Robert Altman's languid, free-form version of Raymond Chandler's novel subtly critiques the values of Philip Marlowe, played by an unshaven, chain-smoking Elliott Gould as an all-time loser, introduced in a brilliant sequence that has him try to pass off inferior pet food on his supercilious cat. Shambling through the remains of Chandler's plot, Gould tries to help an alcoholic writer (Sterling Hayden) and clear his only friend of a murder rap.
Many individual sequences are astonishing: violent gangster Mark Rydell smashing a bottle in his mistress' face ("That's someone I love, you I don't even like"), Hayden's stumbling suicide, and an invigoratingly cynical punch line that turns Marlowe into some sort of winner after all. This release is letterboxed; a major bonus since Altman as usual makes sure a lot of the action is happening almost unnoticed in the corners of the frame.