The Thomas Crown Affair

A thrill-seeking millionaire (Steve McQueen) pulls off an intricate bank robbery, then matches wits with the insurance investigator (Faye Dunaway) out to catch him.

The Thomas Crown Affair is a stylish, well-directed film that oozes cool.

From the opening credits to the perfect ending, director Norman Jewison turns in a film that’s equal parts slick noir and sexual drama. His use of multiple images, inspired by the Canadian short film, A Place to Stand, serves the film well, enhancing its dramatic moments by broadening the visual palette. What was once a single scene is suddenly multiple ones simultaneously, each able to stand alone, but also working together. In addition to making the film relentlessly visual, this device also adds a tremendous amount of replay value.

For his part, McQueen shines. In essence, pulling off the modern version of Bruce Wayne when Batman was still a camp parody, McQueen is absolutely believable as the driven millionaire who’s always one-step ahead of everyone. That Faye Dunaway is able to hold her own opposite him is feat enough, but the sexual tension the two are able to generate is what really makes the film.

McQueen and Dunaway both manage to convey the intense rivalry and attraction between their characters with little in the way of dialog, instead making use of body language and other subtleties that helps the romance feel believable. This is water finding its own level, as two driven egos find their match in each other.

And that, ultimately, is the story here. The robberies, however clever and well orchestrated, are all secondary to the tale involving McQueen and Dunaway’s characters and, more importantly, how their very natures keep them isolated and alone. Like its protagonist, The Thomas Crown Affair is ultimately empty, but the things it does to try to fill that emptiness are pretty damn entertaining.