The only other Francis Ford Coppola film I've seen is The Godfather, which I didn't really like, but I've been meaning to check out his other works for a while, and I know someone who's really into The Conversation. Gene Hackman, a man who I guess has always looked kind of old, plays Harry Caul, a well-respected surveillance expert who runs his own business. He is hired to record the conversation of a young man and woman walking around a park in circles during a loud festival.
Their discussion is cryptic and ambiguous, and while it's against his professionalism to get involved with a job, Caul can't help but suspect that this couple will be in danger. He delays handing in the tapes he made, plagued by memories of a job gone wrong years ago that ended in murder because of the information he recorded. He tries to learn more about the couple and his client's interest in them, not suspecting how layered the conspiracy actually is.
The story starts off very slowly and quietly, gradually easing into a more and more engaging and intense narrative until the viewer is completely hooked. The Conversation does not spoon-feed its audience, trusting in their intelligence and observational skills. I liked that about it, but also found it a bit frustrating in the beginning, when I had a lot of questions that I wasn't sure would be answered. As I got more into it, I came to appreciate more how the earlier scenes were handled. It's a mystery told from the point of view of an outsider. We don't know whom to root for, or what everyone's role is, we only know how it appears to Caul.
As the central figure, Hackman is very good but a little too understated. I guess it's also a script issue, but I feel like I never really got to know his character even though he's in every scene. I learned some important things about him, and got a sense of his general demeanor and fears, but he remained too closed off for me to truly care about. Nevertheless, The Conversation is a smart and tightly written film, with a sparse style and killer ending. Also, a young Harrison Ford, lookin' goooood.
4/5
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The Conversation (1974)
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now you have to see the sequel: Enemy of the State
ReplyDeleteFinally saw this one for the first time last spring, and like you couldn't believe how awesome it was.
ReplyDeleteI really dig older movies that don't feel the need to throw the viewer right into the middle of the fray, and trust our attention span enough to give us the story in spoonfuls.
Great post!
I really like this movie. It's amazing how much tension Coppola is able to create just from watching a character listening to other people.
ReplyDeleteNice review of a really well crafted movie - An underrated gem from Coppola often overshadowed and out muscled by his Godfather and Godfather II.
ReplyDeleteYou're apt in using the word 'understated' - it doesn't just perfectly define Gene Hackman's terrific turn as the taciturn surveillance expert, but also this quiet character study.
The Conversation is a fantastic film - I think your feeling that you didn't get to know Harry Caul is justified because Coppola wanted the audience to feel that way. In a sense, he doesn't know himself - he's desperately trying to find his purpose in life (the possibly unlawful work he has undertaken currently and in the past is destroying him from within). He's so focused on prying into the secret personal lives of others that he hasn't allowed himself to have a personal life himself. Therefore, he is defined by the work, and Coppola presents this to us beautifully. Indeed, The Conversation could be his best work, although The Godfather and Apocalypse Now will always get more mainstream publicity.
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