One of the great 20th Century American literary icons, Dashiell Hammett invented the hard-boiled detective novel and, in the process, elevated the mystery novel to high art. This PBS documentary charts Hammett from his inauspicious beginning as a high school drop-out private detective to his career pinnacle, hobnobbing with movie stars and the cultural elite, to his demise resulting from alcohol in 1961. The film also delves into Hammetts works using ample clips from his most renowned work, The Maltese Falcon. Kathleen Turner narrates. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide