Sleuth

A successful mystery author (Laurence Olivier) invites his wife’s lover (Michael Caine) to his country estate for a deadly game of wits.

Sleuth is a clever, razor-sharp film that’s a textbook example of how to take a dialog-driven play and successfully adapt it for the screen.

Anthony Shaffer (who also wrote The Wicker Man) adapts his own play with stunning results. Rather than try to liven the script with big action sequences, Shaffer trusts his dialog and allows the actors to carry the movie with their performances.

And what performances they are! Olivier and Caine seem born to play their respective roles, with Caine in particular turning in the finest performance of his career to date. While either part could have been overdone to the point of camp, Olivier and Caine each manage to grab hold of the story’s biting core and wring every ounce of believable emotion from it.

Supporting them is the excellent Alec Cawthorne as the gruff Inspector Doppler. Again, a role that could have been overplayed, but Cawthorne wisely chooses a low-key approach that’s perfectly suited to the film.

For his part, director Joseph L. Mankiewicz uses the camera and sets to perfectly complement Shaffer’s script. From the array of nightmarish figures in Olivier’s character’s study, to the twists and turns the characters take as they walk through the estate, Mankiewicz subtly, but effectively, enhances Shaffer’s work without ever distracting from it.

In the end, Sleuth showcases two master performers working from a truly first-rate script backed by a director unafraid to stay out of the way. Highly Recommended.