Yeah, had Redford gone proto-Bourne - I think the book's more in that vein - then it would be a proper genre classic. It's just bloody Pollack messing it up.
Max von Sydow is a big part of why. That and the improbably-accented John Houseman. Of course, Redford in jeans never hurt a picture. :)
You make several great points, though. For one, Dunaway is basically a plot device more than character.
And having lived through the 70s, for good or ill, this does feel very much of its era. A time when films and TV shows could often border on pretension. :)
I think von Sydow is why I've always come back to it - it's not a huge part, but he has some great scenes and he's fantastic. And far be it from me to dispute the raging beauty of Redford, especially '70s Redford!
No shade intended to Faye Dunaway, but I've never made it all the way to the end of this movie, and I usually start to fade not long after she gets kidnapped. Maybe it's knowing a highly improbable romance is on the way (Had 'Stockholm Syndrome been discovered by 1974?). I really should try it again - for Max von Sydow, John Houseman, and Cliff 'Skeezy' Robertson.
Patty Hearst was '74, so I'm guessing that Stockholm Syndrome was early '70s. Wouldn't be surprised if Pollack was interested in it as a new dynamic to his favourite theme of man/woman relationships. If you ducked out early, you did miss the great von Sydow scene towards the end, which is worth persevering for. Then again, you might also have missed the incredibly daft sex scene, which is not.
I have a serious beef and I offer my most vehement riposte: it’s all worth it—the toast sops up all the milque—because of the NYT scene at the end: https://youtu.be/2cou5qv10CM
I'd argue the best scenes are the opening, anything with von Sydow, and the ending absolutely. And sometimes a few great scenes can save a movie - not quite convinced it's the case here. Might have been had the ending come 10-15 minutes earlier.
Can’t argue overall. Redford and von Sydow are the show. Both bringing their unmatchable presences, von Sydow adding depth as effortlessly as possible. I think there’s more ambiguity in the final freeze frame than you’re giving credit for. The movie talks like the NYT will set all right. Redford’s face in the final freeze says maybe it won’t. I think.
But agree on most other points. The forced (in pretty much every sense of the word) romance drives me away every time. Parallax rules the 70s paranoid roost for me and it had more foresight than other entries in that arena. However, this was one of those Sunday Night Movies when I was a kid and would pop up on channel-surfing rotation regularly enough that I’ll always carry affection for it even if I probably won’t watch it again.
I'll agree with that. There's a bit more ambiguity in that final scene, not least because they give Cliff the last line (with an ironic counterpoint courtesy of the Salvation Army).
BUT I'd argue that it's largely unearned - Redford is set up as the hero of the piece from the get-go and is capable enough throughout to make us think that he's going to win the day. Also, it's Redford. Redford always wins, even when he's gunned down by a posse in Bolivia.
Totally agree: Parallax is absolutely the king and incredibly prescient. And Condor almost feels like an introduction to paranoid thrillers. Good enough to accidentally rewatch.
Saw this when it came out, decades ago. Yup, fave character was Max Von Sydow. Would be a good double bill with the equally flashy Bronson version of The Mechanic.
Yeah, had Redford gone proto-Bourne - I think the book's more in that vein - then it would be a proper genre classic. It's just bloody Pollack messing it up.
I've always loved this movie, despite its flaws.
Max von Sydow is a big part of why. That and the improbably-accented John Houseman. Of course, Redford in jeans never hurt a picture. :)
You make several great points, though. For one, Dunaway is basically a plot device more than character.
And having lived through the 70s, for good or ill, this does feel very much of its era. A time when films and TV shows could often border on pretension. :)
I think von Sydow is why I've always come back to it - it's not a huge part, but he has some great scenes and he's fantastic. And far be it from me to dispute the raging beauty of Redford, especially '70s Redford!
No shade intended to Faye Dunaway, but I've never made it all the way to the end of this movie, and I usually start to fade not long after she gets kidnapped. Maybe it's knowing a highly improbable romance is on the way (Had 'Stockholm Syndrome been discovered by 1974?). I really should try it again - for Max von Sydow, John Houseman, and Cliff 'Skeezy' Robertson.
Patty Hearst was '74, so I'm guessing that Stockholm Syndrome was early '70s. Wouldn't be surprised if Pollack was interested in it as a new dynamic to his favourite theme of man/woman relationships. If you ducked out early, you did miss the great von Sydow scene towards the end, which is worth persevering for. Then again, you might also have missed the incredibly daft sex scene, which is not.
Yup. Seen it, and all I remember is Max Von Sydow.
I have a serious beef and I offer my most vehement riposte: it’s all worth it—the toast sops up all the milque—because of the NYT scene at the end: https://youtu.be/2cou5qv10CM
I'd argue the best scenes are the opening, anything with von Sydow, and the ending absolutely. And sometimes a few great scenes can save a movie - not quite convinced it's the case here. Might have been had the ending come 10-15 minutes earlier.
Can’t argue overall. Redford and von Sydow are the show. Both bringing their unmatchable presences, von Sydow adding depth as effortlessly as possible. I think there’s more ambiguity in the final freeze frame than you’re giving credit for. The movie talks like the NYT will set all right. Redford’s face in the final freeze says maybe it won’t. I think.
But agree on most other points. The forced (in pretty much every sense of the word) romance drives me away every time. Parallax rules the 70s paranoid roost for me and it had more foresight than other entries in that arena. However, this was one of those Sunday Night Movies when I was a kid and would pop up on channel-surfing rotation regularly enough that I’ll always carry affection for it even if I probably won’t watch it again.
I'll agree with that. There's a bit more ambiguity in that final scene, not least because they give Cliff the last line (with an ironic counterpoint courtesy of the Salvation Army).
BUT I'd argue that it's largely unearned - Redford is set up as the hero of the piece from the get-go and is capable enough throughout to make us think that he's going to win the day. Also, it's Redford. Redford always wins, even when he's gunned down by a posse in Bolivia.
Totally agree: Parallax is absolutely the king and incredibly prescient. And Condor almost feels like an introduction to paranoid thrillers. Good enough to accidentally rewatch.
Saw this when it came out, decades ago. Yup, fave character was Max Von Sydow. Would be a good double bill with the equally flashy Bronson version of The Mechanic.