The Anderson Tapes (1971)

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Lawrence Sanders (novel)
Frank Pierson (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 September 1971 (West Germany)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The Crime of the Century!

Plot:

A thief (Duke Anderson) just released from ten years in jail, takes up with his old girlfriend (Ingrid) in her posh apartment...

Plot Keywords:

Surveillance | Tape | Jewel Theft | Criminal Gang | Planning

Cast

Sean Connery	...	Duke Anderson
Dyan Cannon	...	Ingrid
Martin Balsam	...	Haskins
Ralph Meeker	...	Police Captain 'Iron Balls' Delaney
Alan King	...	Pat Angelo
Christopher Walken	...	The Kid
Val Avery	...	Parelli aka Socks
Dick Anthony Williams	...	Spencer (as Dick Williams)
Garrett Morris	...	Officer Everson
Stan Gottlieb	...	Pop
Paul Benjamin	...	Jimmy
Anthony Holland	...	Psychologist
Richard B. Shull	...	Werner (as Richard B. Schull)
Conrad Bain	...	Dr. Rubicoff
Margaret Hamilton	...	Miss Kaler

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1971) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1986) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

1 East 91st Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Final feature film of Margaret Hamilton.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the surveillance man from the House Internal Security Committee picks up the large shotgun microphone, he switches it from his right hand to his left when he turns on one of the tape recorders. In the next shot, as he's still recording the message, the microphone is resting on the table and aiming a different direction.

Quotes:

The Kid: America, man! You know, it's so beautiful I wanta eat it!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Lumet: Film Maker (1975)

Terrific caper movie. Extremely underrated!

It's taken me a while to track down a copy of 'The Anderson Tapes', but I'm sure glad I did. I was knocked out by this consistently interesting caper movie. Sean Connery, post-Bond, pre-Zardoz, plays Duke Anderson, a recently released criminal who decides to rob the luxury apartment block his high class hooker girlfriend (Dyan Cannon) resides in. He assembles a team which includes "The Kid" (an unbelievably young and cool Christopher Walken in his first major movie role), his flamboyant art loving buddy Tommy ('Psycho's Martin Balsam camping it up outrageously), the super cool Everson (Garrett Morris), and (against his will) Mafia goon Socks (Val Avery). Duke however doesn't realize that he, and just about everyone else involved in the plan, are under surveillance by a multitude of government agencies who are following their every move. 'The Anderson Tapes' is an entertaining and tough little thriller full of humour and originality, and with an almost 'Conversation'-like feel to it - a movie it predated by three years incidentally. While nowhere near as well known as Sidney Lumet's other Seventies crime dramas 'Serpico' and 'Dog Day Afternoon' it is equally as good. An extremely underrated movie that deserves a lot more attention.