The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)

A very rich and successful playboy amuses himself by stealing artwork, but may have met his match in a seductive detective.

Director:

John McTiernan

Writers:

Alan Trustman (story) (as Alan R. Trustman), Leslie Dixon (screenplay)

Stars:

Pierce Brosnan, Rene Russo, Denis Leary

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pierce Brosnan	...	Thomas Crown
Rene Russo	...	Catherine Banning
Denis Leary	...	Michael McCann
Ben Gazzara	...	Andrew Wallace
Frankie Faison	...	Detective Paretti
Fritz Weaver	...	John Reynolds
Charles Keating	...	Friedrich Golchan
Mark Margolis	...	Heinrich Knutzhorn
Faye Dunaway	...	The Psychiatrist
Michael Lombard	...	Bobby McKinley
Bill Ambrozy	...	Proctor
Michael Bahr	...	Proctor (as Michael S. Bahr)
Robert D. Novak	...	Proctor (as Robert Novak)
Joe H. Lamb	...	Proctor (as Joe Lamb)
James Saito	...	Paul Cheng

Storyline

Self-made billionaire Thomas Crown is bored of being able to buy everything he desires. Being irresistible to women, he also does not feel any challenge in that area. But there are a few things even he can't get, therefore Thomas Crown has a seldom hobby: He steals priceless masterpieces of Art. After the theft of a famous painting from Claude Monet, the only person suspecting Thomas Crown is Catherine Banning. Her job is to get the picture back, no matter how she accomplishes her mission. Unfortunately, Catherine gets involved too deeply with Thomas to keep a professional distance to the case. Fortunately, Thomas seems to fall for her, too.

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Plot Keywords:

sex in bed | sexual desire | female rear nudity | female frontal nudity | breasts | 

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Taglines:

When You Raise The Stakes, You Heighten The Attraction.

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Genres:

Crime | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexuality and language

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English German Polish French

Release Date:

6 August 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Afera Thomasa Crowna

Filming Locations:

Reid Hall, Manhattanville College, Purchase, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$48,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$14,600,719, 8 August 1999, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$69,304,264, 13 February 2000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$55,000,000, 1 January 2001

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists,Irish DreamTime,Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The suit designer, who appears in Thomas Crown's office, is Gino Campagna, who has been featured on CNN's Richard Quest's segment. He is also the designer responsible for the look of the clothes in this film.

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Goofs

When Catherine Banning is interrogating the Romanian gangster in what seems to be his native tongue, she and the gangster actually speak German.

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Quotes

Detective Michael McCann: I love this neighborhood. Some of these broads are wearing my salary.

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Crazy Credits

This motion picture was in no way authorized, sponsored or endorsed by any museum, nor was any portion of the motion picture filmed inside a museum. The events, characters and other entities (including the museum) depicted in this motion picture are fictitious, and any similarity to actual persons, events or other entities is purely coincidental.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: The Sixth Sense/Mystery Men/The Thomas Crown Affair/Bowfinger/Dick (1999)

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Soundtracks

Tango Ballad
Written by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht
from the Threepenny Opera - Original Broadway Cast
Music Conducted by Samuel Matlovsky (as Samuel Matlowsky)
Courtesy of Polydor Records
Under license from Universal Music Special Markets

User Reviews

"Thomas" is the "Crown" Jewel for your collection... SEE IT!

This DVD was an impulse buy, pure and simple. My wife and I like Pierce Brosnan, and I have enjoyed Renee Russo's other works, so what did I have to lose? Only my mind! This film was positively one of the most enjoyable, nail-biting, suspenseful romantic capers ever made.

A remake of the steamy 1968 Steve McQueen flick updated to the sleek and self-referential 90s, "Thomas Crown" features Brosnan as the title character - a bored billionaire businessman in the business of "acquisitions". For a thrill, he heists an extremely valuable Monet from the New York Museum right under the noses of security guards, cops, and about a thousand unsuspecting museum-goers. Renee Russo is the very sexy, very worldly Catherine Banning, whose insurance company underwrites the painting - and she is determined to get it back at any cost... But the cost just may be her soul as she woos, and then falls under the spell of the enigmatic Crown. Will Russo discover the location of the Monet? Will she rat out Thomas Crown? Or is Crown manipulating her affections like Bobby Fisher manipulates the pieces on a chess board?

What we have here is a high-speed chase film whose vehicle is clever dialog, rich and exotic direction, and more than a little sexual tension! Brosnan, as Crown, is ever the cool Brit charmer whose every word and action are as calculated as the movements of a Rolex. Russo smoulders every time she appears on screen. And when the two of them get together, the chemical reaction is pure dynamite.

Dennis Leary has a nice bit as a streetwise NYPD detective on the case, who dispenses advice to Russo's Banning, and watches her begin to spiral out of control. His role here most likely resulted in the deserved attempt at a television series on ABC ("The Job").

The action in the film moves exotically from caper to cover-up and back with dizzying speed... All the while, we are kept guessing about the motivations of the two lead, and find ourselves eagerly anticipating their next move. When the final checkmate comes, we are left totally bewildered, befuddled, and baffled... which is most-likely the director's intention!

On all levels, "The Thomas Crown Affair" will steal the hearts of men and women alike... but for different reasons - Men can enjoy the action and thrill of the chase, and Crown's ability to win over the most beautiful women and his attempt to get away with the ultimate heist... Ladies can marvel at the suave Brosnan and his life of extreme wealth, and all-the-while wonder if he will betray her, or if she will betray him...

I will not betray you... I ain't saying!