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The Conversation

The Conversation

Crime · Drama · Mystery · 1974

A paranoid, secretive surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.

Movie details

The Conversation

“Harry Caul is an invader of privacy. The best in the business.”

1974 Crime · Drama · Mystery 1h 55m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.5 / 10

Community rating

A paranoid, secretive surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Conversation?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Crossword Mysteries: Proposing Murder

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Rear Window

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A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.

Breach

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Snowden

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In this twisty thriller, a tennis coach at a tropical resort finds himself at the center of a missing persons mystery. Tom teaches tennis during the day and parties at night. When an enigmatic tourist arrives, Tom is unable to shake the feeling he has met her before. Tension and attraction grow, until her husband disappears, and the police suspect Tom.

The Stranger

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Francis Ford Coppola

Written by

Francis Ford Coppola

Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman

Harry Caul

John Cazale

John Cazale

Stan

Allen Garfield

Allen Garfield

William P. 'Bernie' Moran

Frederic Forrest

Frederic Forrest

Mark

Cindy Williams

Cindy Williams

Ann

Michael Higgins

Michael Higgins

Paul

Elizabeth MacRae

Elizabeth MacRae

Meredith

Court is in session

Put The Conversation on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.