Sleuth (1972, Joseph L. Mankiewicz)
Sleuth is based on Anthony Shaffer’s play of the same name, and is about two men. The younger of the two, Milo Tindle (Michael Caine) intends to marry the wife of the older man, Andrew Wyke (Laurence Olivier), and goes up to his country house to discuss the matter. Wyke has grown weary of his wife, and doesn’t seem to mind giving her up.
So Wyke proposes a little scam; Milo is to break into Wyke’s house and steal some jewelry — right under Wyke’s nose of course. That way, Milo can have enough money to provide for Mrs. Wyke in their new life together, and Wyke can claim insurance on the stolen goods, and get rid of his wife in the process.
At least, that’s what we think the movie is about. There are more twists and turns here than I can count, and it’s tremendous fun trying to work it all out. Caine and Olivier are both brilliant in their roles, and it’s obvious they’re having a lot of fun. The script is tight and witty, and the dialogue sizzles.
The less I say about this movie, the better. While some of the twists are predictable, you really want to know as little about it as possible going in. So, I’m going to stop my review here, for fear of ruining it for you, and instead just urge you to check it out. I had an absolute blast.
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