Clark Art Institute, a Flim

Based on Raymond Chandler’s novel of the same name, The Big Sleep (1946) might be the high-water mark of Hollywood’s love affair with the infinitely slippery possibilities of the English language. It is also a study in the evasiveness of genre. Although the morals are skewed, the bullets plentiful, and the femmes most definitely fatale, Bogart’s Marlowe is a decent, (mostly) unconflicted hero, and much of the film takes place not in the shadowy streets but in a series of well-lit, beautifully appointed rooms. This only makes the film feel more subversive, as though the seedy criminal underworld were spilling over into real life, bringing with it the grim but thrilling aura of sexual abandon and sudden death. (Run time: 1 hour, 56 minutes)

Free. Accessible seats available; for information, call 413 458 0524.

Image: The Big Sleep, Howard Hawks, 1946