rating:
(out of
4 stars)United Kingdom; 1972
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz; produced by Morton Gottlieb; screenplay by Anthony Shaffer; based on his play
Starring Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine, Alec Cawthorne
This film seems an inspiration for David Fincher's 'The Game', which would be the appropriate title here as well. It is one of those second-guessing thrillers, where the audience is played the same way the characters play each other. Based on the intelligent play written by Anthony Shaffer, who also wrote the screenplay, it never cheats. Both script and leading actors Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine play a major part in keeping the attention of the audience for over two hours.
As the film opens we meet Milo Tindle (Caine) walking through a labyrinth, the perfect metaphor for things to come. Once he has reached the middle (only achieved through cheating) he meets Andrew Wyke (Olivier), the man who send for him. Milo is Wyke's wife's lover and he wants to marry her. The first surprise comes when Wyke thinks that is a terrific idea, but he needs to keep her, and therefore he needs what she has grown accustomed to: money. Wyke, a writer of detective stories, has planned the perfect crime in which Milo steals his jewelry to pawn it in Amsterdam.
Of course Milo evetually agrees, but then the real game begins. Wyke loves to play games, as we learn in the first hour, and we understand he is playing some kind of game here. The outcome, or at least the one Wyke wishes for, is never sure. Here, we are around one third of the film, and it is the right time to stop talking about the plot, which should be experienced without too much knowledge. Especially the second and delivering third act should not be spoiled by too many words.
The important elements that make 'Sleuth' work are script, direction and acting here. The screenplay is not only intelligent and surprising, it is very witty. It is heavy on dialogue, which betrays the stage-origin, but it all sounds to delightfully good this is a very positive point. Olivier gets the best moments here. For physical action the best moments are for Caine. First he has to dress up as a clown, and performing the actual break in dressed like that delivers some hilarious situations.
Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz (probably best known for 'All About Eve') allows his film version to play like, well, a play. Not just the dialogue, but the single location - Wyke's mansion - is prove of that. For some reason it never feels really as such though. The director finds enough diversity in different rooms, while at the same time give us some markers to know in what room we are exactly. By sometimes pointing his camera quite obviously to certain objects he plays a game with the audience as well. Are these really clues to something?
Finally we have Olivier, earning his eight out of ten Oscar nominations for acting, and Caine (second nod out of six nominations up to date), both perfect for their roles. The witty Wyke, looking down on Milo, feels in control of the situation most of the time. He acts like the superior being. Caine knows how to show a certain vulnerability, while being relaxed and at ease with Wyke's superiority. He does not seem to care all that much. These two performance are the key to the highly intelligent, always witty, and constantly entertaining thriller that 'Sleuth' really is.