Sam Spade

[5] A mysterious woman enters detective Sam Spade’s office with information about a valuable statue called the Maltese Falcon. Spade is soon swept up into a mystery involving multiple pursuers of the statue in this famous story from Dashielle Hammett. This film directed by Roy Del Ruth is the first of three film iterations of the story. The third version — directed by John Huston …

[7] A claustrophobic mystery featuring a career-launching performance from Humphrey Bogart. Characters like Sam Spade can often be played over the top, but Bogart keeps it grounded and accessible for me. I also like the ensemble of supporting players, including Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet and Mary Astor — all greedy characters who can’t be trusted. The final act puts them all in a room together, …