"The Thomas Crown Affair" *** (out of ****)After reviewing Claude Chabrol's "Merci Pour Le Chocolat" (2002) for some reason I was in the mood for a heist film and the original "The Thomas Crown Affair" (1968) kept coming in my head. It had been years since I saw it. The only thing I remembered about it was the terrific score by the legendary French composer Mr. Michel Legrand. But nothing else stood out to me.
Now that I've rewatched the film I understand why I didn't remember much. There is very little story to the film. It is a perfect example of style over substance. When the film was originally released Roger Ebert said the film was "the most under-plotted, underwritten, over-photographed film of the year." As the years have gone on I've come to lose a lot of respect for Mr. Ebert, to the point where I rarely bother with him anymore but, when someone's right there right. And Mr. Ebert was right. The difference between us however is, what the film does do is done so well that I think people should see it.
"The Thomas Crown Affair" is a bit of a heist film and a bit of a romance. It revolves around Thomas Crown (Steve McQueen). A wealthy businessman who has just scored when of the largest heist. He gathered a group of people together and stole a large sum of money from a bank. The police say it was a perfect crime. They have no leads. There are no fingerprints. Plenty of eye witnesses but they lead nowhere. The bank is going to have to pay off the insurance but before they do, their own investigator is sent, Vicki Anderson (Faye Dunaway, a lady who knows a thing or two about robbing banks). She suspects Thomas Crown. And not for the best reasons. She simply finds him handsome.
The film is largely a cat-and-mouse game between them. She comes flat out and tells him she thinks he did the bank job. He comes dangerously close to admitting he did, without ever actually saying those words. But with love in the air will she turn a blind eye?
The story could have been told in 20 minutes. The film delays the pay-off by an hour and twenty minutes. Instead we see some flashy cinematography by Haskell Wexler. Probably best known for his work on John Cassavetes' "Faces" (1968), Mike Nichols' "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966) and his own directorial debut, "Medium Cool" (1969). Here he gives us lots of split-screens. The frame is divided into 4,8 or 16 boxes giving us fragments of the action sequences from multiple angels. At first it is an interesting visual. After a while I wasn't as impressed by it. If for any reason, it really doesn't add anything to the story.
The film was directed by Norman Jewison. Jewison at the time was coming off the success of the "Best Picture" Oscar winner "In the Heat of the Night" (1967). He and McQueen had previously worked together on "The Cincinnati Kid" (1965) and in the future he would direct "Fiddler on the Roof" (1971). He is not as active anymore but he has still managed to direct some good films in the last 10 or so years including "The Hurricane" (1999) and "The Statement" (2003).
But the problem with the film is not the directing or the cinematography or the acting. The script written by Alan R. Trustman, who wrote another Steve McQueen vehicle, "Bullitt" (1968), lacks depth of characters and interesting situations. There is however one great scene. It involve Thomas Crown and Vicki sitting down playing chess. There are no words but the way Jewison and Wexler film the scene is actually very erotic. There is no nudity. And no foul language. But we understand the not so subtle subtext of them playing chess. The camera gives us extreme close-ups of Dunaway's and McQueen's face. We can sense the heat and longing in their eyes. I don't think Dunaway has ever looked better than she does here.
McQueen seems like a natural of this film. Who else could have played it? There were rumors Sean Connery, probably because he was Bond, but, I don't see him in the role. McQueen had more of a coolness to him in my opinion. I never really thought he was a great actor. He was in some fine films, "The Magnificent Seven" (1960), "The Great Escape" (1963) and "The Getaway" (1972). But he never really impressed me. He was almost too subtle. There was a distance in his acting. It is exactly for that reason most people like him. He tried to almost blend in with the scenery. And he did managed to win an Oscar nominated for his role in "The Sand Pebbles" (1966). Here though his personality works with the character.
One scene has him playing golf. His ball has been buried in the sand. He swings and gets the ball on the green, right next to the hole. His golfing companion bets him he wouldn't be able to do it again. He accepts the bet. This time he doesn't do it. He loses $1,000. On the outside he remains cool but I sensed on the inside he was angry. This is a man who always has a cool exterior but doesn't like to lose. It is a revealing character moment.
At the time of the film's release Faye Dunaway was just coming off her role in "Bonnie and Clyde" (1967). And here she is again involved with banks. She too is not one of my favorite actresses despite appearing in some good films like "Chinatown" (1974) and "Network" (1976). But as I said, she has never looked more beautiful. I guess the film tries to suggest she and Thomas Crown are two sides of the same coin. Her character has no problem bending the rules in order to get her way. She knows full well Thomas Crown is a crook but has no problem sleeping with him. It is part of her investigation she says. But the audience knows better.
And finally we have the Mr. Legrand's score. "The Thomas Crown Affair" doesn't have the same brilliant score he penned for the French classics such as "The Young Girls of Rochefort" (1967) where he gave us the classic tune "You Must Believe in Spring" or "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" where "Watch What Happens" and "I Will Wait For You" came from, easily two of the greatest songs ever written. For "The Thomas Crown Affair" Legrand gives us "The Windmills of Your Mind" which won the "Best Song" Oscar that year. It is a haunting song dealing with the memory of a doomed relationship and how it affects the mind reliving those moments, "Round/Like a circle in a spiral/ Like a wheel within a wheel/Never ending or beginning/ On an ever-spinning reel". It seems to match the film's cinematography. In fact the song was written first and the film was suppose to match it.
So will "The Thomas Crown Affair" disappoint some? Yes. Those looking for a plot. Those looking for an exercise in filmmaking techniques will enjoy the film. The film is more about mood than story-line. It doesn't dwell deep enough into the characters in my opinion, but we get a sense of something larger beneath these characters. There is more than meets the eye. And what exactly does the ending mean?
If you enjoy this film I'd suggest watching some films directed by French filmmaker Claude LeLouch. Check out his "The Crook" (1970) and "Happy New Year" (1973). Both are light heist/romance films.
Many people may also know "The Thomas Crown Affair" was remade in 1999 and starred Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo. It was actually a remake which worked. In fact there are certain elements about it which I enjoy more. Try watching both back to back.
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