Monsieur Spade

The first five episodes of this series wasn't bad and the story seemed destined to keep us in suspense. However, like any other series in the age of binge watching this one abruptly ends in the dumbest way. You know it's bad when everything is wrapped up in the last ten minutes. Clive Owen is really good as the witty, wisecracking, hard-nosed Sam Spade, but he is the story so allow him to be the story. The cast in the film are pretty good. The show is shot in France and the scenery is beautiful. You could say the scenery is also a character. Monsieur Spade is good, but needs more Sam Spade.cdm.

Just before watching this miniseries about a middle-aged Sam Spade living in France, I read an article about it's co-writer/creator/director Scott Frank and his success as a script doctor who could find a script's weaknesses and set them write. Unfortunately, Monsieur Spade needed Scott Frank the script doctor rather than Scott Frank the writer.

In Monsieur Spade, a middle-aged Sam Spade lives in France and stuff happens. But very little of it happens in episode one, which could be described as a slow boil, but is probably more accurately a low simmer with the heat turned up in the last 5 minutes. It's really rather dull, and takes its time for no good reason.

But then things pick up. A lot starts happening, people die, people threaten, Spade investigates and wisecracks, and it's all pretty good. True, there are odd bits, like the character of Jean-Pierre, who ultimately serves no purpose in the plot and isn't interesting in his own right. But for the most part it's entertaining.

And then in the final episode it goes totally off the rails in double-crosses and murders and schemes that don't make much sense, and then there's this endless discussion that more-or-less explains what happened in the most awkward and tedious way possible, and none of it holds together or offers any narrative satisfaction, and there are so many loose ends.

Come on, Scott Frank, the New Yorker painted you as having unerring instincts. WHERE DID THOSE INSTINCTS GO?

Overall, I actually did enjoy this. I like Clive Owen's Spade, even if he's no Bogie, and I liked the repartee, even if there's nothing nearly as memorable as almost every line of Maltese Falcon. The acting of the supporting cast is excellent, and the story does keep you interested before it falls apart.

Is it worth watching? Maybe. Just be forewarned.

Monsieur Spade started off intriguing, with complex characters and an air of mystery befitting a Neo-noir detective drama. Clive Owen brought a gritty gravitas to the iconic role of Sam Spade, while the show explored his retirement in 1960s France with promising plot twists. However, it ultimately rushed the conclusion in a disappointing final episode full of tedious exposition dumping. The show failed to stick the landing after a strong setup, leaving an unsatisfying payoff for both the overarching mystery around a mysterious child as well as Spade's personal character arc. While the performances remained compelling throughout, the writing let down both the talented cast and the audience by the end.

Rating: 5.75 out of 10.

It's 1955 rural France. Sam Spade (Clive Owen) is searching for Philippe Saint Andre, the father of his charge, a girl named Teresa. He's been hired by Teresa's late mother who is his former lover and had stolen a large sum of money. He faces many obstacles with the disappeared Philippe. He places Teresa with the nuns at a local orphanage. It's 8 years later and Teresa is turning 18. She is set to receive the large sum from a trust and her thieving father is rumored to have returned. One night, Sam finds the girls locked in their room, Teresa missing, and the nuns brutally murdered.

The story is a bit of a mess. It starts great but ends muddled. I don't like the McGuffin boy. He is really just an object rather than a living breathing character. The girl is a much better subject. It is almost a comedy when they get to the final sit-down and calling out all the characters. I really like Clive Owen doing his Sam Spade. It's impossible to get away from Bogie but this is a fun interpretation. Stay for Clive.

This series had lots of interesting twists and turns, some decent dialogue, along with occasional funny moments, and scenery that just makes you drool, but... despite the strong presence of Clive Owen in a solid performance, some interesting side characters and lovely period details, the whole series floundered badly in the final episode. A truly bizarre and totally unbelievable wrap-up that made no sense even after the silly monologue by the 'Canadian UN' character, played badly by Alfre Woodard. I had high hopes things would eventually come together in the end but all that happened is a gathering a la Agatha Christie in the living room with each person described in a preaching tone. A really silly piece of writing and way to end this otherwise fairly decent production that felt and looked like the period it portrays. Lots of wasted talent and too many characters that were in this mix of the good, the bad and the useless. Still have no idea what that crazed monk was doing and on whose behalf he acted. I really was shocked at how improbable the last episode supposedly 'resolved' the many strands of this show. A disappointing end.