Director: Sydney Pollack

Screenwriters: Lorenzo Semple Jr., David Rayfiel

Produced/Distributed by: Dino De Laurentiis Corporation, Paramount Pictures

Starring: Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway, Cliff Robertson, Max von Sydow

Why Now? Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, a science-fiction political thriller, was set to finally be released in August 2020. Unfortunately, while that is no longer the case in the US due to the virus (now it’s coming September 3rd), the film will still be released worldwide on August 26th. So in honor of this much anticipated thriller, I will be watching films from that genre, which I suspect will still feel pertinent in this cultural climate.

Why This Film? I am a big fan of Robert Redford after seeing him in films like Captain America:The Winter Soldier (2014), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), and All the President’s Men (1976), and this is one that I have heard brought up a lot. 

What Did I Know About the Film? I know that Robert Redford is in it, and that it’s one of his most famous films. As a teenager, I first really saw him in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which I’ve heard is an homage to this political thriller, featuring similar plot points like the main character being set up by his own organization.

Post-Screening Synopsis:

A CIA analyst (Robert Redford) finds all his co-workers murdered, and flees from being assassinated himself, before discovering a conspiracy within his organization that resulted in his friends’ deaths.

Praise:

The story is really well written. I won’t reveal specifics but the plot is set up in a way that is deceiving, seeming light-hearted at the beginning before the attack and then suspense building  and building, only slowing for brief romantic moments between the two leads. Although it may seem clear who is the main antagonist at first, there are multiple twists and red herrings that make the viewers a lot less sure of themselves by the end of the film. I will have to rewatch this a second time to make sure I truly understand what really happened and why. Which shows that Three Days of the Condor is among the great thrillers. I can see why the filmmakers behind Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) would want to pay homage the film in their own story of conspiracy within a secretive organization during a politically challenging era.

Chris Evans plays Steve Rogers in the 2014 film as a nice guy who is trying to have a normal life, not aware of the betrayal coming from the organization he is working from, which is just like how Robert Redford plays his character, Joseph Turner, in this film. He is charismatic and very likable, an average, bookish analyst caught up in a big mess that forces him to toughen up. He’s very interesting to watch, someone you’re rooting for, even though you feel bad that he really can’t trust anyone else but a normal woman named Kathy Hale (Faye Dunaway). You just want him to succeed, overcome all odds (one man versus an entire intelligence organization), and survive the film, which is not a sure thing, considering the unforgiving time period this film was shot and set in.

The 1970s era services the story so well. Following the trend in cinema at the time, the film is gritty, harsh, and full of realism, building off the suspicion and ambiguous-ness of a world recently rocked by the Watergate scandal. The score plays with the themes as well, combining ’70s funk and soul with unsettling ,sweet Jazz, reminiscent of the thrillers from the 1940s.

It was also quite interesting to see the different antagonists scheming and discussing their work, even if we don’t know who is really responsible for the deaths. The story feels bigger because of it, instead of just being focused on Redford’s character.

Comments:

There’s a romance that develops between Redford and Dunaway’s characters, which for me felt really quick, barely a day after his whole team died (one of whom seemed to be in a romantic/flirtatious relationship with him). I understand if the high adrenaline of the whole situation compelled both of them to consummate their attraction, but it was only a little while before that he had a forcefully hidden at her place and not seem trustworthy. But the two characters were likable, and the leads had chemistry, so this minor plot point didn’t bother me.

Verdict:

I loved it. A suspenseful political thriller with an almost average protagonist trapped within a conspiracy checks all the boxes for me when it comes to the genre. The cold, ambiguous nature of the 1970s only heightens the film for me, a perfect combination that is both realistic and timely.