The Anderson Tapes (1971)

After Duke Anderson is released from prison after ten years for taking the rap for a scion of a Mafia family, he cashes in a debt of honor with the mob to bankroll a caper.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Lawrence Sanders (novel), Frank Pierson (screenplay) (as Frank R. Pierson)

Stars:

Sean Connery, Dyan Cannon, Martin Balsam

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Connery	...	Robert 'Duke' Anderson
Dyan Cannon	...	Ingrid Everly
Martin Balsam	...	Tommy Haskins
Ralph Meeker	...	Captain Delaney
Alan King	...	Pat Angelo
Christopher Walken	...	The Kid
Val Avery	...	Rocco Parelli
Dick Anthony Williams	...	Edward Spencer (as Dick Williams)
Garrett Morris	...	Sergeant Everson
Stan Gottlieb	...	William 'Pop' Meyerhoff
Paul Benjamin	...	Jimmy
Anthony Holland	...	Psychologist
Richard B. Shull	...	Werner Gottlieb (as Richard B. Schull)
Conrad Bain	...	Dr. Rubicoff
Margaret Hamilton	...	Miss Kaler

Storyline

A thief (Duke Anderson) just released from ten years in jail, takes up with his old girlfriend (Ingrid) in her posh apartment. He makes plans to rob the entire building. What he doesn't know is that his every move is recorded on audio and video tape, although he is not the subject of any surveillance.

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Plot Keywords:

masked robber | police | ex convict | electronic music score | character repeats someone else's dialogue | 

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Taglines:

The Crime of the Century!

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

GP

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sir Sean Connery and Alan King appeared in Operation Snafu (1961).

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Goofs

When the surveillance man from the House Internal Security Committee picks up the large shotgun microphone, he switches it from his right hand to his left when he turns on one of the tape recorders. In the next shot, as he's still recording the message, the microphone is resting on the table and aiming a different direction.

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Quotes

Ingrid: [to Duke] You want what you can't have. I mean you're always hammering on that locked door.

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Connections

Referenced in Drugstore Cowboy (1989)

User Reviews

Terrific caper movie. Extremely underrated!

It's taken me a while to track down a copy of 'The Anderson Tapes', but I'm sure glad I did. I was knocked out by this consistently interesting caper movie. Sean Connery, post-Bond, pre-Zardoz, plays Duke Anderson, a recently released criminal who decides to rob the luxury apartment block his high class hooker girlfriend (Dyan Cannon) resides in. He assembles a team which includes "The Kid" (an unbelievably young and cool Christopher Walken in his first major movie role), his flamboyant art loving buddy Tommy ('Psycho's Martin Balsam camping it up outrageously), the super cool Everson (Garrett Morris), and (against his will) Mafia goon Socks (Val Avery). Duke however doesn't realize that he, and just about everyone else involved in the plan, are under surveillance by a multitude of government agencies who are following their every move. 'The Anderson Tapes' is an entertaining and tough little thriller full of humour and originality, and with an almost 'Conversation'-like feel to it - a movie it predated by three years incidentally. While nowhere near as well known as Sidney Lumet's other Seventies crime dramas 'Serpico' and 'Dog Day Afternoon' it is equally as good. An extremely underrated movie that deserves a lot more attention.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 September 1971 (France)

Also Known As:

The Anderson Tapes

Filming Locations:

7 East 91st Street, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Robert M. Weitman Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1