Harper

Paul Newman memorably plays the title role in this box offi ce hit based on Ross MacDonald’s The Moving Target. The fi rst detective fi lm in Newman’s then 23-fi lm career, Harper revitalised the genre. Newman’s sleuth chews gum fast…and slips out of jams ever faster as he unravels a twisted case of kidnapping and murder. William Goldman’s clever script throws quips and a parade of LA-LA-Land characters Harper’s way. There’s a woman of means (Lauren Bacall), a gun-toting attorney (Arthur Hill), a poolside gigolo (Robert Wagner), a boozy ex-starlet (Shelley Winters), a jazz junkie (Julie Harris), Harper’s estranged wife (Janet Leigh) and the unholy order of the Temple of the Clouds (led by Strother Martin). Each may possess a clue. Or a bullet for Harper.