i'm hoping some filmosopher can answer a small question for me

 

i screened "breatheless"  for one of my classes and realized to my chagrin that no one in the class had ever even heard of h bogart, much less recognized his iconic status

 

to give them some sense of who and what he was, i want to show them bogart doing the gesture that belmondo imitates in “breathless” – where he thoughtfully moves his thumb across his lips . . . but i’m afraid i can’t myself remember exactly where to find this gesture . . . i’m thinking that it’s in “big sleep” but since my class meets this afternoon i don’t have the time to start searching through lots of old bogey films to find out . . .  any clues as to where i might find this gesture would be much appreciated . . . [i’m also curious to know whether it runs through a series of films and thus marks the actor’s persona, or whether it is a function of the fictional character in a specific film – but this is less urgent]

 

thanks

 

mike