Review of The Anderson Tapes (1971) by Stuart K — 05 Sep 2012

Directed by Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men (1957), The Hill (1965), Dog Day Afternoon (1975) and Network (1976)), this is a taut heist film with a touch of paranoia to the proceedings, from a 1970 novel by Lawrence Sanders.

It's well made, and the camera work and sound is top notch, it even has a good male lead, playing well against type and with an (almost) convincing American accent too. Duke Anderson (Sean Connery) is a criminal who has been in the slammer for 10 years.

As soon as he's out, he instantly renews his relationship with his old girlfriend Ingrid (Dyan Cannon). She lives in a very posh apartment block at 1 East 91st Street in New York City, and Duke decides that he wants to rob the apartments, knowing that the tenants are rich.

He gets help from mob boss Pat Angelo (Alan King), William "Pop" Myer (Stan Gottlieb) and The Kid. (Christopher Walken, in his first film.) However, what Duke doesn't know is that everything he says and does is being recorded by several government agencies, all of whom are investigating members of Duke's team for other crimes they're wanted for.

It's a good thriller, and Connery manages to make a good crook as well. The heist is well done as well, and it's very tense as well. It kinda set up what would eventually happen with Watergate, and it shows the strengths and pitfalls of surveillance.

Lumet keeps the tension up throughout, and he doesn't stop.