Year of release
1974
1974
Directed by
Alan J. Pakula
Alan J. Pakula
Written by
David Giler (script)
Lorenzo Semple Jr. (script)
Loren Singer (novel)
David Giler (script)
Lorenzo Semple Jr. (script)
Loren Singer (novel)
Starring
Warren Beattie
Walter McGinn
Hume Cronyn
Warren Beattie
Walter McGinn
Hume Cronyn
The Parallax View
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Plot – Presidential candidate Senator Charles Carroll is assassinated atop the Seattle Space Needle. 18 witnesses are present. Three years later – Seven of those witnesses have died in 'accidents.' Loose cannon reporter Joseph Frady (Warren Beattie) starts an investigation which will lead him to the Parallax Corporation, some shocking revelations and a dramatic end.
This is a terrifically bitter and cynical film, right down to its fantastic tagline - “As American as apple pie.” With its evocative visual style, bleak and stark tone it is a truly disquieting, paranoia-fuelled political thriller. This is a film that is quite clearly a sign of the politically troubled times it takes place in, born out of the rash of political assassinations (JFK, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Bobby Kennedy) that occurred throughout the 60s, and more predominantly the countless conspiracy theories that they spawned, particularly those surrounding the murder of John F. Kennedy. After all, in cases such as these how could one man alone; unremarkable and unimportant men at that, kill such important and iconic figures? How could one man have such an effect on a whole nation? It doesn't really seem to compute that its possible. So people need to seek different, more complex answers. This film delivers one in the Parallax Corporation.
Set up not as a government threat, but as a large, faceless corporation Parallax are in the business of identifying and recruiting potential killers. While it's quite an intriguing and vexing take on the conspiracy angle I found it lacking in credibility. That may sound harsh coming from someone who loved Three Days of the Condor and The China Syndrome with their shady conspiracies, but it just didn't feel like it was presented in a plausible manner. The fact that this invisible force has such an incredible reach, and seemingly unlimited capabilities to accomplish it goals just feels overly paranoid, even for the 70s. It just feels too far-fetched. And while it perhaps helps to emphasise the fact that we cannot comprehend these people or their actions, the fact that no reason is given for the assassinations is a bit annoying. Is the fact they are liberal just enough?
The film opens incredibly strongly with a terrifically conceived assassination. The way its shot heightens the shock and power of it, followed by the terrified chaos that it creates. Following that the shooter climbs out onto the top of the Seattle Space Needle where he gets into an altercation with authorities chasing him before the perpetrator falls to his death. It very much feels like an homage to Alfred Hitchcock, recalling moments such as the Statue of Liberty scene in Saboteur and the Mount Rushmore finale in North by Northwest. It opens the film in such fantastic fashion that it almost works against it in a way. At no point does the film really climb up to those heights of excitement and drama again.
The closest it actually comes probably isn't until the very end of the film, and another assassination, this time of Senator George Hammond. While they are both terrific they are quite different in their execution. While the opening kill is fast, chaotic and action-packed, the second assassination is a much more deliberate, tightly constructed affair. It's an exercise in editing, framing and pacing; coupled with an explosive pay-off. It all creates quite an eerie atmosphere as the camera is still in manner, watching from the rafters as the cart Hammond is riding starts wandering out of control around the auditorium, crashing into chairs and tables draped in red, white and blue. All the while the Senator's pre-recorded speech is playing in the background, and past Presidents, people who are America, watch on in the form of large card displays.
While the first assassination takes place in a confined space, the second takes place in a massive, empty auditorium. With numerous wide angle shots; held for a long time, as well as long stretches of silence it really captures the isolation and alienation. The scene is a perfectly orchestrated trap as Frady plays right into the hands of the enemy that he is seeking to destory. It results in quite a shocking ending that I wasn't expecting, but on reflection realise it could not really have happened any other way.
My favourite element of the film is definitely the visual aspect of the film, created through a combination of Alan J. Pakula's direction and some wonderful cinematography from Gordon Willis. The film looks wonderful and is terrifically shot, with a series of interesting locations and shooting angles. To help create the feeling of these invisible forces all around us, characters are frequently obscured behind glass, curtains or elements of architecture. Characters, particularly Beatty's, are often filmed with wide angles in large, empty environments. It isolates the characters and gives a feeling of being overwhelmed by the surroundings.
As well as the two assassination scenes there is one other scene worthy of note, thought I'll be honest and say I'm not sure what to make of it. It's the Parallax Test scene that Frady undergoes. It's very effective and striking in showing how images, even the most patriotic, can be twisted and bastardised to fit a certain belief or system. It's mixture of American iconography and images that could be associated with America – God, religion, family, baseball, apple pie, commercialism, racial prejudice and lynchings, guns and violence, comic book superheroes, the Nazi menace etc. It's also shown in a manner I didn't expect. Usually it would show some of the test, while intercutting it with Frady's reactions, and then cut to the end. However in allowing it to run for five minutes uninterrupted, I felt it perhaps crossed over into a little pretentious, merely existing just to call attention to itself without really advancing the plot. In a film which feels like it is already meandering at points it sort of halts the film, and bogs down the pace. As I said though it is very effective at confusing and bewildering me, with some cynical, manipulative Americana-style music helping to create something quite distressing. So it might be a piece of avante garde genius, or some smug, egotistic nonsense. I think it might be the former but I'm not ready to commit, staying on the fence about it.
The film includes a couple of occasions of action which don't feel like they really belong. There is an over the top Western-style bar brawl between Frady and a cop in a small town. And there is also a bombastic car chase which sees Frady go all James Bond as the car goes flying through the air in slow motion before crashing into a supermarket. In a film which strives for a serious, sombre tone these scenes just feel out of place, as if they belong to another movie. Even the scene featuring a bomb on a plane feels a little unnecessary, just another example of gratuitous action they've thrown in.
As for Beatty's performance, I wouldn't call it bad but perhaps just unremarkable. I was going to say he looked bored but I think that would be unfair. I think most of the fault lies in the script landing him with a fairly one dimensional character. The film is more about the story; the mystery and suspense of it, than about the characters that inhabit it. Usually in a film like this I'd expect the character to be angry or upset about what they are discovering, or show great tenacity and determination to uncover the truth. Frady however just comes across as really laid back and chilled, seemingly not all that bothered by the enormity of what he is tackling. A man not really flustered by what happens, able to just brush it off with a smile. It's like a window into what All The President's Men would have been like had Woodward and Bernstein had a surfer dude mentality. As a result, as well as not really engaging with his character it's also very hard to buy into the fact that this guy can get so close to the Parallax Corporation when no-one else, or any government enquiries, have been able to. And while his talents also aren't exactly taxed Hume Cronyn delivers a nice showing as Frady's editor. Oh and for me personally it's always a treat to see William Daniels. While he may have had a distinguished career on stage, film and TV to me he will always be Mr Feeny from Boy Meets World.
Oh and there are some truly lovely bits of nostalgia on show here. In particular I'm talking about the prominence given to Pong, and the practice of paying for a flight when you are on the actual plane. In cash! I had no clue of this process up till now.
Conclusion – A flawed film that at times threatens to approach greatness but for me never quite got there. While it is bookended by two terrific assassination scenes, it has the penchant to wander in the intervening time. So its an interesting film, one that I look forward to revisiting sometime and perhaps enjoying more.
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JayDee's Movie Musings (Reviews - Frailty / Total Recall / Lone Ranger / Nightcrawler / Whiplash / Imitation Game / Birdman / Avengers: Age of Ultron / Mad Max: Fury Road)
Last edited by JayDee; 04-17-12 at 03:07 PM.