Unlimitedia Sick Product of a Sick System

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Mr-Fusion A caper flick was the only impression I had walking into "The Silent Partner", but that's just scratching the surface. This is a very precise weaving together of psychological thriller, can-n-mouse, heist movie with two very well-cast leads. Elliott Gould is the ideal choice for the cunning thief everyone underestimates, and his double-dealings keep you hooked. But Christopher Plummer . . . man, that guy is malice incarnate. He may show up to rob a bank dressed as Santa Claus, but he is thoroughly nasty business.This is currently available in a bare-bones DVD with a very "Ocean's Eleven" cover, and that's is serious misrepresentation. Plot twists are what fuel this thing (that and some acts of surprising brutality). In any case, it's a clockwork piece of film - everybody's playing everybody else, nothing's at face value and you're always guessing.Great movie.8/10

tomsview "The Silent Partner" is a Canadian film and shows that the Canadian film industry of the 1970's possessed some major talent.Like all English-speaking film industries, the Canadians have to compete with the 300-pound gorilla in the room, Hollywood. Of course, being right next-door, the Canadians probably have the toughest job in creating cinema that reflects their national identity, and which doesn't just blend in with the US product. However, their films do have a unique vibe that Canadians may not recognize as easily as an outsider can.These days, we see quite a lot of Canadian material on cable in Australia and you can tell that it is Canadian even without seeing flags, police uniforms, or hearing the word 'about' pronounced as 'aboot'. After watching hundreds of American films, you can easily sense the change in locale."The Silent Partner" is a clever and stylish movie that would stand out in any cinematic company, although it doesn't seem to get too many mentions in overviews of the Canadian Film Industry.Elliott Gould plays Miles Cullen, a bank teller who at bank closing time discovers a note that tips him off that the bank will be robbed the next day. Dissatisfied with his job and pretty much his life, he hatches a plan.When the robbery takes place, Miles gives the robber a token amount of money, and causes him to flee when he trips the alarm. However, he has kept aside nearly $50,000 for himself. He then reports the total amount as stolen by the robber.The only other person who knows what he did is the perpetrator. In a truly edgy performance, Christopher Plummer plays bank robber, Harry Reikle, who is not only a thief but also a sadistic psychopath – he comes looking for the rest of the money, and he and Miles play out a deadly game of cat and mouse.The film has a fascinating cast including Susannah York who plays a co-worker with whom Miles has an on again, off again relationship, and John Candy in an early non-comedy role as a young colleague at the bank. And then there is Celine Lomez, an actress who was considered too sexy to be one of the leads in TV's "Charlie's Angels" – a backhanded compliment if ever there was one. She plays Elaine with whom Miles has an affair before discovering that she is not all that she seems.As the story unfolds we find that Miles is made of stern stuff and doesn't give ground easily, which only makes Harry more excessive in the pursuit of the money.The film ends as cleverly as it started, but not before one of Miles' beloved tropical fish is pinned to the wall with a knife and a human head ends up in the fish tank. "The Silent Partner" also features a sequence worthy of Hitchcock at his best when Miles must dispose of a body deposited on him courtesy of Harry."The Silent Partner" hasn't dated much at all, and is still one of the cleverest crime dramas you'll ever see. Although the film did well in Canada at the time, it failed to find an audience in the US, but one American critic rightly hailed it as "…one of the best sleepers of the late '70s". It's still a great little discovery to make today.

lathe-of-heaven Oh yes, this one is quite good. Very low key at first, but cleverly done. I'm impressed mainly because I usually do NOT like films from this period, unless they are all out Crime-Thriller / Grindhouse movies. Usually, during this time period the acting, and especially the writing is horribly dated, not to mention the extremely painful visual style of the time. BUT... I must admit that SOMEHOW this director had enough sense and forward vision to keep the aesthetics and tone of the actors and the film tightly engaging and powerfully gripping! I just watched a lovely HD print of the film and it looks VERY good, especially for it's age. The first few shots are kinda grainy and rough, but then the rest of the film looks great!I don't even usually care for Elliot Gould's super bland style, but his performance here really does suit his character and fits well with the overall theme and tone of the film.WAY more clever, tightly paced, believable, and MUCH, MUCH more satisfying than most films of this type made at this time. But, don't let the low key mood fool you; there are indeed some shocking jolts along the way. Christopher Plummer is quite a chilling and effective bad guy...If you like caper films and cat & mouse intrigue, you should very much enjoy this movie. But... Do NOT expect the 'OCEAN'S 11' type of playful style at all. Nor is it even like the edgier 'CONFIDENCE' No, no... This one is deadly serious. But, with just the slightest touch of jet black humour in one or two places.Most enjoyable and satisfying; highly recommended!

Scott LeBrun This rather ingenious movie, based on the novel "Think of a Number" by Anders Bodelsen, has a story, complete with fun twists and turns, that really keeps the viewer watching. Elliott Gould stars as bank teller Miles Cullen, held up by psychotic criminal Harry Reikle (Christopher Plummer). Unfortunately for Reikle, he doesn't obtain his entire potential take because Miles has already figured out a clever way to steal from the bank himself. When the robber realizes he was screwed, he's enraged and the two characters indulge in a battle of wits, with each man making moves that surprise the other. It's this whole interplay between these characters that provides this movie with some real meat, and it just goes to show that some people can't be taken at face value, are capable of daring actions, and may be far more crafty than we believe. On location shooting in Toronto is an asset (it's quite clear this takes place in Canada from the get go), as well as a cracking pace and a number of riveting scenes. Gould is nicely understated, as the unlikely thief, and Plummer, in one of his more interesting roles (it's cool to actually hear him curse out Gould), is damn convincing. Miles' bravado extends to his aggressively pursuing both Julie Carver (Susannah York), a co-worker and the mistress of his boss (Michael Kirby), and Elaine (Celine Lomez, an exquisite lady who even does some full frontal nudity), who's not what she initially appears to be. While the occasional bursts of brutal violence are indeed a little jarring, they do go a long way in showing the utter depravity and ruthlessness of the Reikle character. The screenplay is by Curtis Hanson, who also takes an associate producer credit, and the taut direction is by Daryl Duke ("Payday"). It's also fun to see a young John Candy in one of his earliest film roles; although he never gets to do much here, that inherent likability of his still comes through. The story here is a truly entertaining one, from its chilling robbery sequence wherein Reikle makes for an intimidating Santa Claus to his ugly confrontation with Elaine. This movie is a true sleeper that definitely deserves to be better known. Eight out of 10.