The Hot Rock (1972)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Peter Yates

Writers:

Donald E. Westlake (novel)
William Goldman (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 January 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

How many times does it take to steal the same diamond?

Plot:

Dortmunder and his pals plan to steal a huge diamond from a museum. But this turns out to be only the first time they have to steal it...

Plot Keywords:

Heist | Locksmith | Recruiting | Police Station | Prison Escape

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Robert Redford	...	Dortmunder
George Segal	...	Kelp
Ron Leibman	...	Murch
Paul Sand	...	Greenberg
Moses Gunn	...	Dr. Amusa
William Redfield	...	Lt. Hoover
Topo Swope	...	Sis
Charlotte Rae	...	Ma Murch
Graham Jarvis	...	Warden (as Graham P. Jarvis)
Harry Bellaver	...	Rollo the Bartender
Seth Allen	...	Happy Hippie
Robert Levine	...	Cop at Police Station
Lee Wallace	...	Dr. Strauss
Robert Weil	...	Albert
Lynne Gordon	...	Miasmo

Also Known As:

How to Steal a Diamond (UK) (informal title)
How to Steal a Diamond in Four Uneasy Lessons (UK)

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:16 | UK:U | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1972) | Sweden:15 | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Landers-Roberts Productions

Trivia:

In the Dortmunder novels by Donald Westlake, Murch always steals cars owned by medical doctors. In the movie, the license plates of the stolen cars have the letters "MD" as part of the plate number.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the yellow Mustang crashes in to the side of the museum, a cable can be seen attached to the car.

Quotes:

Dortmunder: It's good, and it's bad. There's a guaranteed return, and that's good. But the guarantor is Amusa, and Amusa's a rookie, and that's bad. But it's an easily transportable object, and that's good. Only it's in a rotten position in the museum, 30 steps to the quickest exit...
[...]

Movie Connections:

References The French Connection (1971)

Soundtrack:

When You Believe

Another Great Movie Missing from the Video Shelves

This film is taken from one of a series of books by Donald E. Westlake about John Dortmunder & his various cronies who try to pull off big capers but never quite succeed. Anyone who likes this movie should try picking up the novel it's based on.

If, as other posters have written, Robert Redford has prevented release of this movie on video then that's a shame since this is a very funny & enjoyable crime caper film with some good actors & good New York City locations. Recently, it has been on Cinemax (which I don't have) a couple times so maybe that is a prelude to a future video re-release.