Watching films that are almost half a century old can be a risky proposition. What was once cutting edge may now be painfully dated, what was once culturally acceptable may now be blatantly offensive, and what was once original may now be the most well worn of tropes. However, this makes it all the more impressive when an old film is able to overcome their 50 year disadvantage and hold up in spectacular fashion. This is the case with _The Parallax View_.

The story and writing is complex and compelling. There is little to no hand holding, with the audience often left to connect the dots in the same way that our protagonist is. This film could easily have had a voice over to keep everyone on the same page, but it's so much more immersive without one. Speaking of immersive, this film makes some ballsy directorial decisions in terms of long takes at critical moments. Watching a flight stewardess pass out drinks has never been so tense. Perhaps most ballsy of all, is the uninterrupted five minute sequence where [spoiler]Warren Beatty's character watches the emotional response slideshow at the Parallax Corporation[/spoiler]. Do I think it could have been shorter and equally effective? Yeah, probably. But I respect the hell out of going all in. The movie is just stylish as hell, with unique locations, interesting shot composition, and all around memorable visuals.


Going smaller scale, the dialogue is equally impressive, feeling nuanced and natural. This is of course helped tremendously by Warren Beatty's brilliant performance. I am ashamed to admit that I'm not very familiar with Beatty, having only seen _Heaven Can Wait_ once when I was very young. But after watching this film, I can see why he was a star. He's got the looks. He's got the charisma. He's the classic Hollywood stud and I'm definitely going to catch up on all of his filmography now.

The last thing I'd point out is regarding the ending. Recently I'm finding that the third act is where a lot of films start to lose me, and I was worried that this film may have been going in a similar direction. Luckily, this was not the case, and the finale was able to pull the narrative together in an unexpected, yet satisfying way, all while maintaining the impressive visual flair.

Slow paced but decent political thriller. Not as good as something like The Manchurian Candidate (both versions) or Three Days of the Condor, but engaging enough with a fine performance by Warren Beatty. **3.5/5**