The Parallax View (1974)

Director:

Alan J. Pakula

Writers:

David Giler (writer) and
Lorenzo Semple Jr. (writer) ...

Release Date:

14 June 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller

Tagline:

There is no conspiracy. Just twelve people dead.

Plot:

An ambitious reporter gets in way-over-his-head trouble while investigating a senator's assassination which leads to a vast conspiracy involving a multinational corporation behind every event in the worlds headlines.

Plot Keywords:

Dam | Assassin | Kiddie Train | Presidential Candidate | Bomb

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Warren Beatty	...	Joseph Frady
Hume Cronyn	...	Bill Rintels
William Daniels	...	Austin Tucker
Paula Prentiss	...	Lee Carter
Kenneth Mars	...	Former FBI Agent Will
Kelly Thordsen	...	Sheriff L.D. Wicker
Jim Davis	...	George Hammond
Bill McKinney	...	Parallax Assassin
William Jordan	...	Tucker's Aide
Edward Winter	...	Senator Jameson
Earl Hindman	...	Deputy Red
William Joyce	...	Senator Charles Carroll (as Bill Joyce)
Stacy Keach Sr.	...	Commission Spokesman #1
Ford Rainey	...	Commission Spokesman #2
Jo Ann Harris	...	Chrissy - Frady's Girl (as JoAnne Harris)

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Iceland:L | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Gorge Dam, Skagit River, Washington, USA

Company:

Doubleday Productions

Trivia:

The opening sequence was designed to mirror that of Robert F. Kennedy's 1968 assassination.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the opening Independence Day parade sequence, there are no leaves on the tree branches visible as the senator and his wife pass by, but the leaves would be full and green on July 4th in Seattle.

Quotes:

Joseph Frady: [to Deputy Sheriff] Don't touch me unless you love me.

Movie Connections:

References The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

Soundtrack:

Wild and Woolly West

Political conspiracy thriller par excellence.

The late Alan J. Pakula's 1974 film about political murders is a superbly crafted thriller that holds the audience in its quiet, unsettling grip.

Warren Beatty gives his character of Joe Frady, a "third-rate" journalist, just the right balance of recklessness and determination to enable one to have faith in this man to uncover such shady, potentially threatening goings-on.

Beatty is ably backed up by the supporting cast, most notably Hume Cronyn as Frady's editor, and Paula Prentiss and William Daniels as, respectively, a television reporter and columnist both in fear for their lives.

Composer Michael Small's main theme (used at strategic points throughout the film and often playing on the traditional patriotic sound of the trumpet) has a quality both mournful and despairing that relates effectively to what we are watching. It is a rather sparse music score, but this seems to add to its power. Gordon Willis's Panavision photography conveys threat in even the most everyday of locations (his rendering of modern architecture is especially strong in suggesting a faceless, omnipotent threat), while the editing rhythms and sound design contribute a great deal in throwing the audience off-balance.

Pakula has been involved in more widely-known projects such as All The President's Men and Presumed Innocent, but The Parallax View is definitely one of his best and most powerful films.