The Slender Thread (1965)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Sydney Pollack

Writers:

Shana Alexander (article)
Stirling Silliphant (writer)

Release Date:

28 March 1966 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A college volunteer at the crisis phone gets a call from a suicide caller.

Plot Keywords:

Student | Police | Suicide | Marriage | Volunteer

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Sidney Poitier	...	Alan Newell
Anne Bancroft	...	Inga Dyson
Telly Savalas	...	Dr. Joe Coburn
Steven Hill	...	Mark Dyson
Edward Asner	...	Det. Judd Ridley
Indus Arthur	...	Marian
Paul Newlan	...	Sgt. Harry Ward
Dabney Coleman	...	Charlie
H.M. Wynant	...	Doctor Morris (as H. N. Wynant)
Robert F. Hoy	...	Patrolman Steve Peters (as Robert Hoy)
Greg Jarvis	...	Christopher 'Chris' Dyson
Jason Wingreen	...	Medical technician
Marjorie Nelson	...	Mrs. Thomas
Steven Marlo	...	Arthur Foss
Thomas Hill	...	Liquor salesman

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington, USA

Company:

Stephen Alexander Productions

Trivia:

Sydney Pollack's directorial debut.

Goofs:

Factual errors: After Inga attempts suicide by drowning herself in the bay, she arrives at hospital with perfectly styled hair.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Three Days of the Condor (1975)

Excellent drama, with two great stars

Sidney Poitier and Anne Bancroft do not have any scenes together in this movie, which is about his attempts to keep her on the telephone long enough to trace the call, since she's just taken an overdose of pills. It may sound stagnant but it never is - there is some great cinematography and location shooting (in Seattle). A lot of the story is flashbacks, as you find out why Anne has tried to off herself. Her performance is poignant and she never overdoes it; Sidney is perfect, as always.

Tech credits are first rate - scoring by Quincy Jones, costumes by Edith Head, and a Westmore on make-up. I believe this was the first directing job by Sydney Pollack - he did a nice job.

Its okay that the stars never met, they met in real life - Bancroft presented Sidney with his only Oscar, for "Lilies of the Field" two years earlier. And this would make a good double-bill with "'night, Mother", in which Bancroft is on the other end of a suicide attempt.