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The Conversation (1974)

post #1 of 15
6/30/08 at 8:05pm
Thread Starter 
This is such an underrated classic. It's amazing how well it works on multiple levels. As a political thriller, it is one of the best I've ever seen. The hotel scene, where Gene Hackman thinks he might have heard a murder, is brilliantly constructed. Coppola even makes a scene of a man playing the same tape recording over and over again my favorite scene of the film.
Hackman puts in such a fantastic performance that the film plays just as well as a character study. He plays such a pathetic but sympathetic character that by the time the final scene comes around, it's devastating.
Ebert's two reviews articulate my thoughts on this film better than I ever could:
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/...401010311/1023
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/...102040301/1023
If you haven't seen this yet, make it a priority. It's like a more complex, evil-twin version of All the President's Men.
Oh and Walter Murch arguably steals the film from Coppola and Hackman.
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post #2 of 15
6/30/08 at 8:23pm
The first time I saw it I fell under its spell, and that was not even realizing how perfect a 70's film this is. I think it and Nashville are the two American films that best define the period. It's also happens to be my favorite of the decade.
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post #3 of 15
6/30/08 at 8:23pm
Yeah, Murch's work on this one is pretty outstanding. The last part of this movie with Caul tearing his apartment to bits in vain and playing the sax amidst the debris kills me every time.
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post #4 of 15
6/30/08 at 8:38pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bailey View Post
I think it and Nashville are the two American films that best define the period.
Oh yeah, good call with Nashville. That'd be a great double feature.
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post #5 of 15
6/30/08 at 8:39pm
For me it's the Union Square stuff. The sound design just sucked me completely into that world.
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post #6 of 15
6/30/08 at 10:03pm
The quintessential paranoid thriller? Flawless direction by Coppola. Devastating. (What a performance by Hackman! )
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post #7 of 15
7/1/08 at 12:25am
Absolutely perfect '70s film, and Coppola's third or arguably fourth greatest film.
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post #8 of 15
7/1/08 at 8:48am
The degree to which Murch shaped this movie in editing is absolutely amazing.
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post #9 of 15
6/26/09 at 4:07pm
Phenomenal movie. Hackman plays this with such restraint and control, and it's probably his finest performance. From the mesmerising first shot to Harry tearing the room apart looking for the bug, Coppola doesn't waste a single frame. One of the 70's best.
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post #10 of 15
6/26/09 at 7:12pm
This and the GODFATHER I and II constitute probably the most impressive three-film run in the history of cinema.
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post #11 of 15
6/26/09 at 7:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gabriel Williams View Post
This and the GODFATHER I and II constitute probably the most impressive three-film run in the history of cinema.
Quartet: his next movie was Apocalypse Now.
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post #12 of 15
6/26/09 at 8:15pm
You want to talk about punches to the gut, you put "He'll kill us if he gets the chance" up against the end of Blow Out, you'll be depressed for days.
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post #13 of 15
6/26/09 at 10:57pm
Such a great twist at the end of this film and I agree about putting it up against the end of Blow Out. It won't be depression for days. It'd be at least a week.

Always liked how at the end Caul can't find the bug in his apartment and just sits there playing his saxophone. An ending like that only in the 70's.
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post #14 of 15
4/10/10 at 12:08am
It's interesting that both this and Blow Out are fixated with the element of sound, both feature protagonists that hear something they shouldn't.

I fucking love the score for this film, it's just such an elegant little motif that's played throughout the film but it's hypnotic to listen to. David Shire also composed the score for Taking of Pelham 1, 2, 3.

It's impeccably directed by Coppola and shot by Bill Butler. the scene in the hotel room where Harry investigates is genuinely disturbing.
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post #15 of 15
4/13/10 at 4:50pm
Watched this for the first time awhile back in an environment that was apparently more distracting than I realized, and didn't think much of it. After watching Enemy of the State and getting a real thrill seeing Hackman in that cage inside the empty warehouse, I thought it was time to give it another shot, and lo and behold, it turned up at a Half Price Books a couple of weeks later. Watched it again and loved it.

It wasn't until I saw it the second time that I realized how delicate the atmosphere is, and the way the film really benefits from watching it in a quiet room without any other distractions. I mean, I suppose you should watch any film in those conditions, but you want your eyes, and primarily your ears to be as finely-tuned to the movie as Harry's would be.

While I was watching the movie, the thought that Hackman was probably about to go make French Connection II popped into my mind, and it is amazing to think how different those two performances are. You look at Harry Caul and you really have a hard time imagining the same man being Popeye Doyle.

Since you guys are talking Blow Out, I might watch that tonight.
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