Marathon Man (1976)

Director:

John Schlesinger

Writers:

William Goldman (screenplay)
William Goldman (novel)

Release Date:

8 October 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

A graduate history student is unwittingly caught in the middle of an international conspiracy involving stolen diamonds, an exiled Nazi war criminal, and a rogue government agent.

Plot Keywords:

War Criminal | Nazi | Dentist | New York | Diamond

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Dustin Hoffman	...	Babe
Laurence Olivier	...	Szell
Roy Scheider	...	Doc
William Devane	...	Janeway
Marthe Keller	...	Elsa
Fritz Weaver	...	Professor Biesenthal
Richard Bright	...	Karl
Marc Lawrence	...	Erhard
Allen Joseph	...	Babe's Father
Tito Goya	...	Melendez
Ben Dova	...	Szell's Brother
Lou Gilbert	...	Rosenbaum
Jacques Marin	...	LeClerc
James Wing Woo	...	Chen
Nicole Deslauriers	...	Nicole

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | German | Spanish | Yiddish

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Singapore:M18 | Sweden:15 | UK:X (original rating) | Brazil:14 | South Korea:18 | Argentina:18 | New Zealand:R16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-15 (re-rating) (2003) (uncut version) | Finland:K-16 (1988) (cut version) | France:-16 | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM18 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1977) | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

47th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Laurence Olivier plays the character of Dr. Christian Szell, based on Dr. Josef Mengele. Two years later, in 1978, Laurence Olivier acted in The Boys from Brazil (1978), a story about Dr. Mengele (played by Gregory Peck).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Babe and Elsa are outside Szell's brother's house, the sky changes back and forth from cloudy/hazy to sunny and blue a number of times.

Quotes:

Janeway: [Referring to his dead brother] What did he do?
Babe: He was in the oil business.
Janeway: I know exactly how Doc made his living, and the closest he ever came to the oil business was when he filled up at the friendly neighborhood gas station.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Jeffersons: Marathon Men (#7.1)" (1980)

Soundtrack:

Le Tram

Atmospheric and exciting.

Though loose ends abound in this sensational thriller, it is simply too well acted and directed for this to really matter. Marathon Man never really tells us exactly what is going on. Probably because our main character could not possibly understand everything he is being put through. In a matter of a few days, we see Dustin Hoffman transform from a mousy graduate student, to a hardened, resourceful, and even dangerous man. All of it over a bank deposit box full of diamonds.

As in Straw Dogs, we see Dustin Hoffman pushed to the limit. This time he has a fugitive Nazi, his henchmen, and a shadowy US government agency breathing down his neck. The Nazi (Olivier) has come out of hiding to claim a cache of diamonds stolen from the Jews at Auschwitz. He fears that the government agency, who also knows about the diamonds, is trying to steal them from him. Roy Scheider, who plays Hoffman's brother, literally gets a little too close to the situation and is disposed of by the old Nazi. He stumbles back to Hoffman's apartment before he dies. But did he tell Hoffman anything about the diamonds before he died? That's a question that the Nazi, with the use of some nasty dental equipment, would like an answer to.

The second hour of the film sees Hoffman being chased around and tortured for information he simply cannot provide. For all he knew, his brother was in the oil business. He knows nothing of this terrible old man drilling holes into his teeth and repeatedly asking, "is it safe?". Through his resistance to pain, his endurance as a runner, and his hardening resolve, Hoffman is able to turn the tables on his captives and escape. One escape after another only seems to draw him into greater danger, however.

Hoffman is truly outstanding as Thomas Levy. The true method actor, Hoffman can project any emotion needed times ten. "Larry" Olivier, as he liked to be called, is cold, evil, but also weakening in his old age. His paranoia is wonderfully on display as he walks through a Jewish neighborhood and seemingly every eye is on him. Through his ears, we can also hear the people making deals and arguing about prices, which would re-enforce many negative stereotypes this character would certainly have about Jews.

Roy Scheider isn't in too much of the film, and that's a shame. He is such a likable actor! William Devane is wonderfully sleazy as the leader of the shadowy government agency that only seems to make things worse at every turn for our hero. Marthe Keller's role seems a little tacked-on, but she does pretty well with it.

The photography of New York City is harsh and dingy. Perfect for the tone of the scenes set there. The pacing is exceptional, and the conclusion somewhat surprising. Definitely satisfactory.

You'll never look at a trip to the dentist's office the same way again! 9 of 10 stars.

The Hound.