Sleuth (1972)

A man who loves games and theater invites his wife's lover to meet him, setting up a battle of wits with potentially deadly results.

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writers:

Anthony Shaffer (play), Anthony Shaffer (screenplay)

Stars:

Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine, Alec Cawthorne

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Laurence Olivier	...	Andrew Wyke
Michael Caine	...	Milo Tindle
Alec Cawthorne	...	Inspector Doppler (credit only)
John Matthews	...	Detective Sergeant Tarrant
Eve Channing	...	Marguerite Wyke (credit only)
Teddy Martin	...	Police Constable Higgs (credit only)

Storyline

Andrew Wyke is a famous and successful author of detective novels. Milo Tindle comes to him with a strange request - that Mr Wyke divorce his wife so that Tindle can marry her. Mr Wyke is not particularly perturbed by this - he and his wife have drifted apart and he is having an affair with another woman anyway - but uses the meeting and Mr Tindle's request as a chance to play a game, a game with potentially deadly consequences.

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Plot Keywords:

battle of wits | suspense | surprise ending | jewelry | insurance | 

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Taglines:

If it was murder, where's the body? [original movie poster]

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

12 July 1973 (UK)

Also Known As:

Juego mortal

Filming Locations:

England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Palomar Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

138 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

(at around 1h 5 mins) When Andrew goes and answers the ring of the doorbell, you see him walk past two pictures of the former King Edward VIII, later the Duke of Windsor on a wall. The Duke of Windsor died during the making of the film and the production team added a historical touch to mark this event by including pictures of the late Duke.

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Goofs

Milo's arm changes position when Andrew is trying to figure out the Italian clue.

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Quotes

Andrew Wyke: Put that back, please! It's an old Egyptian blocking game. It's taken me rather a long time to get it there.

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Connections

Featured in The 51st Annual Academy Awards (1979)

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Soundtracks

Anything goes
Words and music by Cole Porter

User Reviews

A brilliantly twisty mystery.

My parents saw "Sleuth" on Broadway, during its original run, just a year or so before this film was released. Watching the movie I can see how it would make a good play, but by the same token, it is not a translation that feels slow, or wordy, or unsuited to the screen. The adaptation is excellent, without "opening up" the play too much. If you're a fan of mysteries, you'll be intrigued by the performances and the script. Joseph Mankiewicz's direction isn't terribly flashy, but subtle and well-done.

Laurence Olivier stars as Andrew Wyke, a famous mystery novel writer. Milo Tindle (Michael Cane), comes to visit him one weekend; asking for Andrew's wife's hand in marriage. But things aren't as simple as they first appear. Andrew wants something in return from Milo. And then again, maybe he doesn't.

The film unfolds slowly and patiently; you almost feel like the film's sentient and realizes how juicy its secrets are, holding on to them for as long as possible. There are numerous twists and surprises in the film; and even if you see one or two coming (as I did), don't expect to get it all right until it's over. It's best not to know at all what is going to happen, so I'll leave you with no more clues.

I enjoyed nearly every moment after the initial meeting between Milo and Andrew. Once Cane and Olivier really get going in their scenes, the film never looks back. They are exceptional in their performances, and deservedly earned nominations for Best Actor Oscars.

So who wins? Does anyone win? Is it a game with a winner at all? Oh just go rent it already!