The Hope College Knickerbocker Theatre will feature four Humphrey Bogart films on consecutive Mondays as part of its Classic Film Series. Focusing on his films from the 1940s, the series will feature “The Maltese Falcon” on Jan. 13, “Casablanca” on Jan. 20, “To Have and Have Not” on Jan. 27 and “The Big Sleep” on Feb. 3. All films are at 7 p.m.
Named the greatest male film star of all time by the American Film Institute, Bogart defined the noir detective role, creating the persona of “cool” along the way. The Academy Award winner dominated the 1940s and 1950s with a long list of now-classic films.
The series will open on Jan. 13 with the film that made Bogart a star with his role as Sam Spade in an adaptation of Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon.” The 1941 classic tale of deception and greed follows Spade’s investigation into the murder of his partner, which leads him into a web of intrigue revolving around a valuable statue of a falcon. The film was the directorial debut of John Huston and co-stars Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Mary Astor as the treacherous female foil.
“Casablanca,” which regularly appears on lists of all-time greatest films, will show on Jan. 20. The 1942 film casts Bogart in his first romantic lead, opposite Ingrid Bergman. Bogart is Rick Blaine, an American living in Casablanca and walking a thin line between the Nazis, the Vichy government and the resistance. A man with a mysterious past, Blaine must ultimately decide between his love for a woman and supporting the resistance movement against the Nazis. The film won the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director (Michael Curtiz), and Bogart was nominated for Best Actor. The film also features Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Dooley Wilson, Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre.
Ernest Hemingway’s novel “To Have and Have Not” is the basis for the 1944 film version showing on Jan. 27. The film follows Harry Morgan (Bogart), a charter boat captain in World War II-era Martinique, who is persuaded to smuggle a French resistance leader after falling for Marie Browning (Lauren Becall), an American pickpocket. The film introduced 19-year-old Lauren Becall to the screen and to the 44-year-old Bogart, and the two began an affair which ended up in a marriage that lasted until Bogart’s death 12 years later.
The series will end with another noir classic, “The Big Sleep,” on Feb. 3. This film reunited Bogart and Becall with director Howard Hawks in Raymond Chandler’s story of private eye Philip Marlowe. Marlowe is hired by a wealthy general to help his rebellious daughter, who is being blackmailed over gambling debts. Soon he realizes there is a second daughter to contend with, and Marlowe finds himself in a web of love triangles, organized crime and murder.
Tickets for all films are priced at $10 each. Tickets will be available at the door.
To inquire about accessibility or if you need accommodations to fully participate in the event, please email accommodations@hope.edu. Updates related to events are posted when available at hope.edu/calendar in the individual listings.
The Knickerbocker Theatre is located in downtown Holland at 86 E. Eighth St. between College and Columbia Avenues.