montgomery substitute a gimmick for quality film making . he and fisher and have absolutely no ear for chandler esquire writing . actor hit mark and then do not move from them through the rest of scene and and line be deliver a if read from cue card . the film be essentially confine to interior scene shoot in set that look like set the pivotal scene of the book and in which the lady be find in the lake and be replace with mere narrative . in the one scene in which he appear at a mirror montgomery doesn not capture the demeanor of marlowe and who himself be not mean and who be neither tarnished nor afraid but be nonetheless weary beyond his year by go down mean street . and that scene at the mirror prove that montgomery hadn not even the competence to master his gimmick and a it be plainly shoot at an angle to hide the camera and so that the camera do not see marlowe reflection a he would have see it .