The Drowning Pool (1975)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Stuart Rosenberg

Writers:

Ross Macdonald (novel)
Tracy Keenan Wynn (writer) ...

Release Date:

July 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller | Mystery

Tagline:

Harper days are here again...

Plot:

A big-city private detective travels to the Deep South to help out an old girlfriend who is being blackmailed.

Plot Keywords:

Louisiana | Detective | Blackmail | Private Detective | Underwater

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Lew Harper
Joanne Woodward	...	Iris Devereaux
Anthony Franciosa	...	Chief Broussard (as Tony Franciosa)
Murray Hamilton	...	Kilbourne
Gail Strickland	...	Mavis Kilbourne
Melanie Griffith	...	Schuyler Devereaux
Linda Haynes	...	Gretchen
Richard Jaeckel	...	Lt. Franks
Paul Koslo	...	Candy
Joe Canutt	...	Glo
Andrew Robinson	...	Pat Reavis (as Andy Robinson)
Coral Browne	...	Olivia Devereaux
Richard Derr	...	James Devereaux
Helena Kallianiotes	...	Elaine Reavis
Leigh French	...	Red Head

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Germany:12 (re-rating) (2006) | West Germany:16 (original rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Coleytown

Trivia:

Average Shot Length = ~7.2 seconds. Median Shot Length = ~7.3 seconds.

Quotes:

J.H. Kilbourne: You wanna live, don't you? To a ripe old age?
Lew Harper: I'd hate to think that I was making those Social Security payments for nothing.

Movie Connections:

Edited into La classe américaine (1993) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Killing Me Softly With His Song

Excellent mid-seventies noir

Newman reprises his role as Lew Harper for the second and final time in the long-awaited sequel to 1966's HARPER, another twisting mystery; this time set in Louisiana. Unfortunately, THE DROWNING POOL was tepidly received by both critics and audiences, most of whom seemed to think the film paled in comparison to the original. I am one viewer who disagrees strongly with the general consensus in this case. Not only is THE DROWNING POOL a first-rate mystery thriller, but it is also one of the most sorely underrated films in Newman's filmography.

The film has a completely different look and feel than the previous film, which may have been the reason that so many critics and audiences unfairly rejected it. Gone is the sixties-era go-go mania, which has been replaced with the moody elements of modern film noir which perfectly suits the intricate story of murder and blackmail. The film may not have the starpower of the previous film, but it nonetheless offers solid work from Joanne Woodward, Anthony Franciosa, and a particularly affecting turn from Linda Haynes. Best of all is the then-18 year old Melanie Griffith, who owns her role as the scheming bit of jail bait, unsubtly lusting after Newman's Harper.

Yet nothing can even come close to upstaging Newman, who is as commanding here as anywhere else in his career. In many ways this is a transitional effort for Newman, paving the way from early brutish roles (1958's THE LONG HOT SUMMER, 1963's HUD) to his latter day, more cerebral heroes (1982's THE VERDICT, 1994' NOBODY'S FOOL). Also, even at age 50, the man has rarely been sexier. To top things off, we also have one of the greatest, most original escape scenes in movie history - although I'm not giving it away; you'll have to check out this underrated thriller and see for yourself.