Marathon Man

Year:  1975

Director:  John Schlesinger

Screenplay:  William Goldman, based on the novel Marathon Man by William Goldman

Starring:  Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier, Roy Scheider, William Devane, Marthe Keller

Running Time:  125 minutes

Genre:  Thriller

In New York City, history student Thomas "Babe" Levy (Hoffman), who is also training to run a marathon, becomes embroiled in a conspiracy involving sadistic Nazi Christian Szell (Olivier) and his attempt to obtain a cache of stolen diamonds.

Based on the 1974 novel by William Goldman, who also wrote the film's screenplay, this is not the film to watch just before your next visit to the dentist, as the film's most memorable scene involves Szell torturing Thomas by drilling into his teeth while intoning over and over again "Is it safe?... is it safe?... is it safe?..."  However it may be seen by the good people of the dental profession, this is an effective thriller, as with many films of the seventies there is a chilling air of paranoia that hangs over proceedings.  It does take a long time to get going, and several of the narrative threads don't really hang together, but for the most part it works really well, and has some genuinely exciting scenes.  Dustin Hoffman gives a great performance as the fresh-faced, wide-eyed marathon runner, who becomes increasingly haunted and hollow-eyed, as he is used to the limits by his torments.  Laurence Olivier is memorably chilling as the Nazi, with his collection of dental instruments and retractable knife hidden in his shirtsleeve.  One of the most famous behind the scenes anecdotes about the film is method actor Hoffman informing Olivier that he stayed up for three days to look tired on screen, to which Olivier replied "Why don't you just try acting?  It's much easier."  Roy Scheider is also good as Hoffman's older brother who is leading a double life.    

Laurence Olivier and Dustin Hoffman in Marathon Man

Sleepers

Year of Release: 1996
Director:  Barry Levinson
Screenplay:  Barry Levinson, based on the book Sleepers by Lorenzo Carcaterra
Starring:  Kevin Bacon, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Bruno Kirby, Jason Patric, Brad Pitt, Brad Renfro, Minnie Driver
Running Time:  147 minutes
Genre:  Crime drama

In the summer of 1967 four boys growing up in the tough Hell's Kitchen neigbourhood of New York City, accidentally injure a pedestrian in a thoughtless prank.  They are sentenced to do time at the Wilkinson Home for Boys, a brutal reform school where they are regularly abused by sadistic guards.  By 1981 the four friends, all affected in different ways by their experiences at Wilkinson, have drifted apart until they are reunited by a violent act of revenge.

This stylish crime drama is based on a controversial bestseller by Lorenzo Carcaterra, which he insists is autobiographical, although there are disclaimers at the end of the film denying the events ever took place.  This is an entertaining, if unwieldy film, which is almost like three in one.  The opening scenes of the film depict the boys (played by Joe Perrino, Brad Renfro, Geoffrey Wigdor and Jonathan Tucker) growing up in Hell's Kitchen, under the watchful eyes of suave local crime boss King Benny (Vittorio Gassman) and tough but kindly Catholic priest Father Bobby (Robert De Niro), and is kind of a coming of age street movie, kind of a cross between Mean Streets (1973), which also starred De Niro, and Stand By Me (1986), with shades of the De Niro directed A Bronx Tale (1993).  The second, and by far the most disturbing passage, which depicts the boys' abuse at the hands of the sadistic guards (headed by Kevin Bacon) feels like a mix of Scum (1979) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994).  In the third and longest section, the film turns into a legal drama, with the boys bow adults (played by Jason Patric, Brad Pitt, Billy Crudup and Ron Eldard).  It's a stylishly made film with the opening section having a bright sun-dappled "summer of innocence" look, and the second section has  bleak, wintery look, with muted colours.  The abuse that the boys suffer is depicted an almost impressionistic way, while it is obvious what is happening, none of it is really shown.  The film's tonal changes are sometimes jarring, but it is an entertaining and involving film, with a fantastic cast, although Brad Pitt fans may be disappointed that he doesn't appear until about an hour into the film. 

Jason Patric and Robert De Niro in Sleepers

All the President's Men

Year of Release:  1976
Director:  Alan J. Pakula
Screenplay:  William Goldman, based on the book All the President's Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
Starring:  Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Warden, Martin Balsam, Hal Holbrook, Jason Robards
Running Time:  138 minutes
Genre:  Political thriller, drama

This film tells the story of the investigation into the infamous Watergate scandal, in which five men burgled the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate complex in Washington DC, and the subsequent cover-up by then President Richard Nixon.  The film focuses on the investigation into the scandal by Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward (Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Hoffman), and is based on the non-fiction book they subsequently wrote.

The film is one of the classic films about journalism.  The film contrasts the brightly lit, open plan offices of the Washington Post where characters are constantly in motion, followed by a constantly roving camera, with shadowy with shadowy, dimly lit homes, offices, and the underground garages where Woodward meets his mysterious informant (Holbrook).  This is about the day to day business of journalism, days spent on the phone and knocking on doors, desperately searching for anyone who will talk to them, pouring over reams of documents for scraps of information or verification.  This all could seem quite dry, and confusing, but as scripted by William Goldman, and directed by Alan Pakula, who made several political thrillers during the 1970s, it is quite gripping and fairly easy to follow, even if you are not particularly familiar with the case.  The story keeps moving along, with committed performances from the cast and a wealth of background detail.  In the scenes in the Post offices, both the foreground and the background are kept in focus. 
The film was released just a couple of years after the Watergate scandal concluded and so most of the original audience would probably have been aware of the case, but now it is kind of a historical case, even though it was one of the major American political scandals and one of the key events of the 1970s, although by today's standards it all seems rather quaint.

Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford in All the President's Men