Night Moves (1975)

Director:

Arthur Penn

Writer:

Alan Sharp (writer)

Release Date:

12 September 1975 (Finland)

Genre:

Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

What private eye Harry Moseby doesn't know about the girl he's looking for... just might get him killed.

Plot:

Former footballer and present private detective Harry Moseby gets hired on to what seems a standard missing person case...

Plot Keywords:

Runaway | Private Detective | Murder | Actress | Missing Person

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Gene Hackman	...	Harry Moseby
Jennifer Warren	...	Paula
Susan Clark	...	Ellen Moseby
Edward Binns	...	Joey Ziegler
Harris Yulin	...	Marty Heller
Kenneth Mars	...	Nick
Janet Ward	...	Arlene Iverson
James Woods	...	Quentin
Melanie Griffith	...	Delly Grastner
Anthony Costello	...	Marv Ellman
John Crawford	...	Tom Iverson
Ben Archibek	...	Charles
Dennis Dugan	...	Boy
C.J. Hincks	...	Girl
Max Gail	...	Stud (as Maxwell Gail Jr.)

Also Known As:

The Dark Tower (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | Australia:PG (TV rating) | West Germany:16 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Sanibel Island, Florida, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The house belonging to James Woods' character Quentin was owned by Phil Kaufman, road manager for Gram Parsons at the time of his death. Kaufman's subsequent actions became the basis for the film Grand Theft Parsons (2003). Night Moves (1975) cast and crew were shooting at the house the day the police came to question Kaufman, and as they were taking him away, Arthur Penn turned to Gene Hackman and said, "Man, we're shooting the wrong movie".

Quotes:

Marv Ellman: There's nothing like having a mother and a daughter. Gives you sort of a kind of perspective.

Movie Connections:

References The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Terrific film noir, benefits from a great performance by Gene Hackman

One of the unsung films of the seventies and probably the last focused film of director Arthur Penn. This tongue in cheek, intense drama stars Gene Hackman as Harry Moseby, an L.A. detective suffering marital problems who takes on a case to find a missing girl ( a young Melanie Grifith) of a famous actress. Hackmans character tracks her to the Florida Keys as the convoluted plot makes many unexpected twists and turns. It's Penn's taunt direction and Gene Hackman, (truly one of the best actors of the last thirty years) charisma which makes the film worth watching. Bruce Sutrees photography and Alan Sharps script should also be noted.