I remember a detective spoof from the 1980's called DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID which was pretty funny

A film with more scenes from great noir films than I can mention. And be careful not to mention "cleaning woman."

IMHO! Next to the Inimitable Sherlock, Philip Marlowe was perhaps the greatest detective, being cast often in film and portrayed by many actors - from Humphrey Bogart's Marlowe when he first appeared in The Big Sleep to Robert Mitchum's older portrayal of him in the Aldrich remake.

Lastly was James Caan's portrayal of Marlowe in "Poodle Springs" a made for TV film from Chandler's unfinished novel, which was completed by Robert B. Parker of Spenser fame. I totally disagreed with the ending of the book. Had Chandler completed it, no doubt Marlowe's wife (he was married in this one) would have been the true femme fatale and behind every potted fern.

Speaking of "Private Eyes" Has anyone ever seen the Movie Private Eyes with Don Knotts and Tim Conway? That is the funniest mystery satire I have ever seen. They both are soooooo funny! It's a must see for every mystery lover.

The best detcetive movie made after the colour revolution, besides the obvious Chinatown, is The Long Goodbye with Elliott Gould. Chandler himself may have thought Mitchum was the ideal movie Marlowe, but Gould plays the character with such laid-back genius and cynical power that he is forever engrained in my head as the ultimate Philip Marlowe.

Chinatown holds many bests - best film noir in color is my pick. Mitchum was my favorite Marlowe as well. He had just the right mix for the role, although he was a bit older when he played him than the actual character ever was in book form.

I also like Elliot Gould in "The Long Goodbye," but then that particular book is one of my favorites. Bogart played Marlowe very well in "The Big Sleep." He definitely had the clipped sarcasm of Marlowe down.

The Thin Man...William Powell & Myrna Loy shine in this all time classic. Powell was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor. Five additional movies were made, all with the great team of Powell & Loy. This is where any mystery movie fan should start.

Barry, the Thin Man Series were some of my most favorite! I still love seeing them today.

think even the name of the private eye is disturbing but i would like to get to know the theme better so thank u for reading my pasge thing. . .

I've been a mystery fan most of my life. My all time favorites are The Thin Man series, the Charlie Chan movies and the Monk series.Besides the mystery in every show, I loved the comedic parts and the dynamics of the different characters. I'm trying to collect all the Thin Man & Charlie Chan movies. I live in the Clearwater, FL area and would like to collect more movies. Can anyone help?

"The Ninth Gate" with Johnny Depp (portraying a book-detective) is one of the better "gumshoe" movies I've seen in the last few years.

But then again, I tend to like the sci-fi flicks best, with "Blade Runner" being one of my favorites.