THE CONVERSATION (1974, Paramount/American Zoetrope, 113 min.); directed, produced,

and written by Francis Ford Coppola; with Gene Hackman (Harry Caul), John Cazale (Stan), Allen Garfield (Bernie Moran), Frederic Forrest (Mark), Cindy Williams (Ann), Michael Higgins (Paul), Elizabeth Macrae (Meredith), Teri Garr (Amy), Harrison Ford (Martin Stett), and Robert Duvall (The Chairman).

1. The Conversation has a great opening section. This first fifteen minutes, set in a park in downtown San Francisco, serves as the film's "introduction," setting the stage for what will come, providing material upon which the rest of the film will comment. What happens in this segment that's so important, so memorable?

2. One of the things a good modern writer does is to be really sparing with "exposition," with the giving of background information about characters and situations. The good writer will compel readers/viewers to fill in the background for themselves. The Conversation in fact is ABOUT that very activity, about the search for background on people, the quest for information. How does our understanding of the basic plot mystery develop as the film progresses? How does our understanding of Harry Caul's identity develop as the film progresses?

3. Let's talk about the "milieu" of the film. What does the film have to show us about the world of the professional snoopers? An obvious point of focus would be the Private Investigators' Convention, but look at other scenes as well. What kind of world do these guys live in?

4. What does Harry's Catholicism tell us about him? Why does Coppola include this element in the film?

5. Look at the film's structure. Why does it begin when it does, end when it does? What has changed in between?

6. Harry Caul is one of the great characters in recent film. Although seemingly non-descript and unremarkable, he is in fact complex and memorable. What makes him complex and memorable?

7. The Conversation is probably Gene Hackman's best performance on film. Look for the elements that make that performance great--the way he holds his body to suggest self-consciousness and discomfort; the way he expresses the character's inner vanity; the way he shows Harry's stubbornness and his evasiveness; the quality of his voice, the way he wears his clothes. Discuss one of the film's scenes in these terms.

8. Like nearly every film made after 1930, The Conversation is a sound film. But it is also a film about sound, about the same recording technology (recording, mixing, looping, etc.) that makes the sound picture possible. Discuss a scene in which the sountrack seems particularly interesting.

9. At the heart of this film lies "The Conversation," holding the film together so that we can pursue our study in character. Why does this conversation fascinate, obsess Harry as it does? What does Harry's search for the truth about this conversation teach us about the nature of TRUTH in general?

10. Lots of big themes here--Privacy (vs. Intrusion), Personal Responsibility (vs. Indifference), Power (vs. Love), Isolation (vs. Commitment), Professionalism (vs. Humanism), Guilt (vs. Innocence). Discuss them.

11. What role do the secondary actors play in this film? Are any of them memorable in their own right?

12. Harry changes as the film progresses. He even slips dangerously close to madness, doesn't he? Discuss these changes.

13. You'll notice that the more Harry creeps out of his miserable shell, the more vulnerable he becomes, until the snooper becomes the snooped. This is classic "irony," but then this film (like so many great ones) is full of little ironies, cruel jokes upon our poor proxy, Harry Caul. Discuss them.