The Big Sleep, released in 1946, is another classic Film Noir I watched. The storyline is revolved around the male protagonist, Philip Marlow, who is a private detective. He is summoned by the dying General Sternwood, and asked to deal with several problems that are troubling his family, consisting of two Femme Fatale daughter. The story includes blackmail, seduction and murders. In the film many conventions are seen; smoking, shadows, urban settings and low key lighting for example.
Carmen is the younger daughter Femme Fatale, being the one who had murdered a man and planned to murder Philip the same way at the end of the story, after failing to seduce him (in one scene she lays waiting for him in his apartment, naked on his bed, but he kicks her out). Throughout the film she acts innocent and young, playing with her hair etc, although she is secretly very twisted. She also is involved in illegal pornography, posing for a photoshoot in the film.
The older daughter, Vivien Sternwood Rutledge, is a Femme Fatale too in some aspects as she too is well made up and seductive like her younger sister. However she is more mature and independant, being intelligent and good at comebacks to Marlow. She leads the protagonist astray, but unlike some Femme Fatales I think she genuinely falls in love with Marlow as he does, although having a missing husband makes things complicated.
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