"The Thomas Crown Affair" (1968) was one of those self-consciously "mod" caper films Hollywood cranked out by the dozens in the late 1960s, this one starring Steve McQueen as Thomas Crown, a millionaire who masterminded robberies simply for the thrill of it and Faye Dunaway as a chic insurance investigator who falls under his spell while trying to bust him. In its day, the movie's multi-screen imagery and anti-Establishment theme ("it's me against the system," Crown says as a rationale for his behavior) struck a chord with young moviegoers, but it's remembered today, if at all, only for its Oscar-winning theme song "The Windmills of Your Mind" and for a suggestive chess match played out by McQueen and Dunaway, a scene mercilessly parodied in "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me."
The chess game has been left out of the new "Thomas Crown Affair," but that doesn't mean stars Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo don't find plenty of opportunities to fool around. This "Crown," a smarter and more exciting film than the original, is essentially a two-hour excuse to get this beautiful couple into one compromising position after another, usually with some sort of glamorous party or exotic beach serving as a background. Those viewers who've felt a bit cheated by such recent squeaky-clean romances as "Runaway Bride" may be intrigued to hear "Crown" also features some of the most physically challenging trysts in years. Its R-rating is well-deserved.
"Crown" also represents a big step forward for Brosnan, whose non-James Bond screen appearances ("The Mirror Has Two Faces," "The Lawnmower Man," etc.) have not exactly established him as a genuine movie star. Here, he demonstrates his light comic touch and more than holds his own against the smouldering Russo. They're a pair to reckon with.
The screenplay by Leslie Dixon and Kurt Wimmer changes the bank robbery of the first film into an art heist, a crime that better suits the ever-suave Crown (Brosnan). Investigator Catherine Banning (Russo) deduces the enigmatic billionaire must have something to do with the theft -- after all, he once wrecked a $100,000 sailboat just because "he liked the splash" -- and she follows his trail straight into his arms, where she learns they have a good deal in common.
They're both from modest backgrounds, they both enjoy the good life and both have trouble maintaining long-term relationships. Over dinner one night she asks him, "is it more fun getting it than keeping it?" and it's not hard to tell she's asking about more than just the stolen painting. "Crown" shrewdly plays on the time-honored working woman's fantasy of having it all, as Catherine ends up jetting off to Martinique and having a passionate fling while still getting her job done. Of course in a situation like this reality must sooner or later enter the picture, and when it does our heroine must decide whether she's going to bed her man or bust him.
Given that director John McTiernan's resume includes such now-classic thrillers as "Die Hard" and "The Hunt For Red October," it's a given the picture's action sequences are smoothly executed. But McTiernan also knows how to downshift for the quieter scenes, and he even gets a surprisingly sincere performance out of Denis Leary, who plays Catherine's somewhat sympathetic partner in crime-fighting.
"This is an elegant crime done by an elegant person," Catherine declares at one point. That verdict applies to the movie as well. James Sanford
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