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Three Days of the Condor

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Three Days of the Condor (1975) is an American motion picture produced by Stanley Schneider and directed by Sydney Pollack. The screenplay, by Lorenzo Semple Jr. and David Rayfiel, was adapted from the novel Six Days of the Condor by James Grady.

The movie is a suspense drama set in contemporary New York City, and is considered an exposition of the moral ambiguity of the actions of the United States government following the Vietnam War and Watergate. It stars Robert Redford as an employee of the Central Intelligence Agency who inadvertently becomes involved in a deadly power struggle within the agency.

The film was nominated for the 1976 Academy Award for Film Editing. Semple and Rayfiel received an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Motion Picture Screenplay.

Plot

Joe Turner (Robert Redford) is a CIA employee who works in a clandestine office in New York City. He is not a field agent, and indeed bristles at Agency discipline; his job is to read books, newspapers, and magazines from around the world, looking for hidden meanings and new ideas. As part of his duties, Turner files a report to CIA headquarters on a low-quality thriller novel his office has been reading, pointing out strange plot elements therein, and the unusual assortment of languages in which the book has been translated (Arabic but not French, Spanish but not Russian, and Dutch).

The movie begins on the day in which Turner expects a response to his report. While he is out getting lunch, a group of armed men, led by an Alsatian assassin later identified as Joubert (Max von Sydow), executes the six people in the office. Turner returns, realizes he is in grave danger, and calls an emergency telephone number. He later goes to the home of a co-worker who stayed home sick from work and finds him dead.

On giving his code name, "Condor", he is put in contact with Higgins (Cliff Robertson), Deputy Director, CIA New York City. Higgins, who is at this point not involved in the conspiracy and is legitimately concerned, directs Turner to keep quiet, and they will send an agent named Wicks to "bring him in."

Wicks brings an old friend of Turner's (Sam) along to help put him at ease. But Wicks is part of the conspiracy and tries to kill Turner. Turner shoots Wicks, who just before collapsing shoots Sam; Turner escapes with his life. Realizing that he cannot trust anyone within the CIA, Turner calls in again and begins to play a cat-and-mouse game with Higgins.

Turner now sets off to solve the mystery of the killings on his own. Needing a place to hide, he forces a random woman, Kathy Hale (Faye Dunaway), to take him to her apartment. He holds her prisoner while he attempts to figure out what's going on.

Eventually, Hale is convinced to trust him; the gun is put away, and they make love (the scene was controversial for its sexually explicit content at the time). She helps identify Higgins at his World Trade Center Office, then follow him to a lunchtime cafe, sets him up to be abducted by Condor, later to have an outdoor conference to discuss a secret group of CIA operatives, within the CIA.

Using his previous experience as a telephone technician, Turner is able to track down Joubert and begins to discern that a rogue presence inside CIA ("a CIA within the CIA") is conducting top secret, illicit operations. At one point, he comes face-to-face with Joubert again, but escapes another attempt on his life. In fact, it is often Turner's inexperience in the field that makes him unpredictable and allows him to continue to elude his pursuers.

Turner eventually discovers that Joubert was hired by the secret cabal to eliminate all the people in the New York office because Turner's report indicated they had stumbled onto one of their contingency plans to invade the Middle East in the event of an oil crisis. He tracks down the mastermind to his home and takes him captive. However, Joubert arrives soon afterwards. Surprisingly, he kills his former employer, because the contract has changed; he now works for the CIA. He befriends Turner, to the extent this is possible, and advises that Turner, for his own safety, settle in Europe. Turner declines, saying he was born in the United States and that he misses it when he's gone too long. Jourbert remarks that this is a pity. Turner adds, he doesn't regard it as one. When Turner asks Joubert why he kills for a living, Joubert contradicts Turner's assumption that such a life would be unbearable by inferring that it's peaceful and that there are no sides to follow but rather "...the belief is in your own precision." Before they part, Joubert warns him that he is still a target and tells him how he will likely be set up for his own assassination.

Turner goes back to New York and encounters Higgins on a busy street. When Higgins offers him a ride, Turner recognizes Joubert's scenario and turns him down. Higgins defends the oil-fields plan and Turner castigates his inhumane worldview. Higgins tells Turner that eventually they will catch up to him. Turner says he has told the press "a story" (they are standing outside The New York Times office), but Higgins says, "How do you know they'll print it?" Turner answers, "They'll print it," and starts to walk away into the crowd. "You can take a walk, but how far if they don't print it?" Higgins says. When Turner repeats "They'll print it," he glances back for a while before continuing walking.

Cast

Critical reception

When first released, the film was reviewed positively by critic Vincent Canby, who wrote, "Yet in Sydney Pollack's Three Days of the Condor, Turner, whose code name is Condor, comes close to wreaking more havoc on the C.I.A. in three days than any number of House and Senate investigating committees have done in years...As a serious exposé of misdeeds within the C.I.A. the film is no match for stories that have appeared in your local newspaper. Indeed, one has to pay careful attention to figure out just what it is that who is doing to whom in Three Days of the Condor and, if I understood it correctly, it's never as horrifying as the real thing...The suspense of the film depends less on this kind of plausibility than on Mr. Redford's reputation (in a movie we accept the fact that he can do anything) and on the verve with which Mr. Pollack, the director, sets everything up. It also benefits from the presence of good actors, including Faye Dunaway (as the woman who befriends the fleeing Turner), Cliff Robertson, Max Von Sydow, and John Houseman..."

Awards

Wins

Nominations

  • Academy Awards: Oscar; Best Film Editing, Fredric Steinkamp and Don Guidice; 1976.
  • Cartagena Film Festival: Golden India Catalina; Best Film, Sydney Pollack; 1976.
  • Golden Globes: Golden Globe; Best Motion Picture Actress - Drama, Faye Dunaway; 1976.
  • Grammy Awards: Grammy; Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special, Dave Grusin; 1977.

See also

References

External links



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