The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)

A debonair, adventuresome bank executive believes he has pulled off the perfect multi-million dollar heist, only to match wits with a sexy insurance investigator who will do anything to get her man.

Director:

Norman Jewison

Writer:

Alan Trustman (as Alan R. Trustman)

Stars:

Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Paul Burke

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve McQueen	...	Thomas Crown
Faye Dunaway	...	Vicki Anderson
Paul Burke	...	Eddy Malone
Jack Weston	...	Erwin
Biff McGuire	...	Sandy
Addison Powell	...	Abe
Astrid Heeren	...	Gwen
Gordon Pinsent	...	Jamie
Yaphet Kotto	...	Carl
Sidney Armus	...	Arnie
Richard Bull	...	Booth Guard
Peg Shirley	...	Honey
Patrick Horgan	...	Danny
Carol Corbett	...	Miss Sullivan
Tom Rosqui	...	Pvt. Detective

Storyline

Four men pull off a daring daytime robbery at a bank, dump the money in a trash can and go their separate ways. Thomas Crown, a successful, wealthy businessman pulls up in his Rolls and collects it. Vickie Anderson, an independent insurance investigator is called in to recover the huge haul. She begins to examine the people who knew enough about the bank to have pulled the robbery and discovers Crown. She begins a tight watch on his every move and begins seeing him socially. How does the planner of the perfect crime react to pressure?

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Plot Keywords:

american abroad | bank | heist | insurance investigator | bank heist | 

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Taglines:

McQueen, together with this "Bonnie and Clyde" Gal...and the slickest gang that ever robbed a bank!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the movie, the Ferrari driven by Faye Dunaway and being referred to as "one of those red Italian things" is actually the first of only ten Ferrari 275 GTB/4 NART Snyders. This one is serial number 09437. This particular car came second in its class in the 1968 12 hour of Sebring before being repainted and used for the movie. Steve McQueen liked the car so much, he wanted one for himself. He eventually ended up with serial number 10453. That car is today with collector Anthony Wang in NY, USA.

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Goofs

When the detective's secretary is reading out the "take" of the money stolen, she says: 16,240 $20 bills, 19,871 $10 bills, 34,465 $5 bills and 129,000 $1 bills. This totals $816,035.00. Yet several minutes later an insurance check is paid to the bank in the amount of $2,660,527.62.

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Quotes

Thomas Crown: [looks at Vicki, who is standing next to the chess table] Do you play?
Vicki Anderson: Try me.

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Connections

Referenced in The Directors: The Films of Norman Jewison (1999)

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Soundtracks

The Crowning Touch
Music by Michel Legrand

User Reviews

Colourful, kitsch 60's thriller

Take one playboy millionaire, a gorgeous woman, a bank heist and sprinkle with a fabulous though dated soundtrack and you have the type of film that US movie-makers in the 1960's were experts at producing. I look forward to seeing the re-make, but I know it won't be as good as the original. The directing was slick and the characterisations were brilliant, even though you need only to analyse McQueen and Dunaway. The only thing that marrs the film is the split screen direction at the beginning which probably was state of the art at the time, but appears passe now. As you watch the film you notice that the scenes with Dunaway and the detective are fast-paced and strained, whereas McQueen's scenes are drugged and relaxed, a bossa-nova backing tune never far away. The infamous chess scene is a tongue-in-cheek masterpiece that could never be equalled although the fact that recent films love to parody this suggests that it is rather dated. Although Crown is essentially an immoral character, you have to like him - you want to be him. There are certain similarities with The Great Gatsby in that Crown has so much cash that he is after absolute perfection. Unfortunately he can't get it, but unlike The Great Gatsby, this is by no means a tragic film, much more of a romantic thriller with a twist.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 June 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

Thomas Crown, Esquire

Filming Locations:

Acorn St, Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,300,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$43,050

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Mirisch Corporation, Simkoe, Solar Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1