and ironic observations. According to the old song, a guy must uphold his moral standards. Jordan and Neeson are, as was Chandler’s Marlowe. Neeson occasionally behaves as if he has just been run over by a steamroller, in contrast to other Marlowes in film who were only given away for being simply weary of the world.
But you shouldn’t waste any more time and start this Marlowe quiz.
That isn’t an issue, or rather, it doesn’t have to be an issue. I was able to appreciate this movie to some extent by choosing not to make it one, or, in other words, by letting Neeson and Jordan have their say.
Marlowe Quiz
The plot is not the kind of nearly Gordian knot that was typical of Chandler’s novels. In some ways, it reminds me more of “Chinatown,” especially with Danny Huston’s transparent—and white-suited appearance!—villain highlights that. Marlowe is approached by Clare Cavendish, played by Diane Kruger, a married woman who is a little miffed about the disappearance of her young, boyfriend who works in the film business. It turns out that the person faked his death; Clare knew this, but she didn’t inform Marlowe when she hired her. It also turns out that Clare has a dowager-like mother (Jessica Lange) who has a keen interest in both her daughter’s private life and the life of an apparent “ambassador” who is actively contributing to the success of a (fictitious) film company.
Also, you will find out which character are you in this Marlowe quiz.
Huston’s sleazy nightclub owner, a terrified sister-of-the-not-actually-deceased, an aging starlet with some dope on the not-actually-deceased, a couple of Marlowe’s cop friends, a side order of a corrupt bigwig played by Alan Cumming, and a savvier-than-expected chauffeur (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) are also added.
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The problem is that “Marlowe” doesn’t really percolate. The dialogue in William Monahan and Neil Jordan’s screenplay is laced with references to Christopher Marlowe, James Joyce, William Strunk, Jr., and Greek myth, maintaining a pace and tone that is almost elegiac (enhanced and occasionally slightly overthrown by David Holmes’ multi-varied score). He gives each of his characters a sense of self-consciousness and the knowledge that they are participants in a stream of rot, where some prefer to wallow and others prefer to emerge at least somewhat clean. You’re a very perceptive and sensitive guy, Mr. Marlowe,” Kruger’s character tells Neeson early on. The rest of the movie elaborates on that statement, I imagine it leads you into trouble.
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There are a lot of fight sequences, but Neeson never rushes into them to demonstrate his, er, skills. He scans the room, evaluates the circumstance, and plans his initial move as if solving a chess problem before delivering a blow. After one set-to, he notes that, yes, he is growing too old for this (which is something Marlowe actually does, both on the page and in this picture). The movie does build up a head of sinister steam, leading to a climactic nightclub siege that’s a riot of colored lights (reminiscing scenes from Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange” and Martin Scorsese’s “New York, New York”) and grisly corpses, but this cinematic prose-poem contemplates the truth that “too old” also can mean “not dead yet.”
In this scenario, Marlowe’s code is subject to internal discussion. By the end of the film, the investigator acts in a way that Raymond Chandler would not consider appropriate for a Dashiell Hammett protagonist. This may be revisionist, but it was done intelligently and, yes. awareness and perceptiveness.
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For more personality quizzes check this: Breeding Difficulty Quiz.
