Distrust of the
government has been an amplifying theme of American culture since its
revolutionary inception. Cultural themes are constantly reflected in
cinema, expressions of generations in distress, lost in the political
machinations of the rich and powerful. The 1970's is widely considered to
be the most daring decade of American film. Studios, not yet absorbed by
theme park illusion, backed maverick auteurs and reputed madmen, allowing them
to make passion projects and scathing refutations of the systems in which they
labored. From this creative miasma, the conspiracy thriller rose to
prominence. While Russia and the USA shadowboxed, citizens lived in fear
of spies, communists, governments, and other media born nightmares and a
rogue's gallery of directors emerged from the shadows to give those horrors
celluloid life. What follows is a collection of American films from that
era and where to view them.
Klute (1971)
The first of Alan
Pakula's paranoia trilogy, Klute is a slow-paced thriller that eschews
cliche' in favor of an organic love story that develops between the principals
while a murderous conspiracy envelops them. Jane Fonda gives one of the
finest performances of all time as Bree, a high-priced call girl who may or may
not hold the key to the disappearance of a chemical executive. Donald
Sutherland supports as the eponymous Klute, a detective who is hired to find
the exec. The absolute brilliance of this film, aside from Pakula's
meticulous direction and Gordon Willis' bruised cinematography, is in how Fonda
reinvents the concept of the "hooker with a heart of gold" while simultaneously
beginning to become a political activist, challenging a system that routinely
put women in the background.
Availability:
Criterion Blu-Ray, Criterion Channel, Digital Rental
The Conversation (1974)
Francis Ford Coppola's
masterwork is a quiet nightmare built on the foundation of privacy and
perception. Gene Hackman gives the performance of his career as Caul, a
surveillance specialist who happens upon what he believes to be dangerous
information. Haunted by demons from his past, Caul descends into a
labyrinth of paranoia and delusion as he attempts to stop an impending
calamity. The result is a shocking, white knuckle character piece that exposes
the rawness of a country still reeling from Presidential corruption and the terrors
of the Vietnam War.
Availability: Digital Rental, Showtime
The second
installment in Pakula's trilogy, The Parallax View is one of the
greatest unconventional American horror films ever created. A
presidential candidate is assassinated and the lone gunman is killed shortly
thereafter. In the following years, several witnesses to the event die
under what appears to be mundane and tragic circumstances. Drawn into the
investigation is Warren Beatty's Joe Frady, an investigative reporter. As
he begins to delve into the deaths, he discovers an unthinkable conspiracy that
not only controls virtually every aspect of government, it also grooms
psychotic assassins to dispose of anyone or anything that stands in
opposition. The final result is a pitch-black descent into the shadows
that continue to haunt the United States to this day.
Availability: Amazon Prime, Criterion Collection Blu-Ray
Legendary Sydney Pollack's Three Days of the Condor is perhaps the most
straight forward espionage film included in this list. The story involves
a CIA analyst who returns from getting lunch for his team to find them all
murdered by assassins. As he attempts to flee New York City, he is
pursued by a shadowy killer (an unforgettable Max Von Sydow) and the very
government he serves. It is Pollack's well machined control and
taught editing that ups the anxiety. From virtually the first scene,
Redford's vulnerability, the essence of mortality makes him a relatable hero, a
surrogate for the viewer faced with an unthinkable situation.
The final installment of the paranoia trilogy, Pakula continued his string of
masterworks with a film that focused on the Watergate scandal that would
eventually undo Richard Nixon's presidency. Robert Redford and Dustin
Hoffman star as reporters Woodward and Bernstein, but is it Jason Robards as
their dedicated editor and the recently deceased Hal Halbrook as "Deep
Throat" who steal the limelight. Despite this being a layered
conspiracy story, what allows it to truly resonate is in how fair and measured
the examination of journalism ethics is explored. Seeing a credible media
take down the most powerful person in the world is a thing to behold.
Availability: HBO Max,
Digital Rental
John Schlesinger's (Midnight Cowboy) storied filmography includes this
contemporary Nazi-Revenge piece. What begins as a government co-opt with
an infamous Nazi dentist transforms into an extended cat and mouse game.
Dustin Hoffman stars a Babe, a PHD student whose brother (Roy Schneider) is
embroiled in a business relationship with Szell, portrayed by film icon
Laurence Olivier. Olivier was nominated for an Academy Award for his
absolutely chilling performance, particularly during a torture sequence
involving teeth that is in the climax. Unforgettable from start to
finish, Marathon Man is emblematic of the maverick years of Hollywood
with its brutality and design.
Availability: Digital Rental
Network (1976)
Sidney Lumet's
apocalyptic takedown of America media and entertainment; Network, is one
of the greatest American films ever made. When Howard Beale learns he is
being let go from his network, he threatens on camera to shoot himself in the
head. What follows is an existential firestorm that obliterates any sense
of civility with respect to what we see and hear every day. Lumet and his
impressive cast attack the subject matter with humor and unexpected spurts of
humanity, grounding the almost dreamlike concepts to the material plane where
they reveal themselves to be nightmares that are alive and well in every
American household. Companies with impossible resources determine every
aspect of the entertained lives', but even god will not help you if your
ratings begin to slip...
Availability: Digital
Rental
Capricorn One (1978)
The great Peter Hyams helmed this thriller that moves the conspiracy to
space...sort of. After an equipment malfunction, a Mars expedition is
abandoned, and the astronauts are coerced into faking the mission to ensure
NASA and its various shady contractors continue to get funding. Hal
Halbrook is the menacing NASA admin while Sam Waterston, James Brolin, and O.J.
Simpson portray the astronauts. The wonderful Elliot Gould (The Long
Goodbye) returns to a detective role as an investigative reporter who
begins to connect the dots. Aside from thrilling chase sequences, the
entire final act which takes place in the desert is both beautifully shot and
horrifically realized.
Availability: Digital Rental, HBO Max
The Boys from Brazil (1979)
Laurence Olivier
reversed roles from Marathon Man and plays a Nazi Hunter in Franklin
Schaffner's (Patton) The Boys From Brazil. This is a
meticulously crafted, quasi-science fiction thriller in which concepts of
cloning, free will, genetic manipulation, and nature vs. nurture are all
flirted with, but not fully developed. The idea of multiple Hitlers walking the
Earth isn't even the most terrifying aspect, it is the fundamental
understanding that a cult like devotion to one of the evillest human beings in
history continues to flourish, even today. While the ending a is a bit of
a cop out, the premise is thrilling and with Gregory Peck facing off with
Olivier, it's almost impossible to go wrong.
Availability: Vudu, Tubi w/ Ads, Digital Rental
The China Syndrome (1979)
Jack Lemmon gives the
performance of his career as a shift supervisor in a nuclear power plant that
may be on the verge of a meltdown. He's supported by Jane Fonda and
Michael Douglas as the journalists trying to bring his truth to the
people. This is a fascinating film because not only is the acting incomparable,
the parallels with reality are bone chilling, presenting a scenario that could
happen at virtually any time. The conspiracy elements involve the
administration of the plant wanting a restart at any cost, echoing the
anti-capitalist threads that weave through many of the films from this
era.
Availability: The Criterion Channel, Digital Rental
--Kyle Jonathan