The Conversation (1974)

Directed By: Francis Ford Coppola

Written By: Francis Ford Coppola

Players: Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Harrison Ford, Terri Garr and Robert Duvall

Setup: When a secretive surveillance expert is hired to record a couples conversation he feels what he heard could lead to their murder he forgets his cardinal rule: don't get involved.

What follows is an unraveling of control and a smothering paranoia all driven by the guilt of a previous job that ended in cold-blooded murder.

Just be careful what you say, you never know who's listening ...

Review: To say Francis Ford Coppola was on a filmmaking hot streak in the '70's would be an understatement but it still wouldn't be as brilliantly understated as his 1974 thriller The Conversation. The writing is taut and the slow-burning suspense is maddening, couple that with Gene Hackman's layered portrayal of a guilt-ridden surveillence expert Henry Caul and you have the recipe for something that borders on a line between Hitchcock and reality. It's a damn good winning combination (even those highfalutin French folk over in Cannes thought so)!

While many may view this simply as a film about growing paranoia it is Gene Hackman's portrayal that elevates it above most dime-store imitators. His character is a devout Catholic complete with the guilty concience, in his case a decade old triple-murder that was commited after he turned in some audio recordings. This guilt drives him to do things outside of his normally controlled and introverted nature that put him in the middle of a coorporate debacle that could have at least two lives at risk. Support Hackman's performance with that of a loyal, even when pushed away, character of Stan (John Cazale, The Godfather) and a looming and demanding client's assistant in the form of a young Harrison Ford and you've got a cast that can't really be topped.

If you're not a fan of a good slow-burn The Conversation may not be your bag, but I'd argue that its sometimes maddeningly slow pacing is deliberate and allows you to share in the unraveling of Henry Caul's determinedly controlled world. This is a thriller from the words and direction of one of the greatest film auteurs ever to spend time behind a camera and should definitely be checked out if you a fan of the genre, filmmaker or are looking for an phenomally unconventional performance from an actor of Gene Hackman's caliber.

Even though Henry Caul was "the best bugger on the West Coast" he never forgot his roots ...

Tidbit: It was brought to my attention that Gene Hackman's paranoid character Edward Lyle in 1998's Enemy of the State could be seen as a continuation of Henry Caul from The Conversation. I like that idea so much, in fact, that I'm just going to treat it as fact from here on out.

Drink of Choice: Like Henry Caul I'm a man that can enjoy some jazz from time to time (Dave Brubeck and Django Reinhardt are my cats of choice) so why not "The Jazz" Cocktail? The mixings: 1 Oz Campari, 1 Oz Havana Club 3yrs Old Rum, 0.5 Oz Passoa passion fruit liqueur, 1.5 Oz Sweet and sour mix, 2 Spoons passion fruit puree, 3 Oz Sparkling wine or champagne. Add ice and shake to a grooving bass line and serve in a classy highball. Cheers!