The Thomas Crown Affair is a refreshingly different film which concerns a Boston bank robbery, engineered by a wealthy man who is romantically involved with the femme insurance investigator sent to expose him.
Free of social-conscious pretensions, the Norman Jewison film tells a crackerjack story, well-tooled, professionally crafted and fashioned with obvious meticulous care.
Boston attorney Alan R. Trustman, who never before wrote for films, is responsible for an excellent story. Steve McQueen is a rich young industrialist who masterminds a bank heist. Paul Burke delivers an excellent performance as a detective who works with Faye Dunaway, an insurance company bounty hunter whose job is to trap McQueen.
Jewison adds a showmanly touch in the use of split- and multiple-screen images.
McQueen is neatly cast as the likeable, but lonely heavy. Dunaway makes an excellent detective who gradually develops a conflict of interests regarding her prey. The only message in this film is: enjoy it.
1968: Best Song (‘The Windmills of Your Mind’).
Nomination: Best Original Score
