Raymond Chandler’s iconic private investigator, Philip Marlowe (Graham Percy), is at it again. This time he’s on the hunt for Velma (Jamie Konchak), a blond bombshell who is rumoured to be dead.
Moose Malloy (Beau Dixon) is released from prison and wants to reunite with Velma to pick up their relationship where they left off. The police also enlist Marlowe to help them find Velma, but for different reasons. Along the way our private dick runs into jewel thieves, psychics, and femme fatale Annie Riordon (Emma Slipp), a girl who knows how to handle her men almost as well as she knows how to handle her gun.
Chandler set the precedent for hard-boiled detective tales, and this classic novel is translated film noir-style to the stage with beautiful videography, smoke, and versatile sets. The hazy feeling of 1940s Los Angeles comes across well, and the cast smokes, drinks, and fires their guns in almost every scene.
As Marlowe addresses the audience directly with his snide narration, his snarky character was almost as I imagined him. Somehow I pictured him to be more confident or have a different air about him as he delivers his dryly humorous one-liners, but Percy portrayed him as slightly more insecure than I remembered.
Marlowe admits that famous private detectives are always screwing up only to solve the case in the end, and one can’t help but root for him as he bumbles his way through the mess of information he is presented.
The clumsy love triangle between Marlowe, Riordon, and Helen Grayle (Jamie Konchak) felt a bit forced and unlikely at times, but I suppose that is the nature of this genre with men and women betraying each other as often as they change underwear.
The only thing that I felt was missing in some of the more serious scenes was a bit more emotional gravitas from Marlowe as he delivers poignant lines. These could have had more of a punch if given more emphasis.
Intrigue, romance, and plenty of scotch and cigars come together to create this enjoyable adaptation. With great lines like “Irritating people wear bowties because it makes it harder to strangle them,” this show is a lot of fun and is a must-see for Chandler fans.
Farewell, My Lovely is presented by Arts Club Theatre Company and Vertigo Theatre from April 2 to May 2 at the Granville Island Stage. For more information, visit artsclub.com.
