Humphrey Bogart Plays The Villain In This Underrated Mystery Movie That Flips The Best Parts Of The Maltese Falcon

At the height of his Hollywood career, Humphrey Bogart played the ruthless main villain of Conflict, an underappreciated gem. Known primarily for his work in The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca, the actor made a name for himself as the male lead in a long list of popular films. For that reason, a large number of Humphrey Bogart's best movies see him take on heroic roles, even if some can be somewhat morally dubious. However, Bogart was no stranger to villainous roles, especially since he spent several years of his life portraying criminals in forgettable 1930s gangster movies.

But in the 1940s though, this was a phase in the actor's career that he had largely moved on from. At this point, he was one of the industry's top stars and a favorite of Warner Bros. This decade is when Bogart made To Have and Have Not, Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, and The Big Sleep, all of which being films where Bogart's character was the protagonist. But occasionally, the studio would sprinkle in a project that would deviate from that formula. Such was the case with Conflict, a movie that offered something refreshing even if it didn't become a massive box office hit.

Humphrey Bogart Plays A Cold-Blooded Murderer In Conflict

Richard Mason Seemingly Commits Murder, And Then Wonders If It Actually Happened

Most Humphrey Bogart film noir movies embrace his ability to play morally gray characters, but 1945's Conflict takes that to an extreme. In the movie, Bogart plays Richard Mason, a well-liked, married architect who harbors feelings for his wife's younger sister (Alexis Smith's Evelyn Turner). There's no affair between them though, and it's understood that no relationship can happen since Evelyn is loyal to her sister and Richard's wife won't accept a divorce. Seeing no other way to get what he wants, Richard resorts to murder, thinking that once he's a widower, he may be able to get Evelyn to warm up to a romance with him.

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At the beginning of the film and prior to his first criminal act, Richard comes across as a likable character. After all, he doesn't even pursue an affair despite knowing he's in love with Evelyn. Instead, he appears to be someone who has accepted that his situation "can't be helped" and that a "thought can't be removed from a man's head." However, it doesn't take long for Richard to succumb to his worst impulses. On paper, Mason may sound like the stereotypical villain of a murder mystery film, but Conflict never actually lets Mason take that route.

Conflict Is One Of Humphrey Bogart's Best Villain Roles

Conflict Is A Psychological Noir That Dives Deep Into Bogart's Character And His Motivations

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Perhaps what keeps Richard Mason from becoming a one-dimensional villain is the strong, psychological element of the story. Although it's easy to see Mason's evolution into a villain as somewhat abrupt, Conflict is quick to address this by exploring what his actions say about him and his emotional state. Conflict accomplishes this through long-time Humphrey Bogart co-star Sydney Greenstreet, who plays his psychologist friend, Dr. Mark Hamilton. Greenstreet's character uses his professional insight to make perfect sense of Mason's character arc.

Conflict flips this dynamic, allowing Greenstreet a rare opportunity to play the character who unravels the mystery, opposite Bogart as the unlikely perpetrator.

Through both him and Bogart's compelling performance, Conflict gradually exposes the various facets of the Richard Mason character, granting the viewer a clear picture of who he is as a person and what made him capable of such an evil act. In doing so, it elevates the role into one of Humphrey Bogart's best villainous parts, one that's on par with his characters in The Petrified Forest and The Caine Mutiny.

Conflict Brings Back & Reverses Key Elements Of The Maltese Falcon

Making Conflict all the more interesting is its connections to The Maltese Falcon. One of the most obvious is the pairing of Humphrey Bogart and Sydney Greenstreet. Conflict and The Maltese Falcon aren't the only movies to see the two share screen-time, but the movie does create some parallels between these films in particular. In The Maltese Falcon, Bogart is the hero trying to solve a mystery, one that is masterminded by Greenstreet's character. Conflict flips this dynamic, allowing Greenstreet a rare opportunity to play the character who unravels the mystery, opposite Bogart as the unlikely perpetrator.

In an easy-to-miss moment, Conflict confirms its efforts to pay homage to The Maltese Falcon with an appearance from the titular bird itself. A statue clearly meant to resemble the Maltese Falcon can be briefly spotted on a shelf at the police headquarters in Conflict.

The similarities also extend to the premise itself. Conflict doesn't involve a hunt for a priceless artifact nor is it a hard-boiled private detective film noir, but it does center around a murder mystery. But unlike The Maltese Falcon, the identity of the killer is never a secret to the audience. Instead, the film's main mystery is actually whether or not the murder even happened. As the story progresses, certain developments occur that make both Richard Mason - and the viewer - question his wife's fate.