Harper | Paul Newman, Lauren Bacall | An Infectious Gem from the 1960s

Harper | Paul Newman, Lauren Bacall | Harper

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Harper

	Harper Paul Newman, Lauren Bacall Warner Home Video, 1995 average customer review:based on 23 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The reason to see Harper is the kooky mid-Sixties design, the peculiar over-the-hill-gang supporting cast, and the crazy Rat Pack lingo written by famed screenwriter William Goldman. And, of course, Paul Newman fans will want to see their guy in the full flower of his anti-hero hero phase. Anyone seeking a decent adaptation of Ross Macdonald's great series of detective novels will, however, be sorely disappointed. Macdonald's Lew Archer is a melancholy knight who operates in an increasingly somber tangle of family crimes; the movie's Lew Harper is a wisecracking hepcat who mugs his way through an indifferent missing-persons investigation. (Frank Sinatra, who was offered the role, would have been a better fit than Newman.) The cast includes Lauren Bacall, Janet Leigh, Julie Harris, and Shelley Winters as various femmes, none of them especially fatale, and Robert Wagner has one of his better roles as a kind of cabana boy to the rich. Strother Martin pops up as a bearded guru with a love temple on top of a Southern California mountain. The director is Jack Smight, whose career was largely made up of TV work. This was the first Goldman script to be made into a film, based on Macdonald's novel The Moving Target; as Goldman states in an enjoyable DVD commentary track, the name Lew Archer was switched to Harper because of Macdonald's reluctance to sign away franchise rights to his private eye's name, not because Newman wanted to have another movie with an "H" title (after The Hustler and Hud). That clears up a long-running urban legend. Newman did make another Macdonald adaptation, The Drowning Pool, in 1975 again using the Harper name. For a much better mid-sixties cool private-eye picture, see Blake Edwards' Gunn. --Robert Horton

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An Infectious Gem from the 1960s

I recall seeing Harper on the big screen when it came out in '66, and have owned the VHS tape. The new DVD release is a joy: the incredibly cinematography looks gorgous, the award-winning soundtrack pops, and the commentary from William Goldman adds new insights to this unappreciated classic.

Harper is a classic, very funny, character-driven private eye yarn with a great cast set against the hopped-up world of mid 1960's LA. Sure, maybe a few things are dated but this film stands up very well after more than 40 years. The truths of Harper (people are crazier than bedbugs, they lie, surface appearances deceive, but once in awhile honor prevails) remain valid. More important, this film is "a gas" (in 60's parlance) to watch. The only thing missing from this package is a CD with Johnny Mandel's complete score (I know this is out on vinyl but haven't tracked down the CD -- yet).

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Harper

Based on Ross MacDonald's novel, this big-city thriller is notable for two reasons: It marks the debut of Newman's ultra-cool Lew Harper character (later seen to lesser effect in "The Drowning Pool") and was William Goldman's maiden voyage as a screenwriter. Peppered with witty dialogue and immersed in the sex-and-drugs cult weirdness of mid-sixties California, "Harper" is directed with flair by Jack Smight. Shelley Winters, Janet Leigh, Robert Wagner, Julie Harris, and Bacall all contribute choice characterizations, but the center of gravity here is Newman's Harper, never hipper nor more determined to finish the job. Here's another chance to catch Newman in his pri

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Fun whodunnit, with a superb cast and an intriguing plot

Like so many movies, I just picked this one up on a whim off the shelves of our local library (Netflix will never get my business until I've gone through every enticing movie at the libs which, truth to tell, I don't see ever happening).

At any rate, it was a fun movie, not only because of its storyline, but also because of the cast: Paul Newman, Shelley Winters, Julie Harris, Robert Wagner, Janet Leigh--all in top form and having a blast with their noir roles. Newman is the lead and with his charming ways he keeps you entertained the whole time.

The story revolves around the kidnapping of an obnoxious zillionaire and the questions, of course, are--Who among the totally nefarious cast of characters is/are involved and, Will Newman get the criminals before they "do in" the kidnap victim?

Along the way, we see all sorts deliciously seedy sections of L.A. and encounter numerous colorful characters.

R. Baker's Rule--"Just about everything-be it film, book, play, or party-is 20% too long"--applies here. A few mintues trimmed out of this film would definitely have increased it's star rating by at least .25!! :)

Anyway, when you're in the mood for a good detective story, this should fill the bill.

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Slightly above average...slightly.

So, at some point in the sixties either the people who watched films or the people who made them grew tired of the same film-noir/detective films that had been around for ages featuring stars like Humphrey Bogart. As a result, the detective movie changed, and the focus was more on making the lead character cool or funny or tough. Some of these new films were good (the absolute best is Robert Altman's "The Long Goodbye" with Elliott Gould), some were not so good, and some were just in the middle. "Harper" falls in the middle.

The basic premise is that you have a private investigator, played by Paul Newman, who's hired to find a cheating husband, but when he starts digging around he find the husband isn't off with a mistress--he's actually been kidnapped. Eventually Newman gets mixed up with a bunch of shady characters (a gigolo, a drug addict, a washed up actress, a shaman, etc.) and a plot to smuggle migrant workers across the border from Mexico.

The plot is this type of movie is always convoluted. "The Big Sleep," is one of the best detective films ever made, yet there are large plot holes. What really makes the movie worth seeing is whether or not the stars can keep you entertained. "The Third Man" had Orson Welles in a key role. "The Maltese Falcon," had Humphrey Bogart.

This movie has no shortage of stars--Paul Newman, a young Robert Wagner, Janet Leigh, Shelley Winters. They even cast an aging Lauren Bacall--perhaps as a nod to the old Bogart-Bacall films. But the movie still seems to fall a little flat. Wagner is good, and Newman is good at times, but this performance isn't one of his best and the film is barely remembered for a reason.

Overall, the story is enough to keep you interested and there are several laughs, but you'll forget this one a month after you see it.

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"He's fuzz, Puddler. Private."

Not a classic, but fun and Paul is clearly having a blast.
On the commentary track Goldman covers much of the anecdotes and opinions those who've read his books are familiar with. The bombshell is his revelation that he wrote a follow-up adaptation of The Chill - maybe the best detective novel by an American. It never happened. Why? So Paul could make The Secret War of Harry Frigg? Oh, the pangs.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

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