"The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of" & Pursuit of the Unattainable
In the final moments of the film, Sam Spade describes the Maltese Falcon as "the stuff dreams are made of." Essentially, this turn of phrase refers to anything that is just out of reach, something enticing and desirable that one can never get one's hands on. Throughout the movie, all the characters are chasing various things: Gutman is chasing the Falcon, Sam is chasing the criminals, Brigid is chasing a sense of safety, and the policemen are chasing the solution to the murders. For each character, fulfillment of these various desires proves difficult. It is unclear whether or not the "real" Maltese Falcon even exists, but Gutman pursues it with an unflappable passion. Just the promise that it might be out there, available to be snatched up and a guarantee of riches, is enough to keep Gutman on the Falcon's trail for 17 years. All the characters follow their own mysterious passions, to varying success, and thus the theme of obsession and pursuit is central to the narrative.
Honor & Integrity
The theme of honor is central to Sam Spade's character. Above all else, Sam Spade is invested in remaining honorable. Throughout most of the film, Sam seems hard-bitten and cynical, always on the verge of selling his integrity to the highest bidder. In the end, however, he reveals himself to be a paragon of decency. He tells Brigid that he only made himself appear crooked because it is good for business. Indeed, doing "good business" is essential to Sam Spade, and the thought of running a "bad business" is out of the question, even leading him to turn in the woman he loves. The themes of honor and integrity are central to The Maltese Falcon.
Even Gutman, deceitful as he is and willing to lie, bribe, drug, and kill, maintains his own standard of honor and integrity, always seeking ways to trust those in his charge. Because he runs his cohort so unethically, trust becomes slippery, but he at least attempts to simulate trust.
The Corrupting Influences of Greed
The flip side of honor is a pervasive greed that drives people to criminal acts and corrupts them. While Gutman mythologizes and obsesses over the Maltese Falcon, his primary motivation is the statuette's value, the riches that it will bring him once he sells it. He talks a big game, relishing in the history and significance of the statuette, but his criminality springs from his overwhelming avarice, his willingness to follow the alleged statue all over the world, as well as his willingness to kill people along the way to get what he wants.
Sam appears to be corrupted by greed, but reveals himself at the end to have been doing so only to insinuate himself with the criminals. While he puts on an act, and demands steep prices for his services, and for the Maltese Falcon, he is only doing so strategically, and his ultimate aim is to behave honorably. Thus by the end Sam proves himself to be incorruptible, with a high moral drive and sense of justice.
Masculinity & Sexuality
Masculinity and its signifiers are coded but significant in the film. Sam Spade represents the epitome of the hard-nosed and straight-shooting heterosexual male lead. He speaks gruffly and straightforwardly, rolls his own cigarettes, and lives in an apartment he calls a "dump," a bonafide man-cave in which to lay his weary (and lonely) head. Contrastingly, the group of criminals are all distinguished by their more deviant expressions of gender and sexuality: Wilmer is referred to as a "gunsel," a word meaning either a gun-slinger or a homosexual youth, Joel Cairo is fashionable and flamboyant with a floral scented business card, and Gutman himself is a melodic-voiced dandy, donning smoking jackets and relishing in the aesthetic pleasures of life. Given the time the movie was made, and the censorship laws in place in Hollywood at the time, all allusions to sexuality are heavily shrouded, suggestive rather than explicit, but still, the suggestion speaks volumes.
Furthermore, Sam represents the quintessential rugged noir anti-hero—a model of masculine self-control—not only because he is more masculine than the villains, but also because of his skepticism surrounding sexuality in general. Indeed, at the end, he denies his own romantic feelings towards Brigid in order to do the right thing by his deceased partner. Sam views his own desire for Brigid and its accompanying distractions as leading to weakness (he doesn't want to be "a sap"), emasculation and almost certain death. Sam believes that Miles Archer met his death because of his inability to control his attraction to Brigid. Likewise, Thursby, an ex-lover of Brigid's, meets a violent end. Thus we see that Sam's idealized definition of masculine strength is one that is not just about the resistance of deviant sexualities—such as those implied in the behavior of Gutman & Co.—but about the resistance to all sexuality, and its emasculating effects.
Independence & Solitude
Because Sam's version of masculinity is so dependent on his ability to stay clear-headed, undistracted by sex, and self-reliant, he represents the epitome of the lone wolf. He wants to be independent, and not have to rely on anyone. Even though Sam ulimtately turns Brigid in to the police in order to bring justice to Miles' killer, one gets the sense that the death of his partner felt like more of a relief than a burden. Sam does not hesitate to have the business renamed and the signs changed to reflect that he has become the sole private investigator. Furthermore, when the police ask him where he was after visiting the crime scene where Miles was shot, Sam tells them he was taking a walk to think things over. Thus, Sam's character represents perfectly the theme of solitude and loneliness. Without the distractions of intimate connections, Sam is a more effective private detective, and his character reflects the necessity for individuals to look after themselves. After all, in the world of film noir, no one can be trusted.
"Everyone Has Something to Conceal": Lies & Deceit
Lies abound in The Maltese Falcon. Just when it seems that someone is speaking earnestly it is revealed to be a sleight of hand, a ruse. Sam functions almost as a human lie detector, able to suss out a rat just by their expression or the tone of their voice. This happens most frequently with Brigid, who withholds and outwardly contrives throughout the movie. One realizes, however, that the reason Sam is so good at identifying lies is that he himself is an expert liar, leading the criminals to believe he is trustworthy, while planning for their arrest.
When Sam and Brigid begin to fall in love, Brigid seeks to confide her frustration with a life of criminal deceit. She tells him she has been a liar all her life, and that she is tired of not being able to distinguish between lies and the truth.
Communication: The "Close-Mouthed Man"
Information is the most valuable commodity in the world of the film. Nearly every scene is an interrogation, the primary stake of which is whether the questioned will reveal any helpful truths. Sam's frustration with Brigid when he meets her is that he cannot get a straight answer out of her, that she refuses to confide in him, and her story is always changing. So many of the couple's interactions include a communicative stand-off, with Brigid attempting to change or close the subject, and Sam waiting for her to tell him the truth.
Additionally, when Sam meets Gutman for the first time, Gutman tells him that he is very invested in communication, and that open communication is the basis of trust. Sam tells him, "I like to talk," to which Gutman responds, "Talking’s something you can’t do judiciously, unless you keep in practice," and then later, "I am a man who likes talking to a man who likes to talk."
