This is a 4-movie compilation of Bogie movies - a couple very interesting, a couple not so - comprising the following:

Note that I do not intend to give exhaustive synopses of the movies - I would expect that at least one or two would have been reviewed previously.

They Drive by Night (1940)

An action drama, this is a George Raft (maybe even an Ida Lupino?) star vehicle, with Bogie playing very much a bit part in proceedings.

The film is concerned with a pair of brothers barely making a living driving a truck, occasionally earning cash for their efforts from their (cash strapped or bent?) employer. Just when their fortunes seem to be improving, they are involved in a serious accident in which they lose the truck and Bogie loses his right arm. Of course, they were uninsured, so George has to accept an administrative role in a rival transport company run by an old friend to support his brother. Raft, who is essentially a decent fellow and is betrothed to a decent young lady (Anne Sheridan), previously had dealings of an amorous nature with a lady (Ida Lupino) who just so happens to be the wife of the transport operator (Alan Hale Snr); and bored with her lifestyle and her husband?s drunkenness, she is not going to let George forget it!

Ida, becoming more and more ?off the rails?, bumps off Alan in the hope of winning George?s favour - and undying affection - no such luck!

The upshot is that she frames George into being an accessory to murder; but at the trial she loses the plot and confesses to the crime. And everybody lives happily ever after!

The cast is solid and the plot is quite reasonable - all-in-all quite an enjoyable experience, although the title ?They Drive by Night? seems a little strange, seeing that the truck driving aspect of the plot died at or around the halfway mark of the film.

Duration: 91 minutes

High Sierra (1941)

Bogie is a drawling anti-hero in this movie about a hardened ex-con (Roy Earle, alias Collins), invited into to pulling off what would be the final ?job? of his career. He is a tough so-and-so; pretty well respected amongst his peers - though one of the younger ?punks? in the heist gang has his doubts. Along with the band of ?young bucks? is Marie (played by Ida Lupino) who immediately is attracted to Roy. What we do find out is that this tough-nut has a soft edge to him - he?s a sucker to women and dogs! For instance - by accident - Bogie meets and becomes attracted to a young lady with a disability called Velma (Joan Leslie); a situation that has the potential of getting in the way of his uncivil disposition. He shows his intentions (and his soft spot) towards Velma by having her affliction cured and proposes marriage, but Velma does not care for him that much.

To cut a long story short; the heist goes fairly, but the gang is found out - and Roy (the only person avoiding immediate arrest) becomes a fugitive, is chased into the High Sierras, and is gunned down like a dog as a result of the media hype.

But the ?love interest? in Bogie?s life will be Marie and her adopted dog ?Pard?.

This movie seems to pay more attention to the standoff near the end when Bogie is tagged ?Mad Dog Earle? by the press (Roy is truly outraged by the newspaper headline) and the siege in the mountains is an implied indictment of the press and justice system in that if it?s populist, judge a person by their background - not their actions, and holed-up on Mount Whitney in the High Sierras - in this part of the film (the most meaningful part I must say) there seems to be an ?anti-system? message where the labelling of Bogie as.

I have to say that the movie was a little too slow for my liking throughout, and his affection for Velma seems to have little relevance to the outcome of the movie. Good God! He likes puppy dogs as well, so why create further indications of his ?softness?? The irony is that his pet dog ?Pard? is his downfall in ?High Sierra?. There are some wonderful performances apart from Bogie - not the least being the small part played by Henry Travers (he was the angel in ?It?s a Wonderful Life?) as a fellow road traveller saved by Bogie from a serious accident - his love interest cameos from

Interestingly - and following on from the previous movie - Bogie doesn?t get the top billing he may have been hoping. There is no question that Bogie is the ?star? of this movie, yet he gets equal, but second billing to Ida Lupino - the star sensation who made her Hollywood debut in ?They Drive by Night?. But as mentioned in the supporting documentary, this was the last movie that he played ?second fiddle? to anyone?

Duration: 96 minutes

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

A classic, if not iconic crime drama from the pen of Dashiell Hammett, and featuring an all-star cast is (believe it or not) the third screen adaptation and clearly the best.

Put simply, the plot involves famed private ?dick? Sam Spade being caught in a web of intrigue concerning the whereabouts of a famed bejewelled Middle Ages artefact (the Maltese Falcon) that involves deception, corruption and murder. Sam (Bogie) becomes involved in a battle of wits against a scheming English collector and his two cronies, and a mysterious female client (and potential love interest) who appears to be aware of the icon?s location - but whom can he trust in all this ?wheeling and dealing??

The storyline is full of twists and turns - even the climax has a sting in its tail!

The casting for this movie is sensational - Bogie, Peter Lorre, Mary Astor, Ward Bond, Elisha Cook Jnr, Gladys George, Jerome Cowan and others; and the storyline with its laconic, downbeat nature and dry wit is perfect for Bogie.

Then again, even in this movie, Humphrey is almost upstaged by a screen debutant - the immortal Sydney Greenstreet at 61 years of age - as the desperate collector! Greenstreet was nominated for best supporting actor for his role, but lost to Donald Crisp - in fact this movie won NO Oscars - a quite extraordinary non-achievement for a film of its popularity and status.

Duration: 97 minutes

To Have and Have Not (1944)

Apparently quite loosely based on an Ernest Hemingway novel of the same name, this movie could otherwise be labelled a sequel to ?Casablanca? - such is the plot, characters, setting and atmosphere.

The setting is Martinique, a Caribbean French dependency, following the fall of France in 1940. Bogie is Harry Morgan, a big game fishing boat operator who will soon be left out to dry by a big spender who fails to pay up. Before discovering this deception, he meets up with a sultry petty thief nicknamed ?Slim? (Lauren Bacall, 19 years old, in her screen debut) who immediately creates an impression. In the meantime, Free French activists on the island nation ask Harry for support in their cause, which he turns down cold.

When a stray bullet from an unrelated shootout kills the cheapskate; Harry realises that he must help out the Free French to make a living. The task required is to pick up and ferry a couple of Free French passengers from a neighbouring island. This situation leads through various other dramas Harry wins through and stays (in the Gestapo eyes) as a neutral and ineffectual bystander.

Continuing the earlier tradition of movies in this package; Bogie gets top billing for this movie - and in the acting stakes, ?wins? the starring role, but Bacall gets the best lines by a long streak - and her performance is tremendous for a debutante. Added to that is Walter Brennan - who won the inaugural ?Best Supporting Actor? Oscar in 1936, and won again in 1938 and 1940 - could nearly have been nominated again…

Duration: 96 minutes

THE EXTRAS

They Drive by Night

? ?Divided Highway? - a 10? minute documentary discussing the making of the movie, focussing on the fact that the movie is a star vehicle for Ida Lupino, followed by George Raft, with Bogie coming in third or fourth - though I personally think that third ranking goes to Alan Hale Senior - a character who undertook major character roles in such movies as ?The Adventures of Robin Hood? 1938, ?Dodge City? 1939, ?Strawberry Blonde? 1941, ?Desperate Journey? 1942 and many others. It is interesting to note that Humphrey was not happy with his fourth billing in the credits, but that was as high as he deserved for his rather insignificant part.

? ?Swingtime in the Movies? - an odd mixture of musical comedy, farce and ?star? parade, this 19-minute featurette in colour involves the production of a Western musical including its casting and direction. I?m not sure of its overall relevance, except to say that Bogie makes a brief appearance in the ?star? parade.

? Theatrical trailer

High Sierra

? ?Curtains for Roy Earle? - this is a 15-minute documentary that, in part, pays tribute to the ?gangster? movie genre. The doco pays particular attention to Bogie?s introduction to prominence in the cinema -, hanks largely to Leslie Howard?s insistence - for a major part in ?The Petrified Forest? in 1936.

As a documentary pertaining to the ?making of? of ?High Sierra?, it is quite interesting. But better still - in general terms - it is a particularly enjoyable experience for its evocation of great stars of the time and anecdotes of great interest. Great value.

? Theatrical trailer

The Maltese Falcon

? ?Becoming Attractions - The Trailers of Humphrey Bogart? - hosted by Robert Osborne, this is a 45-minute feature that highlights Bogie?s career through the Warner Bros Publicity Department?s Trailer Division, and its use of the theatrical trailer to promote Bogie?s transformation as a performer. Though it contains 10 trailers - a number of which are not in this package (nor Vol 2 of ?The Bogart Collection? - that are mildly entertaining, I found this feature a little disappointing. If anything, it tended to highlight the studio?s resolve to hold Bogie?s roles to a fairly tight ?stereotype? - if they?d added films such as ?The African Queen?, ?The Barefoot Contessa?, ?Sabrina? and/or ?The Caine Mutiny? to the mix; it would have been a far better representation of the Bogart roles in cinema.

? Theatrical trailer starring the wonderful Sydney Greenstreet

To Have and Have Not

? ?A Love Story: The Story of To Have and Have Not? - an 11-odd minute documentary that features short biographies/profiles of Director Howard Hawks and Lauren Bacall (real name Betty Perske) and the love affair between ?Bogie and Bacall? to the point of their engagement. The only thing wrong with this feature is that it?s not long enough!

? ?Bacall to Arms? - a 6-minute ?Looney Tunes? cartoon, of all things! Among other excerpts, the cartoon features Bogey Gocart and Laurie Be Cool in ?To Have-?To Have-?To Have- etc? with all too obvious caricatures. It?s quite different from the standard ?Looney Tunes? fare and quite interesting.

? Theatrical trailer

CONCLUSION

This is a rather strange mixture of Bogie movies, commencing in 1940, though there appears to be a logical transition - his first role with major billing, yet a minor part (?They Drive by Night?); second billing though no-one ?stars? in this rather uneven and disappointing film (?High Sierra?); top billing, though equalled or out-acted by a debutant co-star (?The Maltese Falcon?); and top billing, though the femme fatale?s lines and character nearly steal the show? (?To Have and Have Not?).

It is a nice run of Bogie movies (though not necessarily his best of the time), and very enjoyable as such; plus most of the extra features are most interesting and informative.

During this early period of ?super-stardom? Humphrey was to star in many other movies - the highlight arguably being ?Casablanca? in 1943; but this film is already available as a two disk stand-alone feature, and I?m rather glad that they have decided not to add it to this package. Of the four films in this package - I am only aware of ?The Maltese Falcon? being released by Warner Bros as a separate DVD - but don?t throw your ?studio? copy of ?The Maltese Falcon? away - it?s neither different, nor inferior to the disk in this package, saving the pass? documentary (it may also be in widescreen!). Better still, make a friend for life by passing it on to someone you like - you will also have someone else in this world who will understand what quality cinema is all about?!

Despite a couple of reservations listed within the review; this is a wonderful package, and an excellent introduction to the ?Bogie? phenomenon - highly recommended!