Too much of everything

Simply Perfect

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Let me tell ya - If 1966's "Harper" was supposed to be a prime example of Hollywood "neo-noir" - IMO - It sure fell flat on its smug, little face.Old "blue eyes" himself, Paul Newman plays irksome, apathetic, L.A. gumshoe, Lewis Harper, who has about as much charm and charisma as does a slimy slug.Regardless of this film's "big star" cast - Its "Find-A-Missing-Millionaire" story got so complicated and convoluted that it had me repeatedly rolling my eyes to the ceiling and groaning out in total exasperation, over, and over again.... (Sheesh! Give me a break, already!)(I won't even get into the tiresome bickering that Harper and his estranged wife regularly got into.... Ho-hum!)Anyway - If you're like me - You're gonna absolutely hate the note that this film's story ends on, big-time. You really are.

Paul Newman exudes much of his trademark cool in the role of private eye Lew Harper, in this adaptation (by screenwriter William Goldman and director Jack Smight) of the novel "The Moving Target" by Ross MacDonald. Harper is hired by Mrs. Sampson (Lauren Bacall) to find her missing husband, and discovers quite a few things. One of the most telling is that nobody really liked her husband, described by some as a cruel s.o.b. It would seem that Sampson got kidnapped, and there's no shortage of characters who wanted to be in on the action.The filmmakers here did their part in keeping private eye fiction alive and well in the sunny California of the 1960s. It's an intricately plotted story that keeps its audience on its toes. Among those dubious types encountered by Harper are Sampsons' seductive daughter Miranda (sexy Pamela Tiffin), jazz singer Betty Fraley (Julie Harris), bored gigolo Allan Taggert (Robert Wagner), and drunken former actress Fay Estabrook (Shelley Winters). The excellent collection of actors also includes Arthur Hill, as Harpers' gun-toting attorney friend, Janet Leigh as his estranged wife, Robert Webber as smooth criminal Dwight Troy, Harold Gould as a sheriff, Roy Jenson as a muscleman, and a memorable Strother Martin as a religious cult head.This film is a lot of fun to watch, and is an effective vehicle for Newman, whose Lew Harper is a very calm professional, a man who takes everything in stride. He'll do what has to be done to solve the case, and that extends to playing up to Ms. Estabrook. The screenplay has a respectable amount of witty and snappy dialogue, delivered breathlessly by this cast. In fact, on the whole "Harper" has an appreciable sense of humour.Newman had realized that his films that had started with the letter "H" had been lucrative ("The Hustler", "Hud") and it was his idea to change the name of his character from Lew Archer to Lew Harper, and to name the movie after this person. Almost a decade later, he returned to this part for the sequel "The Drowning Pool".Eight out of 10.

In this tough guy detective movie, Paul Newman plays Lew Harper, an annoying Los Angeles cop investigating the case of a missing person, at the request of wealthy invalid, Mrs. Sampson (Lauren Bacall).The film tries to be an updated 1940s noir film. Most of the various characters lie to Harper. People die. The detective gets beat up a little, but plods along, all determined. And through the slow-moving, muddled plot, somehow all the loose ends get wrapped up. But there's zero suspense and very little mystery. Production design is unappealing. And the background score is irritatingly hip and flighty. Funky, then-current dance fads render the film dated.Harper is not an appealing character. Smug, jaded, and pleased with himself, the character comes across as a cool dude, one who drives a snazzy, but quite ugly, sports car. He's in almost every scene. None of the other characters are interesting. Some of the dialogue is too clever to be believed. And you can see the end coming a mile away, the result mainly of poor acting.Indoor scenes are dark and drab. Outdoor driving scenes use antiquated rear-screen projection technique. The most interesting sequence, visually, is the one wherein Harper drives fast along a narrow dirt road on the crest of a mountain.My impression is that the film, mostly a cinematic vehicle for Newman, gets high marks from viewers who are attracted to all the big-name movie stars, and from people who drool over the lead actor. But the story is boring, cliché-ridden, and totally not interesting.

So where else could you get a chance to catch a fleshy Shelley Winters snore like a moose in heat. But you have to give it to the former glamour girl—she does the blowzy barfly really well. Poor Harper. Just the thought of maybe having to couple with her in the line of duty gives him the shakes and thoughts of a different line of work.All in all, it's a good gumshoe movie. Harper (Newman) has to track down a kidnapped rich guy even though nobody really wants the old tyrant back. Certainly not his silken, sarcastic wife (Bacall), nor his shapely, spinning-top daughter (Tiffen), nor even the live-in pretty boy (Wagner). Still, gumshoe Harper gets to tour about every happening nightspot in '60's Hollywood, and we get to go along for the noisy ride. And catch the icky Strother Martin as the high priest of love, or is it the sun god, or maybe even the high priest of illegal aliens! Anyhow, there he is in his open-air temple on top one of those scrubby LA hills that burn every year. Yes indeed, no smog city movie would be complete without at least one of these wacko frauds.I'll say this for Newman—he sure earns his money. I've never seen a PI get clobbered so many times without even a love tap in return. Lew Harper is clearly no Mike Hammer. And what's with the long-suffering wife (Leigh). Her role as Mrs. Harper sort of dangles from the plot like a glued on appendage. Nonetheless, if I were he, I'd be spending all my nights at home. But catch actress Julie Harris doing some big-time emoting. I knew her New York stage talents were in the cast for some good reason. And I really like the ending, so right for an American culture moving into a new era.No, this gumshoe saga won't make you forget the Maltese Falcon or even Kiss Me Deadly, but it's sure a colorful way to pass an entertaining couple of hours.