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:

He was young, handsome, a millionaire - and he'd just pulled off the perfect crime! She was young, beautiful, a super sleuth - sent to investigate it!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

The producers applied to the FBI for cooperation in shooting the picture and sought to film the FBI headquarters in Boston, but the agency refused, claiming that the script made it look incompetent.

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Goofs

In the first scene with Erwin (Jack Weston) entering the hotel room, the door is unlocked as he comes in and when he closes the door, he steps inside and the lights come on. The door chain is shown as set or engaged although you never see or hear Erwin touching it. When he leaves, he doesn't seem to touch it either in the darkness, but it is already disengaged as he opens the door.

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Quotes

Vicki Anderson: Say good night to Irwin, dear.
Thomas Crown: Good night Irwin Dear.

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Connections

Referenced in Birth of the Living Dead (2013)

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Soundtracks

Playing the Field
Music by Michel Legrand

User Reviews

Stealing With Style

Thomas Crown is a mysterious gazillionaire who is frankly bored with his life. What to do when you're a thirty something and have all the resources available. For a lark, plan the perfect crime.

So in The Thomas Crown Affair, Steve McQueen does just that. He recruits four people at random for the crime, none of whom know each other and pull off a really neat bank robbery.

It seems like Paul Burke and the Boston PD aren't getting the job done so the bank brings in Faye Dunaway as an insurance investigator. She does this for a 10% finders fee, not for a policeman's salary. She also doesn't have to follow the rules the way the cops do.

Dunaway is smart and she does figure out it's McQueen who's the mastermind. She baits him in some of the same way that Inspector Slimane baits Pepe LeMoko. Of course she really gets up close and personal in a way that Slimane couldn't. All this really does get to Paul Burke, whose performance is unfortunately overlooked in talking about The Thomas Crown Affair.

It's a battle of hubris between McQueen and Dunaway and the film does keep you in some suspense as to who will win out.

The Thomas Crown Affair garnered won Academy Award for Michel LeGrand's song, The Windmills of Your Mind. It's a stylishly done caper film and I guarantee you won't be able to anticipate the outcome.