The Sting (1973)

Director:

George Roy Hill

Writer (WGA):

David S. Ward (written by)

Release Date:

10 January 1974 (Argentina)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Recapture "the STING Experience". REMEMBER HOW GOOD THE FEEL WAS THE FIRST TIME (re-release)

Plot:

In 1930s Chicago, a young con man seeking revenge for his murdered partner teams up with a master of the big con to win a fortune from a criminal banker.

Plot Keywords:

Con | Big Con | Courier | Counterfeit | Revenge

Awards:

Won 7 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Henry Gondorff
Robert Redford	...	Johnny Hooker
Robert Shaw	...	Doyle Lonnegan
Charles Durning	...	Lt. Wm. Snyder
Ray Walston	...	J.J. Singleton
Eileen Brennan	...	Billie
Harold Gould	...	Kid Twist
John Heffernan	...	Eddie Niles
Dana Elcar	...	F.B.I. Agent Polk
Jack Kehoe	...	Erie Kid
Dimitra Arliss	...	Loretta
Robert Earl Jones	...	Luther Coleman (as Robertearl Jones)
James Sloyan	...	Mottola (as James J. Sloyan)
Charles Dierkop	...	Floyd the Bodyguard
Lee Paul	...	Bodyguard

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:PG (video rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:PG | South Korea:15 | Brazil:Livre | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1974) | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Hotel - 506 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Zanuck/Brown Productions

Trivia:

The Chicago Elevated stop used in the sequence where Snyder chases Hooker is the 43rd Street station. There is still a stop there, on the current Green Line, but the building shown in the film was destroyed by a fire in 1974 and replaced in 1976. Though shown painted white in the movie, the old station probably would still have been the original natural brick color in the 1930s. The A/B signs on the platform are also an anachronism: skip stop service was not introduced until after WWII.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the poker game, the jacket on top of the seat behind Floyd changes between close-ups and long shots.

Quotes:

Johnny Hooker: Can you get a mob together?
Henry Gondorff: After what happened to Luther, I don't think I can get more than two, three hundred guys.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Hustle: The Con Is On (#1.1)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

THE ENTERTAINER

My all-time favourite!

I love this movie! I LOVE IT!! The first time I saw it I was about eight, or so, and I've probably seen it a hundred times since then and I still enjoy it as much! Infact I still discover new things and details in scenes that I haven't thought about before...

This movie has everything: Great script, great acting, style, fantastic camerawork, excitement, Robert Redford & Paul Newman, HUMOUR, great SOUNDTRACK, perfect lines - and above all - it presents the COOLEST ACTOR I've EVER seen on screen!

No, no... Redford & Newman in all honour, but the coolest actor is without competition ROBERT SHAW as Doyle Lonnegan. (Or was it Linneman? ;))

I've never seen a performance like that one by Robert Shaw... Probably the greatest supporting role performance ever made. So complete! So genius! So elegant! AND SO COOL!!

This movie is just - wow! - one of the kind. Don't miss it for the world. And I'll never forgive you if you miss Robert Shaw.

I'll con you if you do. ;)

My vote: 10/10