The Conversation (1974)

Starring - Gene Hackman; John Cazale; Allen Garfield; Frederic Forrest & Cindy Williams Director - Francis Ford Coppola MPAA - PG If the conversation is not the worst film ever made, it comes real close. Which is strange, considering it was directed by Francis Ford Coppola (credited as Francis Coppola) and it starred Gene Hackman and a young Harrison Ford. This snoozer starts to go bad from the opening credits. During a long drawn out surveillance operation, we see a couple having a conversation but can only here bits and pieces, and really annoying sound effects in between. The only reason this was included was so that Coppola could show everyone what a brilliant filmmaker he is. Guess what Francis? It didn't work Hackman plays Harry Caul, a master surveillance expert. On one of his jobs, Harry overhears a conversation that could have serious repercussions to those involved. Harry then has to wrestle with his conscience about whether to turn the tape over to his employers or not. That's the plot in a nutshell. The idea for the movie itself is not a bad one, if done properly. It might have made a good episode of a half hour TV show, but not a full length feature film. It's just too long, and for no good reason. The movie ends up being a character study of Caul, and a bad one at that. We don't really know that much more about Caul at the end of the movie than at the beginning. For that matter, we really don't want to either. Harry Caul is one strange dude, not strange in the funny way but strange in a very distasteful way. This guy is WEIRD. Although he fits in well, everyone in the film seems to be a few cards short of a full deck. I'd say something about the lousy acting in the film, but the blame is less on the actors and more on Coppola's lousy script. The only thing that the actors should be questioned about is their judgment, as to why they got involved with this turkey to begin with. As for Francis Ford Coppola, he should stick to directing and leave the writing to someone who has a clue how to write a good script. I don't know how this film could have gotten any worse. I suppose it could have been longer... 0/10 - Quite possibly the worst film ever made. Reviewed December 28, 1997 by Joe Chamberlain