Topaz (1969)
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Topaz Movie Review
Topaz is a 1969 espionage thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It is most definitely one of the director’s weakest efforts.
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“I’ve been shot… Just a little“
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I really did not care for this movie which is unfortunate and tough to say having in mind how much I simply adore Hitchcock. But the truth is that I found the film to be rather mediocre, especially when compared to his other efforts.
So Topaz is a Cold War spy film and I would say that it definitely succeeds somewhat as an espionage flick. That’s because it’s the strongest when it comes to the political side of things as the dialogue is sophisticated and the film is grounded in reality.
But on the other hand, it entirely fails as a thriller. The tension is almost not present, there are not enough memorable moments to be found in the story itself and I just never felt either danger or palpable tension. The movie is surprisingly devoid of thrills for a Hitchcock picture.
Topaz also has a problem in terms of the acting. Yes, most of the performances are quite good admittedly and I found neither of the cast members delivering a terrible performance, but still these are all unknowns and the film needed at least one major star to make it more memorable, especially for today’s audiences. But I did like the diversity present here in terms of the ethnicities.
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Topaz is technically okay. The cinematography is particularly strong and the film is well scored too. But the direction from Hitchcock is surprisingly weak this time around and he is the one responsible for making this film in a very mediocre, stale and tame manner. So Topaz is definitely not a terrible movie, but it certainly is a weak one. It’s simply not up to the standards that I’d come to expect from this great director.
Topaz is well shot and acted with good dialogue too. However, it entirely fails as a thriller as it lacks in suspense, danger and palpable tension. The movie’s also tremendously boring owing to its slow pace and uneventful story. It’s a surprising misfire from Hitchcock.
