The Silent Partner
Director– Daryl Duke
Starring –Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer, Susannah York
Country of origin- U.S.
Distributor - Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Number of discs – 1
Reviewed by - David Steigman
Date- 08/06/2019
The Silent Partner is the story about a bank teller and vault keeper Miles Cullen (Elliott Gould, The Long Goodbye) who gets involved in criminal activity when a robber, Harry Reikle, (Christopher Plummer, Murder by Decree) attempts to steal specifically $48,350.00 that he knows is in the teller’s drawer. Cullen, also wanting the money for himself and had also been planning to steal the money from the bank , goes forward with his plan and stashes the money in his lunchbox and takes it home, keeping it away from Reikle. Cullen is soon stalked and harassed by Reikle. We learn that Harry Reikle is more than just your usual bank robber; he is an insane, vicious misogynistic maniac who will do anything he has to, including murder, to take what he wants, which in this case is all that loot Cullen has stashed at his home. The film turns into a dangerous game of cat and mouse where Reikle continues to be outflanked by the clever and resourceful bank teller Cullen. Things get a bit intense when an attractive woman, Elaine (Celine Lopez) with a connection to Reikle gets involved with Cullen in a plot to get the money.
The Silent Partner is an excellent film featuring Elliott Gould and Christopher Plummer, two world class actors. They both turn in superb performances, as one would expect. I’ve never seen Plummer in a villainous role before and he is just so over the top as the sadistic Harry Reikle. Plummer gets to wear a Santa Claus suit (yes another naughty Santa Claus) and dress in drag as part of his plots to steal the money at the bank from Cullen. His violent attacks on women are rather shocking and potentially revolting to some viewers; Plummer does a tremendous job giving his character an incredible amount of intensity and is the embodiment of pure evil. Co-star Susannah York is also excellent in her role as Miles’ friend and would be lover Julie. The storyline is literate and director Duke’s direction is fluid injecting the crime thriller with an erotic, romantic subplot. The characters will hold your interest from start to finish. Another iconic comedy actor, the late great John Candy has a small role and is one of the first films he appeared in. The outstanding musical score was done by legendary Jazz musician Oscar Peterson, who only did scores for but a few films. Billy Williams provided the excellent cinematography, capturing some great scenery of Toronto, Canada, where the film was shot in its entirety.
Kino Lorber presents The Silent Partner on Blu-ray and overall this is a well-done release. The image quality for the picture is above average, a nice modest transfer with rich, bold colors and excellent details to the beautiful Toronto scenery. There are a few outdoor shots where the HD quality is just breathtaking. Grain is present throughout giving it a film like appearance. Some mild judder was detected early on, a few specs appear here and there, but all in all, there was nothing that would ruin the viewing experience. Sometimes there is so much you can do with film elements that might have flaws.
The English DTS-HD master audio 2.0 track comes in strong with the most aggressive sounds being the gunshots and other violent activity. Oscar Peterson’s delightful score comes in perfectly clear. No real defects or issues were detected.
Kino Lorber has supplied some superb supplements for this release. There is an interview with Elliott Gould, yes, the man himself, which I would consider a major coup. In this interview, Gould recalls his character in The Silent Partner, working with Christopher Plummer and Susannah York, along with stories about Billy Williams, Oscar Peterson and even Groucho Marks. It’s a great candid interview and well worth the 23 minutes of your time.
For those who love commentaries, The Silent Partner Blu-ray release offers a new audio commentary was recorded by film critics Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson. There is a lot of interesting information here about the era in which The Silent Partner emerged and Elliott Gould's image at the time, the nature and quality of the script that Curtis Hanson delivered, and the career paths of the different stars. Just like the Elliott Gould interview, this commentary is very much worth your time to listen to all the great details about The Silent Partner’s cast, crew and other tidbits.
Other extras include a radio spot along with trailers for several Kino Lorber releases. There are actually quite a few trailers to sit back, watch and enjoy. They are all from various crime thrillers, starting with of course The Silent Partner, followed by The Long Goodbye, Busting, The High Commissioner, Gold, Ordeal by Innocence, Loophole and Slayground.
Kino has once again done s splendid job in getting another unreleased film a Blu-ray release stateside. The film itself, as well as the Blu-ray presentation by Kino Lorber, are both highly recommended!
