1973 - Dir: George Roy Hill
Shown at The FeckenOdeon on 29th January, 2011
Having succeeded in the Old West, director George Roy Hill turned his talents to that other rich vein of popular rebel mythology - and good cinema - prohibition-era gangsterville. Hill's film is almost a sequel to "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" in that it follows a similar formula and although set in 1936 Chicago, the two heroes retain the same characteristics. Close attention is paid to building period detail, and one of the film’s major strengths is its atmospheric recreation of the mean streets of Chicago. The plot gets complex quickly. But don't worry. For those with fashionably short attention spans, titles with different chapter headings break the plot into easily digestible chunks.
"The Sting" became one of the biggest hits of the early '70s; grossing 68.5 million dollars during its first run, the film also picked up seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Adapted Score for Marvin Hamlisch.
"The Sting" became one of the biggest hits of the early '70s; grossing 68.5 million dollars during its first run, the film also picked up seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Adapted Score for Marvin Hamlisch.
- The movie is based on the real-life exploits of grifter brothers Charley and Fred Gondorf, whose experiences culminated in a scam similar to the one shown in the film, known in 1914 as "the wire" or "the big store". Unlike the movie, however, the actual "mark" was more than happy to testify against Charley Gondorf, the front man of the scam, and he spent time in Sing Sing, as did his younger brother a year later for running another scam. Both served a few years and were released. As late as 1924, when Charley was 65 and Fred 60, they were still active, and running new scams.
- The movie was filmed on the backlot of Universal studios and the diner in which Hooker meets Lonnegan is the same diner interior used in "Back to the Future".
- Although "The Sting" helped bring Scott Joplin's rags back into popular culture, they actually predate the period of the story by 25 years and wouldn’t have been heard in the 1030s.
- When Elizabeth Taylor announced that "The Sting" had won and Oscar for Best Picture a streaker ran accross the stage. A few years later the same streaker was found dead in an art gallery. The two events are not thought to have been connected.... or were they?
