The Drowning Pool

"Harper days are here again..."

1975 1h 49m EN

😐

6.3

MID

★6.3TMDB · 144

ThrillerMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Harper is brought to Louisiana to investigate an attempted blackmail scheme. He soon finds out that it involves an old flame of his and her daughter. He eventually finds himself caught in a power struggle between the matriarch of the family and a greedy oil baron, who wants their property. Poor Harper! Things are not as straight-forward as they initially appeared.

“Harper days are here again...”

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Cast

Paul Newman
Lew Harper
Joanne Woodward
Iris Devereaux
Richard Derr
James Devereaux
Anthony Franciosa
Chief Broussard
Murray Hamilton
J.Hugh Kilbourne
Gail Strickland
Mavis Kilbourne
Melanie Griffith
Schuyler Devereaux
Linda Haynes
Gretchen

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Stuart Rosenberg
Writers: Lorenzo Semple Jr., Tracy Keenan Wynn, Walter Hill
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.7M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 96% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

51 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Lew Harper Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Stuart Rosenberg, shot by Gordon Willis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Michael Small. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John C. Howard shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward and Richard Derr carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Stuart Rosenberg directs. Gordon Willis behind the camera. Michael Small scores. John C. Howard cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.7M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Earned back only 96% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
351 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Part of the "Lew Harper Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Stuart Rosenberg, shot by Gordon Willis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Michael Small. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor John C. Howard shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward and Richard Derr carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Harper days are here again...".
10IMDB entry: tt0072912 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Gordon Willis
Original score: Michael Small
Editing: John C. Howard
Production design: Paul Sylbert
Makeup / hair: Kaye Pownall
Stunt coordinator: Stan Barrett
Runtime: 109 min · 1h 49m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $2,700,000
Box office: $2,600,000
Return: 96% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: The Drowning Pool (1975)

Part of

Lew Harper Collection

Harper (released in the UK as The Moving Target) is a 1966 American mystery film based on Ross Macdonald's 1949 novel The Moving Target and adapted for the screen by novelist William Goldman, who admired MacDonald's writings. The film stars Paul Newman as Lew Harper (Lew Archer in the novel). It is directed by Jack Smight, with an ensemble cast that includes Robert Wagner, Julie Harris, Janet Leigh, Shelley Winters and Arthur Hill. The film pays homage to Humphrey Bogart's portrayals of Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe by featuring Bogart's widow, Lauren Bacall, who plays a wounded wife searching for her missing husband, a role similar to General Sternwood in the 1946 Bogart-and-Bacall film, The Big Sleep. In 1975, Newman reprised the role in The Drowning Pool.