Warbler said:

CP3S said: you'll find he plays the same damn role over and over again,

somewhat true (although the Cain Mutiny is a great example of him playing a very different character), but he played that role very, very, well. I've watched multiple versions of The Maltese Falcon, and no one could play Sam Spade anywhere near as well as Bogart.

Yeah, no one could have played Sam Spade near as well as Bogart, because Bogart is awesome. A big part of the reason that film is so great is because Bogart owned the role and made it memorable.

But he did play similar roles over and over, and not every movie he is in is great or memorable. That is my point. You seem to get some people who fantasize that 1940's cinema was grab you by the ankles, flip you upside down, and slap you silly fantastic through and through and through and through. That wasn't the case. There was some great stuff then, there is some great stuff now, there will be some great stuff later. There was a lot of crappy stuff then, there is a lot of crappy stuff now, and there will be plenty more crappy stuff to come later. The great stuff will be remembered and passed onto future generations, while the crappy stuff will be replaced by newer flashier crappy stuff.