FILMS… The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)

#1960s #AllPosts

 

Is Vicki merely a pawn in Thomas Crown’s game? It’s her move…

 

The sexual chemistry simmers between the mastermind behind a bank heist and the insurance investigator hired to check him out.

 

Burke

McQueen and Dunaway

The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) – YouTube Movies and photos © United Artists

 

The Windmills of Your Mind – one of the most haunting of title tracks – two incredibly gorgeously charismatic leads from the late sixties and the sexiest chess game ever and The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) was just begging for a review from yours truly.

The film also boasts more split-screen than each and every episode in the George Kennedy’s Airport franchise. That means a lot – and I mean a lot – of Steve McQueen (and much, much more than that scene with the televisions in the film where Jack Nicholson played Van Horne).

The film shows a silhouette of a man, the man orchestrating the bank robbery and his rather unusual recruitment process for this heist. As he interviews the nervous, Erwin – and the only actor visible in these opening shots – drives the getaway car and drops off the loot.

The mysterious mastermind behind this particular bank job uses spotlights and a voice changer to obscure his identity. Erwin accepts this post – for which he’ll be paid in instalments – and he’s instructed to buy a station wagon. A wad of cash is thrown at him before he leaves. Never meeting the man in the shadow.

It’s then split-screen heaven (or hell) as we see the others involved – all wearing sunglasses and Trilby hats – carry out this robbery. This robbery timed to the minute. All reporting back to one Thomas Crown – in his palatial office – as he scores off their detailed to-do checklist. This list is written with times and their actions it’s worked out meticulously.

The robbery carried out slickly by these anonymous characters runs to perfection, despite a few near misses. The robbery is a success, Erwin leaves the money at the drop-off, and a Rolls Royce follows him to the cemetery. We meet Crown (McQueen). an enigmatic debonair ringleader in time with the church bells.

Crown returns home fixes himself a drink, lights a cigar and laughs like a James Bond bad guy surrounded by opulence, with paintings, a log fire and that chessboard. Crown booty calls his girl Gwen (Astrid Heeren) to complete his night.

Meanwhile, the stolen money is counted. It amounts to 2,660,527 dollars. 32 witnesses are interviewed by Detective Eddy Malone (Paul Burke) and his colleagues. Malone is questioned by the press, its front-page news. There are no fingerprints or evidence. Erwin on leaving the city by station wagon the cops question and then dismiss him.

Meanwhile, Crown flies to Geneva and procures a Swiss Bank Account with the cash. Specifically asking for deductions and transactions from his account specifically for the 19th of the month but in any year. Back in Boston, the bank’s insurance brokers aren’t happy replacing the cash. They call in an investigation to find the perpetrators… Malone’s not impressed.

That’s until he sees the independent Insurance investigator at the airport. She’s blonde. Sunglasses. Big 70s hat. Pretty. Efficient Looking. Long Legs. (Pulse?).  Then Malone changes his mind. On meeting the lady in question, she’s introduced as Vicki Anderson (Faye Dunaway) who’ll be getting 10% of the recovered money for her services.

She gives Malone the once over, with a glimmer of mutual attraction. Crown meanwhile plays golf, and more of his game playing and high-risk lifestyle in action, as he bets with high stakes on the outcome.

A week later, Vicki has worked out how the heist was organised as she girlsplains it to Malone. She tells how  5 random strangers met for the first time as they played their part in the crime, all not knowing their ringleader. She’s even worked out the ringleader has a Swiss Bank account, and just how he obtained it and that he’ll pay the robbers in instalments.

Yup, she’s that perceptive good. With her perusing their photos, Vicki and Malone whittle the possible suspects down to five. By photo number 3, she believes – call it womanly intuition or just the chance to get up close and personal to investigate this particular subject, the handsome, Thomas Crown is the man behind it. (What d’ya know he’s single).  She just has to prove it.  She suggests a substantial reward requesting a “fink” (grass) to reveal all.

Vicki checks Crown out playing polo. Cue lots of split-screen McQueen, horses and er.. a polo game. He’s obviously young, handsome and fit. She’s distinctive with her larger-than-life camera, and her red Ferrari (“one of those red Italian things”). Both attract Crown’s curiosity and attention.

The pair then “meet” again at an art auction where he notes her car outside. With some furtive looks from both of them, as the bidding is on, it’s more than clear she’s interested. Simultaneously she is making sure he thinks she is keen on him. He appears to be interested in her too, and afterwards, the pair talk about their first encounter at the polo match.

She tells him she’s investigating him, which arouses his interest. He laughs. By now they are like the only two people in the room as there’s a serious amount of strong eye contact. She tells him she always gets her man. He invites her to dinner, at 6pm sharp. She accepts. It’s all kind of double entendre and flirty.

After a setup, after Erwin’s wife “finks” (blabs) on him, Erwin’s son is “kidnapped” by Vicki. It’s clear as she appears with the child and meets him, she can play dirty. At 6pm, and both Erwin and Crown waiting for her at the police station, it’s obvious they don’t recognise each other. She goes for dinner at Crowns.

He questions her about some “wall to wall carpet” he “apparently” ordered. Signalling that he knows just how she’s looking for evidence, her smile revealing she was behind this.  After dinner she wanders around the room, her attention aroused by the chessboard. And they swap a look so intense conveying their mutual attraction, it’s breathtaking.

He asks her directly “Do you play?” And we’re obviously not just talking chess here. She looks him in the eye and says “Try me”.  The background music sounds like a snake charmer entrancing a snake. Without a word, they play chess. Mirroring their moves on the chessboard. With a little shared smile. He’s manly and decisive.

She’s flirty and feminine, showing her bare arms. He’s literally hot under the collar. She strokes the outline of her neckline to her breast where her dress ends and her bare skin begins. He notices and raises an eyebrow. She gently traces her arm with her hand. He’s distracted.

As time goes on they continue to mirror each other now with gestures here and there. He gives a nervous smile as she stares directly at him her pupils enlarged. He’s almost nervous, a cat caught in the headlights. She caresses her lips and bites her finger seductively.

She caresses and strokes the bishop chess piece. He smiles catching the double entendre attached to this action. They touch each other accidentally, both under and on the table and then jump away. He makes another move. She returns her move, and says “Check.”

In silence, he leaves the table, peruses the chessboard from all angles, and grabs her with force on her arm. She stands and he kisses her. For a minute. Sweetly. Passionately. Hungrily. The camera circles the kissing pair quickly until they are a blur of pre-1970s colour…

It is there that we leave them letting you watch this to learn the rest of the movie, as Vicki and Thomas start dating, but is it a genuine love affair or all in the game? I loved the use of the split-screen in this movie, especially at the start which showed the crime from the view of the individual perpetrators as it happened. Each of the perpetrators in their own individual stories told by their individual screen was a nice unique touch in this storytelling.

These scenes along with Erwin’s initial interview reinforced that the characters only met as the crime was carried out, with them then going their own separate ways after the crime. The use of the initial interview sets the story and crime, along with introducing Erwin as a key part of the story.

With Crown’s love of games evident throughout the film be it chess, Polo playing and a golf game… This reminded me immediately of another character Andrew Wyke who enjoyed playing games be it mental or otherwise in Sleuth (1972). It was clear Crown’s character was carrying the heist out just for kicks, the high stake odds appealing to him. Also relishing in the danger and risk involved.

These qualities are also reflected in his dangerous lifestyle where he took solo flights in his glider or drove his car erratically along the beach.  These strengths are also reflected in his attraction to and relationship with Vicki. At the start, he almost was turned on by the thought of her finding ways to expose him as the ringleader.

McQueen had the charisma, sex appeal and tough-guy demeanour making him perfectly cast as this strong male lead this film needed for this character. Dunaway fresh from her leading role in Bonnie and Clyde (1967) was more than his match. Her character however more difficult to read. As more was revealed about Vicki you were aware she played things dirty where she needed to, to get the results she wanted.

This made it unclear if Vicki was setting herself up as a honey trap or was genuinely falling in love with Crown as the film played on. However, their mutual sexual attraction is evident from the start, as the characters see each other for the first time. Her attracted to his photo and her enigmatic appearance at his polo match.

Going back to that snog… now instead of asking your man/woman/waifu to “kiss me like you miss me” after seeing that snog in Deadpool 2 (2018). Instead say “Kiss me, like that kiss in The Thomas Crown Affair“, and stress the 1968 version. It looks like that with this kiss, is McQueen’s Crowning achievement for proving a kiss isn’t just a kiss…

 

Weeper Rating:  😦 😦 😦 😦 😦 /10

Handsqueeze Rating:  🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 10

Hulk Rating: ‎‎ ‎   /10

 

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4th Annual Sex (Now I Have Got Your Attention Blogathon 2018, No 29

This post was added to Movie Movie Blog Blog‘s 4th Annual Sex (Now I Have Got Your Attention Blogathon). Other posts with this cast include,

• Steve McQueen in The Towering Inferno with Faye Dunaway.
• Faye Dunaway in Network, Bonnie and Clyde, Voyage of the Damned and more.
• Paul Burke in Dynasty, Glitter, Fantasy Island, Thriller and more.
• Jack Weston is in The Four Seasons,  Bewitched and more.
• Yaphet Kotto in Murder She Wrote.

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