SLEUTH (1972) A Film Review by Ted Prigge Copyright 1998 Ted Prigge
Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz Writer: Anthony Shaffer (based on his play) Starring: Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine, Alec Cawthorne
The beginning of "Sleuth" sums up the entire feel of the film: Milo Tindle (Caine) arrives in a convertible to see famed mystery writer Andrew Wyke (Olivier) but hears him talking into a recorder in the middle of a massive garden maze. Milo attempts to follow Andrew's voice through the numerous passages in the garden, but cannot find access to where he is. The only way in is a secret that only Andrew knows, and for anyone looking for him to perhaps stumble upon. But it's not bloody likely.
Milo has come to see Andrew because he is having an affair with his wife, and wants to talk to him about marrying her. Instead of acting like an asswhole about it, Andrew greets him nicely, offers him a drink, and almost seems to agree with what Milo is saying. However, he begins to lead him off of the subject and gets him unknowingly into a game of wits all done by conversation and convincing. See, Andrew loves to play games that work on the mind. He has graduated from chess to more complex games, and has all sorts of games throughout his mansion, including dolls that pop out of nowhere on the cue of a button, and even a hidden safe that is only accessible if you're coordinated.
He also loves to play with people. The man is a mystery writer, and so we know that he loves to manipulate his readers a bit. If he didn't, he probably wouldn't be as successful as he is. And as the film goes on, we see him convincing Milo to do something which seems silly, but because Andrew is so convincing, he goes along with it.
So goes the rest of the film: a series of mind fucks not only on both the characters on the other, but also on the audience. One of the greatest enjoyments in watching a play or a film or reading a book is being completely fooled only to find out that everything actually works out in the end, it was just the way you were interpreting it. Most people feel cheated when they discover that things were manipulated so that the entire dupe doesn't even work out in the end, but are amazed when facts are miscontrued so that you just don't see everything that's going on. When games logically work out in the end, you'll find that people respect what you've done to them and would love to go through it again.
This is what watching "Sleuth" is like. It's basically a filmed stage play, and it's better that way. The entire film lives in the moment of its language, the way that everything being said may have a double meaning, and that you may be falling for something without knowing it. And for two great actors like Olivier and Caine, it's a chance to show off their acting talents, and fascinate people with dialogue, not action.
The film runs about 2 hours and 20 minutes, but because the film is almost entirely filled with dialogue, the film flies by, almost seeming too short. The action is only interupted once, by another actor named Alec Cawthorne, a veteran of the British stage, who plays an inspector invesitgating something which may or may not have occurred in the first hour. And when he interupts, you almost want him to go away so that the action can get back to Caine and Olivier, who share an amazing amount of chemistry together, much more than one would have thought.
Olivier and Caine are two great actors and they run wild with the dialogue, penned by Anthony Shaffer, who adapted it from his play (which has to be a blast to watch). Both play their roles with lots of energy, taking lots of liberties with the dialogue. Olivier especially goes mad with his role, tossing in all sorts of great asides and what-not. It's not suprising that both received Oscar nominations back in '73.
The film was directed Joseph L. Mankiewicz, a veteran Hollywood director who has made such films as "All About Eve," "Guys and Dolls," and even the mondo-budgeted "Cleopatra" with Elizabeth Taylor. Here, he seems to be just trying to make an entertaining film, not worrying much about the grandness of the look, more worried about the dialogue. He finds the right note for the film, not interupting the film with many directorial traits, but merely letting the film's characters tell the story.
But there's more: the film has a surprising amount of depth to it, depth which doesn't insult our intelligence or become too overbearing that it causes the film to collapse under itself. The film is relentless in showing the effects of man-made isolation, the need to be "above" everyone else, and the wonderment of playing God with people, primarily because you're more intelligent than most people. Underneath all the fun is a tragedy about a man who is exactly like this, but none of this becomes too blatant or annoying, which would take away from the film vastly.
"Sleuth" is a film that most people have not heard of today, but anyone who sees it is guaranteed a film that is so vastly entertaining that it's almost a pity when the 140 minutes are over. Every second of this film is worth watching, and every twist and turn is a shock but not an insult. Part of the fun of watching a stage play is living in the moment. I have never seen a film that lives more in the moment than "Slueth."
MY RATING (out of 4): ****
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