Harper (1966)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Jack Smight

Writers:

William Goldman (screenplay)
Ross Macdonald (novel)

Release Date:

23 February 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Drama

Tagline:

This is a different kind of cat named Harper... and excitement clings to him like a dame!

Plot:

Lew Harper, a cool private investigator, is hired by a wealthy California matron to locate her kidnapped husband.

Plot Keywords:

Los Angeles California | Kidnapping | Scam | Neo Noir | Cynic

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Lew Harper
Lauren Bacall	...	Mrs. Sampson
Julie Harris	...	Betty Fraley
Arthur Hill	...	Albert Graves
Janet Leigh	...	Susan Harper
Pamela Tiffin	...	Miranda Sampson
Robert Wagner	...	Allan Taggert
Robert Webber	...	Dwight Troy
Shelley Winters	...	Fay Estabrook
Harold Gould	...	Sheriff
Roy Jenson	...	Puddler
Strother Martin	...	Claude
Martin West	...	Deputy
Jacqueline deWit	...	Mrs. Kronberg (as Jacqueline de Wit)
Eugene Iglesias	...	Felix

Also Known As:

The Moving Target (UK)

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG (TV rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #21071) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Beverly House - N. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The opening credits sequence (where Harper makes himself a terrible cup of coffee, among other things) was written and shot after the first cut of the film had already been delivered to the studio.

Goofs:

Continuity: The front license plate on Harper's Porsche changes locations from above the bumper to below in the middle of the opening scene.

Quotes:

Lew Harper: [Sees Ralph's gaudy bedroom] Wow! No wonder your old man took to the sauce. I would, too, if I had to sleep in here.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Drive-in Movie Memories (2001)

Soundtrack:

Livin' Alone

Great fun...

Until CHINATOWN, HARPER was probably the most mature private eye movie Hollywood ever produced. Paul Newman is dynamite as the scrappy, somewhat goofy title character, hired by wealthy Lauren Bacall to find her missing husband. Newman gets more than he bargained for as he runs into one flaky character after another: Shelley Winters as a bloated former child star, Julie Harris as a junkie, Pamela Tiffen as Bacall's extremely bitchy stepdaughter, Robert Wagner as a private-eye wannabe, and, best of all, Strother Martin as nasty, new-age guru. Not much of what happens really ties together, but it's all very fun to watch. The performers are all terrific and the pseudo jazz score is another plus. Featuring Arthur Hill, Robert Webber and Janet Leigh, underutilized as Newman's frustrated ex-wife.