All 12 Philip Marlowe movies and TV shows, ranked
Movie and TV list: Raymond Chandler’s iconic private eye has taken on a variety of guises through the years, leading to varying quality of films and TV shows.
Raymond Chandler
Glover heads up TV’s alterna-Marlowes in ‘Red Wind’ (1995)
Sleuthing Sunday (TV reviews): “Fallen Angels” also adapts Chandler’s “I’ll Be Waiting.” Plus: A look at other small-screen Marlowes.
Marlowe ages well in ‘Black-Eyed Blonde’ (2014), not so much in ‘Marlowe’ (2022)
Sleuthing Sunday (Book and movie reviews): Benjamin Black pens an elite pastiche novel, but the adaptation continues filmdom’s weird obsession with older Marlowes.
‘Poodle Springs’ (1998) keeps the plot, changes Marlowe character
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): Caan’s gumshoe is a workaholic approaching retirement age more so than someone navigating a work-marriage balance.
Boothe powers through ‘Philip Marlowe, Private Eye’ (1983, 1986)
Sleuthing Sunday (TV review): The quality drops between the two seasons of HBO’s first original dramatic series.
‘Marlowe’ (1969) brings the detective into the Swinging Sixties
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): James Garner starts his private eye career in this adaptation of “The Little Sister.”
Marlowe finds love in ‘Brasher Doubloon’s’ (1947) lighter take on ‘High Window’
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): George Montgomery makes Chandler’s P.I. into more of an ole softie than we’re accustomed to.
‘Lady in the Lake’s’ (1947) direct-POV experiment is all wet
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): Unfortunately, the mystery of Chandler’s strong fourth novel gets lost in a quest for a new style.
Marlowe properly comes to screen in ‘Murder, My Sweet’ (1944)
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): The screenplay reassembles elements of “Farewell, My Lovely” in an intriguing way, and Dick Powell is a pleasing Marlowe.
Mitchum ably fills Marlowe’s gumshoes in ‘Farewell, My Lovely’ (1975), ‘Big Sleep’ (1978)
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie reviews): The first is a stylish, purist classic. The second makes odd choices and never has a chance of competing with Bogart’s version.