August 2021 – Trashbag's Reviews

IMDB link
Running time: 2h 12min
Directed by John McTiernan
Written by Roderick Thorp (based on the novel by), Jeb Stuart (screenplay by), Steven E. de Souza (screenplay by)
Starring Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia

Not everyone has seen Die Hard, but most people will at least recognize the name. The original Die Hard from 1988 was a smash hit that started a very successful film franchise and boosted Bruce Willis’s career in Hollywood enormously. The film is considered by many to be one of the best action films ever made – maybe even the best. I do not personally find it to be quite that superb, but it is objectively a great and extremely influential action film, and I understand why some people think it deserves the gold medal in the action genre. It has also been called one of the best Christmas films, and there is, in my opinion, some merit to that as well.

Three Days of the Condor (1975)

IMDB link
Running time: 1h 57min
Directed by Sydney Pollack
Written by James Grady (novel “Six Days of the Condor”), Lorenzo Semple Jr. (screenplay), David Rayfiel (screenplay)
Starring Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway, Cliff Robertson

Three Days of the Condor is a spy thriller from 1975, based on the 1974 novel Six Days of the Condor. The film has aged relatively well considering its age – I cannot speak for the book, which is apparently quite different from the film version. Three Days of the Condor is still enjoyable entertainment – among other things, it has some memorable scenes and an excellent performance by legendary actor Max von Sydow (1929-2020). All of this makes it still well worth a watch in 2021, at least for those who enjoy spy thrillers and/or Sydow. Additionally, the film also has a great, dark tone that persists ever after things start to go badly for CIA bookworm Turner (Robert Redford) in the beginning. The film is not sheer brilliance from beginning to end, however – the beginning, and especially the ending, are superb, but the middle parts of the film do not, in my opinion, quite match those levels of quality.