The Connection (1961)

A director tries to film a group of junkies in Leach's room while they are waiting for Cowboy to bring their heroin connection.

Director:

Shirley Clarke

Writers:

Jack Gelber (play), Jack Gelber (screenplay)

Stars:

William Redfield, Warren Finnerty, Garry Goodrow

Cast

Credited cast:
Warren Finnerty	...	Leach
Jerome Raphael	...	Solly
Garry Goodrow	...	Ernie
Jim Anderson	...	Sam
Carl Lee	...	Cowboy
Barbara Winchester	...	Sister Salvation
Henry Proach	...	Harry
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	J. J. Burden (as Roscoe Browne)
William Redfield	...	Jim Dunn
Freddie Redd	...	Piano Player
Jackie McLean	...	Sax player
Larry Richie	...	Drummer
Michael Mattos	...	Bass player
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Linda Veras	...	Siren

Storyline

Eight drug addicts are waiting for their connection in a New York apartment belonging to Leach. Jim Dunn, a budding filmmaker, has agreed to pay for the fix if the addicts will allow him to film the connection scene. After the men get their shots, they talk Dunn into trying heroin in order to understand the subject "first hand." He becomes ill and while sleeping, Leach takes an overdose that puts him into a coma. Dunn recovers, with the aid of the connection, and writes off the film as a failure.

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Plot Keywords:

heroin | drug addict | drugs | scene after end credits | scene during end credits | 

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Taglines:

Men Held Captive By the Power Of Drugs

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 December 1996 (France)

Also Known As:

A kapcsolat

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$167,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA)

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Roscoe Lee Browne's movie debut.

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Quotes

Leach: If man is transparent, then how do you account for his shadow?

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Connections

Featured in Cinéastes de notre temps: Rome Is Burning (Portrait of Shirley Clarke) - Rome brûle (1970)

User Reviews

Interesting companion to "Traffic"

I first saw this movie in 1963 by hassling the cashier into selling me a ticket though I was under 18. I can't remember what I expected, but it was so interesting to me that I came back with a couple of underage friends--and got in again. This is a very sophisticated film not only for its time, but for now. There is no surprise ending or plot twist, but the use of the film-within-a-film allows the characters to relate to the outside world even though all the action takes place within one studio apartment. And what they have to say makes as much sense now as it did then. This is a film that could be re-shot with a minor change of clothing style and would look and sound cutting edge.

While "Traffic", in its glossy, artfully edited, mainstream way, explores the glossy, mainstream life of at least some drug traffickers, "The Connection", in its gritty, black-and-white, hand-held way, explores the gritty, hand-held life of at least some of the customers.

I would recommend this film for anyone who is interested in serious exploration of the drug culture. For people who think "Trainspotting" too mainstream--or at least too narrow in approach. "The Connection", too, is narrow, but it helps round out the picture begun by "Traffic" and"Trainspotting".