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Newman's Hippest Sixties Thriller

posted 19 years ago by ecarle
18 replies | jump to latest

Steve McQueen: Bullitt.

Clint Eastwood: Dirty Harry.

Paul Newman: Harper.

In some ways, those movies are different, but in a few other ways, they're alike.

Differences first:

"Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry" are movies about police officers. "Harper" is a movie about a private eye.

"Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry" were major, influential blockbusters in their years of release (1968 and 1971, respectively.) "Harper" was merely a nice little hit (which may be why as of this posting, its not on DVD yet while the other two are.)

"Bulitt" has a spectacular car chase. "Dirty Harry" has several exciting shootouts.

"Harper" really just short of meanders about, Philip Marlowe-style, as private dick Paul Newman checks out clues, dodges a few murder attempts, and eventually does shoot some bad guys, once.

And yet:

"Harper" in its own way rather set the pace for "Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry" to follow. The character's name is the title, as with "Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry". The movie is from Warner Brothers, which means that it SOUNDS like "Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry" (Warners had a trademark "echo chamber" sound recording process), and comes from the "Warner Brothers crime movie" tradition going back to Bogart and Cagney.

Finally, like "Bullitt" and "Dirty Harry," for their stars. "Harper" gave star Paul Newman an opportunity to play a "genre thriller hero," something a bit more fun than the grimmer souls he played in "Hud" and "The Hustler."

Paul Newman was offered "Dirty Harry" -- likely because he played "Harper."

---

"Harper" impressed critics in 1966 because, doggone it, here was an attempt to mount a Raymond Chandler-like private eye movie smack in the middle of the spy craze. It was, moreover, a MODERN private eye tale, steeped deeply in the sex, drugs, and spirituality cultural lifestyle of mid-sixties Los Angeles. Paul Newman was Bogie for the pre-counterculture age (perhaps a bit more Hugh Hefner/Rat Pack than Jefferson Airplane/Cream.) But to make the Bogart connection complete, Harper was given his assignment by none other than Mrs. Bogie -- Lauren Bacall.

Literary buffs were excited by "Harper" because Newman's Lew Harper was in reality "Lew Archer" -- a celebrated modern-day Philip Marlowe created by novelist Ross MacDonald for a series of detective books set in a fictionalized version of sunny, rich Santa Barbara, about 100 miles up the coast from Los Angeles. It was unfortunate that Newman requested his "lucky H" for Lew (After "The Hustler" and "Hud," it felt required), for Lew Archer fans were legion, and never quite took to his being called Harper. (Would Newman have demanded to play Philip Harlowe? Or Sam Hade?)

The adapted screenplay was by William Goldman, three years before he wrote "Butch Cassidy" for Newman...and a nice preview OF Butch Cassidy, for Paul was given a heaven-sent dose of one-liners:

Harper(to bartender): Keep the change.
Bartender: There isn't any.
Harper: Keep it anyway.

Sheriff: I can get ugly about this.
Harper: You already ARE ugly.

Indeed, "Harper" gave Paul Newman a role custom-fit to his mugging, wise-guy of a male beauty, except it made sense this time. "Paul Newman IS Harper," said the ads -- and that was exactly right. Newman had chafed doing Hitchcock-type roles ("The Prize") and roles FOR Hitchcock ("Torn Curtain") but Harper is right up Newman's alley. Everything and everybody is a joke to Lew Harper -- even if everybody else is dead serious and Harper himself eventually has to kill some people and confront some unpleasant truths.

William Goldman writes that "Harper" went to its first preview with the opening of Newman driving up to Bacall's mansion to "get his assignment." The movie seemed flat. Goldman wrote a whole new opening: Newman, awake on a bed in his office as the alarm rings. He hasn't slept. His estranged wife's photo is by his bed (lovely, slightly aging Janet Leigh -- perfect for the lovely, slightly aging Newman.) Harper is lonely. Harper gets up as snappy, funny music lightly plays on the sound track. Harper wants coffee. The can's empty. All Harper has is grounds in the trash can in a wet filter. He grimaces, grabs the grounds, makes the coffee anyway. Gets dressed, exits his office, raffishly tosses his gum like a free-shot in a trash can. Then he drives out to meet Bacall.

William Goldman said: audiences LOVED that opening. Now, they loved Harper.

As Harper went searching for a missing millionaire (Bacall's husband, and she only SORT OF misses him), Warners surrounded him with interesting name actors: Bacall; Janet Leigh as the wife he wants back; Shelley Winters pretty much as Shelley Winters (Newman kinda seduces her for information, and its funny, not pathetic), Julie Harris (a junkie singer), Robert Wagner (a playboy private pilot and hilarious "sidekick detective" to Newman), and Pamela Tiffin as a teenage sexpot who go-gos in a bikini a lot and keeps propositing Harper (Harper his having none of it, and when, to get rid of her, he actually comes on to her -- she scurries away.)

Particularly good was Arthur Hill as a nice, square lawyer who is doing "isometric exercises" (pushing his hands together to create arm muscle tension) so as to win the luscious Tiffin for his own. Newman has a hilarious moment when he glances at Hill looking at Tiffin -- and quickly pushes his own hands together to remind Hill what he needs to do to get the girl. It's like a "visual one-liner" and its exactly what Paul Newman does to BE Harper. Because Paul Newman IS Harper. Similarly, Newman lets Wagner try to break down a door with his shoulder, and when Wagner is injured doing it, wryly notes, "fun work being a private eye, huh?"

"Harper" is funny, but never silly. Harper eventually crosses paths with the requisite really bad guys who want him to get off the case, beat him up, nearly drown him, torture him, try to run him over, and -- terrifyingly -- chase him all over a night landscape with crazed murder on their minds. Strother Martin's turn as a tres-trendy LA mountain guru is quite the sub-villain, kind of Timothy Leary mixed with Charles Manson.

I don't think I'll give away the ending of "Harper," except to note that (a) one "dramatic" plot twist involving Robert Wagner plays a bit too corny (I doubt things would happen like they do) and (b) the final scene of the film is really, really, really GREAT -- a "freeze-frame" that for once really means something. Something big in American movies, I'd say.

Paul Newman went on to many other movies, many great ("Hombre," "Cool Hand Luke" "Butch Cassidy," "The Verdict") some not so great ("Torn Curtain," "Harry Frigg" "WUSA.")

But I sometimes think that "Harper" should stand as the most Perfect Paul Newman Entertainment. He doesn't need Robert Redford or Steve McQueen to help him. He isn't a spy.

Like Steve McQueen is Bullitt and Clint Eastwood is Dirty Harry...

...Paul Newman IS Harper.

P.S. William Goldman liked working with Paul Newman better than with any star except...Clint Eastwood ("Absolute Power" with Goldman.) Maybe that's why Newman and Eastwood lasted so long.

On "Harper," Goldman noted that for a big dramatic scene involving Robert Wagner in close-up, Paul Newman elected to stay on set and "feed Wagner his lines" (usually a script girl does that.) Wagner, in character, started crying. A surprised Newman got so flustered by Wagner's emotional performance that he screwed up the feed lines, requiring another take. But Newman got the feed right the next time...and Wagner cried again.

[–] 19 years ago

[deleted]

[–] ecarle 19 years ago

Yes, I got Goldman's Paul Newman stories from his (recommended) book "Adventures in the Screen Trade."

Goldman tells of meeting with Newman at the latter's Connecticut home to discuss "Harper." The two men walked down a country road where some cars would come whizzing by. Newman carried pebbles in his hand for the walk. Anytime a car came by, Newman would turn away and throw pebbles towards the trees -- a "natural" move designed to keep his famous face away from the cars.

In that same book, Goldman did a real number on Dustin Hoffman, accusing the latter of horrible behavior on the film set of Goldman's "Marathon Man" (including an accusation that Hoffman practically tortured the ailing Laurence Olivier making him walk through a rehearsal over and over.) Hoffman's been refuting Goldman ever since -- but reportedly became a much nicer guy.

A pleasure to hear that "Harper" is coming to DVD. I'm reminded with a start that Newman played Harper AGAIN, nine years later in "The Drowning Pool." It's as much a 70's movie as "Harper" is a sixties movie, with Harper oddly transplanted from Los Angeles to the Deep South. Joanne Woodward and a kittenish Melanie Griffith (years before "Nobody's Fool") are along this time. In the "drowning pool" scene, Newman showed off his still-in-great-shape body, drenched in water, wearing only underwear. At 50.

So Newman played two characters twice: Fast Eddie Felson ("The Hustler," "The Color of Money,"); Harper (Harper, The Drowing Pool.) Anybody else have that record? Wait a minute: Clint Eastwood beat it! The Man With No Name, Dirty Harry, the Orangatan guy!

One thing I like about "Harper": Newman gave Robert Wagner (evidently a pal) a good role as his "sidekick" of sorts (and something more, eventually.) Wagner was a VERY handsome young man then, and yet Newman had no problem sharing the screen with him. It's rather early "Butch and Sundance." Newman would invite Wagner to join him in "Winning" and "The Towering Inferno" as well.

Thank you for your kind remarks.

[–] route661 18 years ago

ecarle
That was really really good. Thx.
One of my favorite scenes is when Harper (Newman) is egging on Wagner (Beauty) about his relationship with Shelley Winters.
"Can you imagine waking up to that? It's enough to make you want to puke."
Wherein Wagner takes his gun out, and to muffle the shot he uses a pillow, before Hill shoots him.

"Maybe I did it for a kiss".

[–] route661 18 years ago

Gawddamnit ecarle!
Would you give it a rest?
Jes kidding.
Hugs & smooches.

[–] hkjohn2001a 18 years ago

Actually, Haper DOESN"T say those things to Wagner about the tres sexy Fay. He says them about Julie Harris's character, the junkie jazz singer, Betty Fraley with whom he's having an affair.

I thought Fay as played by Shelley Winters character Fay Estabrook looked just "triffic" with her boobs plunging out of that low cut black and white silk dress in the bar and in her black and white animal print top at the the end. Ralph Samson, a millionaire who one imagines could have had any woman he wanted, certainly seemed to find her pretty horny, too as he was balling her on a regular basis and gave her photo pride of place on his bedside table. Harper should have had his head examined to pass up the chance of a session of a roll in the hay with such a comely and accommodating lass

[–] route661 18 years ago

Oops! My bad.
Been a long time.

[–] route661 18 years ago

Disgustingly lucrative.

[–] 18 years ago

[deleted]

[–] NewtonFigg 16 years ago

Is this the movie that created the wise guy persona Newman stayed with ever after?

[–] teejay6682 16 years ago

agree with a lot of what others said. this is a very hip film. the mixing of old marlowe type caper and swingin' 60s spy style worked suprisingly well. newman was a lot of fun and the cast was great.

[–] salndean2003 15 years ago

Bravo you, ecarle! This was, by far, the most excellent and informative post I've encountered at imdb. This was so rewarding to read as I viewed Harper this past weekend for the first time in over 25 years, and to my delight found it held up very, very well... actually better than Newman's 2nd outing as Harper in Drowning Pool. All subjective, of course. I think, however, that mid to late '70's films often fail in this regard. Is it wide lapels? or hair? or perhaps that avocado colored kitchen appliance, the fridge, washer, dryer and such, that so often make the era downright embarrassing in eye of the beholder. I know I cringe -- usually at the 1st sight of an auto upholstered with... wait for it...the fine Corinthian leather' Ricardo Montalban was so fond of. But I digress, and wish only to say that great writing, casting, and mid Sixties sensibility in fashion were a great boon to Harper. And your post was icing on the cake. OK, I'm off now: Going to scamper around the imdb message boards to find more from you.

[–] franzkabuki 14 years ago

I think the main reason why Harper isn´t as good or successful as Bullitt or Dirty Harry, is that it never finds its proper footing tone-wise - the "hip" stuff is so goofy as to suggest an outright spoof while it also strives to be deeply cynical and kind of serious about the rotten decadence of the So-Cal high society. And while Newman is good, a considerable amount of his mugging and oneliners just fall flat. The film as executed by that Smight guy (who?) also lacks style and flare, just moving on from scene to scene in a pedestrian fashion while giving the all star cast fairly little to do. A nice little number, but not something particularly memorable exactly. 6-6,5/10.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

[–] Squeeth2 14 years ago

As I watched the dvd this evening I vaguely remembered it from the days when decent films were on normal telly instead of satellite. The chase and fight in the shipyard suddenly looked familiar. The film didn't quite work for me though. I've been having an excursion into late 60s films recently, (Madigan, The Detective, Point Blank) and though they have a period charm which covers up a lot of their flaws this one didn't. I hope that a second viewing changes my mind (I've got the sequel on order).

Marlon, Claudia and Dimby the cats 1989-2005, 2007 and 2010.

[–] filmklassik 8 years ago

HARPER is the better movie, but Newman was a much better actor by the time he got around to making the DROWNING POOL.

What had he acquired in the meantime? Restraint.

I just wish Rosenberg's movie was half as good as Newman's performance. Actually, I take that back. Rosenberg's movie is exactly -- precisely -- half as good as Newman's performance.

[–] ecarle (14979) 7 years ago

Paul Newman was certainly too much the mugger in a lot of his sixties movies -- at least the ones that he didn't take to be serious. I'm thinking The Prize, What a Way to Go....Harper.

I always attributed part of his restraint after
Harper to do with his performance in the rather sub-par Hitchcock movie "Torn Curtain" which came out just after "Harper."

Newman starts out in "Torn Curtain"(with Julie Andrews in bed and other places) trying to mug and be goofy, etc. But Hitchcock soon puts Newman into the emotional grinder -- climaxing mid film with the grueling scene in which Newman must kill a middle-aged enemy spy pretty much with his bare hands(and a knife, and a shovel, and a gas oven), taking a long, long, LONG time to do it.

Newman's not so goofy after that scene.

He kept his new restraint for "Hombre"(famously stone-faced) and eventually found just the right tone in Butch Cassidy and The Sting -- funny , but not goofy. After The Sting and The Towering Inferno(where Newman plays it damn straight -- and loses in the charisma department to macho fireman Steve McQueen) -- Newman was so rich he could spend the 70's in art films and low-key stuff like The Drowning Pool(where, sorry, they CALL him Harper, but he never really seems to BE Harper.) Until...Slapshot! and the humor is back on again.

And then the 80's. Absence of Malice back to back with the very great The Verdict. Newman pretty much climaxed his career there, even though he had about 20 more years to go. ("Nobody's Fool" was fine in the 90s.)

Still, when he did Harper -- even WITH the mugging -- he fit the role. And in his many close-ups and medium shots Newman shows his greatness in that OTHER area of stardom: he looks great. Damn great. Tough guy great. Look at him next to Robert Wagner in some shots; Wagner is handsome, but Newman has ...something more.

[–] ecarle (14979) 7 years ago

Ever seen the trailer for Harper? Various ladies look out at us from the screen and tell us "overwrought things" about Harper. Like Julie Harris: "Harper? You've got a better chance drinking poison."

But Shelly Winters gets the most outrageous patter. In her mid-period of plumpness, smoking a cigarette and squinting with sexy toughness, she says something like:

"I've been worked over pretty good by the best. All I've got left are bruises. But if Harper works me over, I guess I'll have to take it. (Pause, puff) I might even like it."

Word.

What a trailer!

[–] ecarle (14979) 6 years ago

13 years later....

[–] ecarle (14979) 3 years ago

16 years later...

...I'm not so sure.

The page has picked up some haters...