Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Forumrxes Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

Bea Swanson This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

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.

moonspinner55 Heavy-handed action-melodrama from producer-director Stanley Kramer involves incarcerated war veteran Gene Hackman, doing 15 years for murder in San Quentin, who is freed from jail by the operatives of a mysterious organization; seems they need a hit-man to assassinate a national figure at his beach-side retreat, and are offering Hackman a second honeymoon with his wife in South America to complete the job. Globe-trotting pastiche of a number of hot topics from the 1970s has a good cast but no sting in the set-up; there's no suspense or sense of paranoia in this narrative, and some of the crass dialogue is downright vile--and for what purpose? The overstuffed plot culminates in a number of story twists, none of which seems credible. Hackman is assuredly skeptical and adept, holding some of this scattershot movie together, but Kramer eventually sinks it with his 'controversial' handling. The filmmaker proves to be all thumbs in the Kafkaesque arena. * from ****

thinker1691 This is one of those films which stars a great movie actor, Gene Hackman. The premise is from the Adam Kennedy novel called " The Domino Princiiple. " Roy Tucker, (Gene Hackman) a Viet-Nam veteran who is serving time in prison for murder is visited by a strange, and apparently powerful man Richard Widmark) who offers to get him released if he will use his special abilities. Having nothing to lose, Tucker agrees, with a single condition, to have his wife Ellie (Candice Bergen) released as well. The organization grants his request and promises much more. After a few weeks, Tucker is given the secret assignment and he quickly realizes the job has no future for him or his wife. However, he also knows to fight the organization will not be easy. If you have already seen the earlier version called 'The Paralax View' you'll realize this is a less convincing version. Despite the fact, top notch director, Standly Kramer, Mickey Rooney, Edward Albert, Jay Novello and Eli Wallach, were all involved in this project, it fails to match the earlier movie with Warren Beatty. Still, with Hackman doing his best, it remains interesting. ***

Valentin T Mocanu The greatest games of Kasparov or Fischer can be a mess for a total rookie. This is a great movie. There is no special agency involved in the plot. This is the clue! This is a PRIVATE plot, built as a PRIVATE enterprise. This is a self-destructive and a self organized plot. As a conclusion, the scenario described the perfect professional plot: private, self –organized, self-destructive, with no trace at the end. Anyone can be behind the plot: a smart "director" with some money. All can be done just by delegation. The "director" must be just trigger. If the normal viewer cannot see the essence of the plot in the explicit sequences of the movie, a real plot has fewer chances to be discovered. All the actors' performances are well done , with some special mention for Gene Hackman and Mickey Rooney.

JasparLamarCrabb Stanley Kramer directs an action thriller and leaves out two key things: action and thrills. THE DOMINO PRINCIPLE features Gene Hackman as a convict sprung from prison in order to perform some mysterious task. Richard Widmark, Edward Albert, and Eli Wallach are his operatives --- they presumably work for the government, but that, like most of the movie's plot line, is never made clear. Hackman asks a lot of questions that NEVER get answered so the film goes absolutely nowhere. While it strives to be like NIGHT MOVES and THE PARALLAX VIEW, THE DOMINO PRINCIPLE mixes up ambiguity and mystery with confusion and boredom. The film is extremely well photographed but even that works against it. Kramer's direction is devoid of any style. It's a very sunny movie! The acting is fine with Hackman proving he's pretty much incapable of being bad. Widmark and Wallach are suitably nasty and Albert is well cast as Widmark's cruel lackey. Even the usually obnoxious Mickey Rooney is pretty good as Hackman's sidekick. One oddity however is the casting of Candice Bergen as Hackman's wife. We're told she's done time in prison and she seems to be trying to put on some sort of southern twang. Kramer's idea of making her appear to be trailer trash is to have her wear an ugly brown wig. It's a role better suited for the likes of Valerie Perrine or Susan Tyrell.