Self-made billionaire Thomas Crown is bored of being able to buy everything he desires. Being irresistible to women, he also does not feel any challenge in that area. But there are a few things even he can't get, therefore Thomas Crown has a seldom hobby: He steals priceless masterpieces of Art. After the theft of a famous painting from Claude Monet, the only person suspecting Thomas Crown is Catherine Banning. Her job is to get the picture back, no matter how she accomplishes her mission. Unfortunately, Catherine gets involved too deeply with Thomas to keep a professional distance to the case. Fortunately, Thomas seems to fall for her, too. Written by

Plot Synopsis:
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John McTiernan did a great job directing this movie. There is subtlety in many scenes which help enrich the story. These can be easily missed if you don't pay attention. The score is well chosen and fits each situation like a glove and adds to the enjoyment of the movie. The acting is very good and I think its one of Brosnan's better portrayals. René Russo is quite lovely and does a very nice job of portraying Katherine Banning, the art thief recovery detective. She had a lot of guts doing the nude scenes at her age, she does look great. There is a fair amount of explicit and implicit sex but it is done in a tasteful manner.

Thomas Crown is a wealthy and adventurous businessman who savors a good challenge. Among other diversions, he crashes an expensive catamaran while racing and bets $100,000 on a golf swing simply because "it's a beautiful Saturday morning," and there is not much else to do.

Crown orchestrates an elaborate New York museum heist to steal a painting (San Giorgio Maggiore at dusk) by Monet valued at $100 million. The insurers of the artwork send ace insurance investigator Catherine Banning to assist Detective Michael McCann and the police in solving the crime.

From the beginning, Banning suspects Crown is behind the theft. A game of cat-and-mouse ensues that results in their becoming lovers and gives Crown exactly what he was seeking, as his psychiatrist puts it: "A worthy adversary."

To prove his sincerity and test her loyalty to him, Crown returns to the museum under the eye of Banning and dozens of police officers, vowing to put the stolen painting back.

So pay attention and enjoy this treat. If you see it on DVD with none of the nude scenes and mild swearing removed make sure the kiddies are asleep.

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Old Crow-2 from Finland
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Forget all the explosions, car chases, crazy villains, special effects... The Thomas Crown Affair is not an action movie. It?s not even a thriller. Instead, it?s a well-done cat-and-mouse movie that?s smart, entertaining and very sexy. If you had to use one word to describe the film it would have to be sophisticated. The movie might appeal more to mature audiences as both the leading man and the leading lady are over 40 years old. Pierce Brosnan can obviously do other roles beside James Bond, but the role of Thomas Crown is at least somewhat similar to 007. Both guys "enjoy women" and are very suave. Overall, Brosnan gives a solid performance and is overshadowed only by Rene Russo who simply oozes sexuality and class. She is simply perfect in her role and though she?s twice as old as I am I find her a real knockout. Not only is she extremely hot, but also a very talented and charismatic actress. A perfect combination! The classy dance scene between Brosnan and Russo belongs to the most sexually-charged scenes in history and the following love-making scene manages to be both sexy and stylish. Usually nude scenes in Hollywood movies seem somehow "uneasy", but in this movie the scene is done in real style and with sensual music the atmosphere is sizzling. Who would want a disposable bimbo like Britney Spears when you could have a real class-act woman like Rene Russo? I would also like to mention Bill Conti whose simple yet refined music is simply outstanding. Just listen to the music during the scene in which Crown and Banning go glider flying... You can just close your eyes and listen to this wonderful music. Now I have to find the soundtrack for this film! I guess I should mention that I?ve never seen the original Thomas Crown, but now I don?t even have to bother as its updated version is a true pleasure to watch. I have nothing negative to say about it so just go get this film on DVD and enjoy!

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koconnor-1 from Attleboro, MA
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This DVD was an impulse buy, pure and simple. My wife and I like Pierce Brosnan, and I have enjoyed Renee Russo's other works, so what did I have to lose? Only my mind! This film was positively one of the most enjoyable, nail-biting, suspenseful romantic capers ever made.

A remake of the steamy 1968 Steve McQueen flick updated to the sleek and self-referential 90s, "Thomas Crown" features Brosnan as the title character - a bored billionaire businessman in the business of "acquisitions". For a thrill, he heists an extremely valuable Monet from the New York Museum right under the noses of security guards, cops, and about a thousand unsuspecting museum-goers. Renee Russo is the very sexy, very worldly Catherine Banning, whose insurance company underwrites the painting - and she is determined to get it back at any cost... But the cost just may be her soul as she woos, and then falls under the spell of the enigmatic Crown. Will Russo discover the location of the Monet? Will she rat out Thomas Crown? Or is Crown manipulating her affections like Bobby Fisher manipulates the pieces on a chess board?

What we have here is a high-speed chase film whose vehicle is clever dialog, rich and exotic direction, and more than a little sexual tension! Brosnan, as Crown, is ever the cool Brit charmer whose every word and action are as calculated as the movements of a Rolex. Russo smoulders every time she appears on screen. And when the two of them get together, the chemical reaction is pure dynamite.

Dennis Leary has a nice bit as a streetwise NYPD detective on the case, who dispenses advice to Russo's Banning, and watches her begin to spiral out of control. His role here most likely resulted in the deserved attempt at a television series on ABC ("The Job").

The action in the film moves exotically from caper to cover-up and back with dizzying speed... All the while, we are kept guessing about the motivations of the two lead, and find ourselves eagerly anticipating their next move. When the final checkmate comes, we are left totally bewildered, befuddled, and baffled... which is most-likely the director's intention!

On all levels, "The Thomas Crown Affair" will steal the hearts of men and women alike... but for different reasons - Men can enjoy the action and thrill of the chase, and Crown's ability to win over the most beautiful women and his attempt to get away with the ultimate heist... Ladies can marvel at the suave Brosnan and his life of extreme wealth, and all-the-while wonder if he will betray her, or if she will betray him...

I will not betray you... I ain't saying!

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bloomstr from Connecticut
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It was wonderful - much better than the "original" The characters were more interesting, the plot more interesting!

The entire cast gives marvellous performances, Rene Russo and Pierce Brosnan are wonderful, sexy, intelligent and never boring!

I am tired of hearing about Rene's age being a factor, there are sexy talented women of all ages! Her performance is what thrilled me - she gives a multifaceted performance. And its interesting that most of the critical people of her on this site are male. I guess they can't handle a strong- yet vulnerable, intelligent woman.

Kudos to Pierce Brosnan for selecting a woman lead who is not only his contemporary but equal in intelligence and moxy!!



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jaywolfenstien from USA
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Obligatory comparison to the first film: The first Thomas Crown Affair really wasn't that great with its split screens that would make even Brian De Palma sick. Like other films from that era of history, it's lost some of its shock with time but unlike true classics, Thomas Crown Affair has lost a lot of its charm. Worth a viewing, but not worth worshipping.

Only vague concepts carry over from film to film, really. The same basic plot curve, same basic events, same basic characters, except everything is retold and reinterpreted from a different point of view. And I much prefer John McTiernan's interpretation despite the more glaring plot holes such as 'Why didn't the security tape reveal who set the briefcase in the gallery to begin with?' Theoretically the culprit could've been caught then and there, but then there'd be no movie.

The caper's execution is rather spectacular, far more entertaining than the original's, though much less likely to happen. But who cares, really? McTiernan directed this as a film you can't take 100% seriously anyway. This is a fun cat and mouse movie, not a documentary.

The premise-an art theft-strikes me as more interesting than the original's robbery; besides, how many films have bank robberies? How many films steal art? It's something different.

The characters and their portrayals are colorful and interesting, walking a thin line of camp but never pushing it too far. This movie isn't about 'Everyman' nor is it meant to. It's about a billionaire who gets his kicks out of high stake gambles and wages-how do you do that without a larger than life portrayal?

I particularly liked the ending sequence, as goofy, perhaps corny as it is, it's still fun. Especially the music selection, Nina Simone's Sinnerman, a well chosen track. Bill Conti provides the underlying score, which proves quite unique having a slightly bouncy 'piano recital' quality to its first few themes. Very fitting for the museum setting. It's a CD worth purchasing for the sake of variety alone.

In the end, Thomas Crown Affair works not because of the film's subjects or its characters . . . it works because of -how- it portrays everything. Its tone is fun and relaxing, and it never tries to take itself too seriously. After all, we are at the movies and not a training seminar . ..

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~?~iX~?~
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Well, what can I say after watching this film, being a fan of the original. To begin with, I enjoyed it as it was almost a 90's play by play remake, and I am always pleased to see how a 60's or 70's classic would have looked 20 something years later. The early scenes in the film were very close to the original, with the business deal going through, and then Crown going to observe the heist; although participating this time around, and so, with what I saw I saw a hell of a lot of promise to shine up to the original. The heist seems in both are superbly conceived and very well filmed, with just the right amount of tension about the problems arising. Good stuff.

Enter Russo, dressed as a total Dunaway clone (Remember the headscarf?) and with some scenes of total over acting which could have worked well but on the whole didn't. Where Russo seems to let go and enjoy herself is a slip mistake that the character would never have done; Dunaway ALWAYS kept her cool in the original.

Enter the cat and mouse thriller element of the film. I have seen a few reviews here that say that this dragged the film along, slowing it down considerably. However, this film, in both versions, is not about a robbery, it is about the chase. The point of the film is the exchanges between the two protagonists, each trying to catch the other out; and this is the brilliance of the film, because it isn't a visual action plot with little in it that so many films are today. This makes you watch, this makes you observe and it makes you think.

Moving on to the character of Crown by Brosnan. Some people have said that Brosnan was hollow and one dimensional, with no background to his motivation to the robbery. This is EXACTLY the point and this is why the ending of the 1999 version does NOT work. Thomas Crown only has two things that he cares about: Greed and acquisition. The scene in both versions with the business deal at the beginning is the evidence at this, with the corporate suits joking about "Thomas Crown actually selling something" then we find out that he only sold it because, unknown to them, they were offering 30 million more than anyone else. All Crown cares about is possessing as much as he can, this is why he has been alone all this time. And, with this being the point of the character, that is why the ending of the film is so disappointing and unbelievable compared to the original. Crown desired to own the painting and he would not have given this up for the love of a woman, because, although it is obvious he wants a woman to love him, he cannot love women, because he can only love what he owns, and he wants to own everything. The original version, with McQueen deceiving Dunaway, after she betrayed him and then leaving her on the plane is a much more convincing ending.

Another unconvincing aspect is the comparison between the McQueen/Dunaway and Brosnan/Russo relationships. Firstly, the dance scene comes nowhere near comparison to the chess scene of the original; and the dance scene is very poorly filmed as well. The chess scene showed both characters attempts at dominance over each other, their lust to win over each other, and they sexual tension between them as they play with the chess pieces, slowly and seductively. The dance scene is a quick montage of unclear movement with the only piece of sexual tension being Brosnan laying his hands on Russo. All the dominance that Dunaway had in the original was disposed of and Russo caved into to sleeping with Crown very easily. Then, there is the Brosnan/Russo sex scene; which in my opinion was HIGHLY unnecessary. McQueen and Dunaway never needed to do a nude scene together, as the sexual tension between the two was so obvious that it could be cut with a bread knife. However, Brosnan and Russo do not have that touch, the spark was nowhere near as big, and the inclusion of a nude scene still does not bring it anywhere near the status of attraction that the original couple had.

This film could have been a classic remake if it didn't try to be so politically correct. The only reason why the remake switched from a bank heist to art theft is because, in today's world, armed robbery cannot be presented as an elegant theft. This is ridiculous, as the reason that the original's heist was so smooth was because of the planning, timing and element of no one of the criminals meeting until midway through the heist; all goes on while McQueen watches from across the road. Where was the planning and recruitment in this remake? Oh yes, Russo mentioned it so quickly, it would have been dismissed faster than one of Brosnan's butler's lines. And the idea of a happy ending, with both of the characters, now definitely lovers, flying off into the sunset with plans for happiness together. Garbage. These two characters are selfish and greedy because they only look at for number one in a dog eats dog world. McQueen's Crown saw this, knowing to drop Dunaway or go to jail; and this PC happy ending is just not compatible with this film; as with a cat and mouse thriller, someone has to lose.

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Max A. Lebow from United States
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The Thomas Crown Affair is an exception to the Hollywood rule that the remake must be true to the original. In 1968, Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway served up a 1960s sexy confection of skimpy clothes and clever heists. John McTiernan turns the flick into a sultry, almost jaded, romance. Thomas Crown (Pierce Brosnan, slick from practicing seduction as James Bond) is a power-lunching, billionaire robber-baron who gets his kicks stealing art treasures from taxpayer-supported museums. Catherine Olds Banning (played by the tough, but sexy Rene Russo) is the insurance company detective determined to get back the painting he steals at the beginning of the film. If she can get it, she will save her insurance conglomerate a nice chunk of change. The billionaire and the detective try everything to outsmart each other including a highly charged love affair that's a heated mix of business and pleasure. Russo looks very good with her clothes off.

The director's attention to the detail of the sumptuous, luxury sets, provides a suitably comfy backdrop for the steamy action. McTiernan also directs the action pieces almost as well as one might expect from the director Die Hard.

Brosnan and Russo supply most of the heat for the developing romance. The witty dialog by Leslie Dixon make the film move by with enough grace to paper over the fact that it is the sex we are interested in. Russo is beautiful, stylish, smart, self-possessed, and incredibly sexy.

Denis Leary gets a good character role as a police detective smitten with Russo, and Faye Dunaway (the love interest in 1968) gets a wholly enjoyable cameo as Brosnan's therapist, who helps him try to figure out why he is such an irresponsible business man.

One wonders now, after Enron, Tyco, and other big payoff corporate heists, just whom Crown is robbing to pay for his high-tech robbery crew. How many of his company's employees will have to give up their pensions or health benefits to keep his company looking good on Wall Street. Who cares? It's just a movie! Actually, it is a great date movie. Pop it in. See if it works.

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noralee from Queens, NY
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Hooray for Hollywood! The world may be falling apart so like we needed money spent on a remake of "The Thomas Crown Affair." But then heck if Tinseltown in all its unoriginality doesn't do a bang-up fun job of unreality with characters who have no place in the Unreel World, from the classy looking opening credits to Sting covering "Windmills of my Mind" over the closing credits.

In the opening scene I'm thinking, wait I know that woman's voice and voila it's Faye Dunaway from the original film as Crown's shrink - I cheered out loud (OK so I was the only one in the audience that got the joke).

Pierce Brosnan and Renee Russo are an age-appropriate couple with genuine fireworks and chemistry (with help from director John McTiernan and editor John Wright in the tango and copulation scenes).

There's unconventionally good music choices - that tango is from Three Penny Opera of all things and a terrific use of Nina Simone's "Sinner Man" in a marvelous Magritte-inspired ironically tense heist scene. Brosnan's trainer gets a credit, as there's plenty of skin. Russo laughs, a gorgeous belly laugh, unlike so many frozen femmes fatale.

The credits also say that no museum was used as a locale, so gosh they really recreated the Met amazingly accurately (and how much did that cost?), though it didn't seem crowded enough Crown goes in at 9 when the museum doesn't open until 11.

I would think this is a great date movie.

(originally written 8/22/1999)

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ronaksinghyadav from India
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For a few minutes , 120 or so you will feel like you are living the life of the protagonist.

A smile will be on your face throughout the movie. An anticipation will build on and you will enjoy a climax every 15 minutes or so.

This movie is one of its kind, not to mention Pierce Brosnan who looks tailor made for this role.

Every few years a movie comes that you remember throughout your life, sometimes it may appeal to one group and detract another, but the people to whom it appeals, it touches their heart and they are deeply influenced by it. It is one of those movies

After Clint Eastwood it was Pierce Brosnan who could actually play a real, relaxed , laid back, mature man in Hollywood.

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cubsinengland
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Firstly, it's not a cookie-cutter remake of the original staring Mr. McQueen and Ms. Dunaway - so no comparison required.

You might say Brosnan was typecast by Bond, and the idea of a suave player getting one over on yet another woman might be the obvious outcome, but not this time! Instead we're treated to a sophisticated game of cops and robbers, played out in this stylish and seductive entertainment. Mr. Brosnan (Thomas) is at the top of his game and may be involved in something illegal. Ms. Russo (Catherine) is called in to investigate, claiming an office and sharing confidences with the local police department looking for clues. Catherine epitomises sophistication with hair, makeup and fashions styled to perfection. She's an understatement of success; a woman playing a man's game, bounty-hunting life and sex on her own terms and 'enjoying the chase'.

Once Catherine is on the trail of Thomas Crown you'll join her in a hedonistic game of one-upmanship. She's done this kind of work before and must stay on her toes if she's going to implicate the wealthy Thomas Crown. The local cops and cultured community believe Mr. Crown to be beyond reproach; an untouchable pillar of wealth and good taste.

These two characters exist in their luxurious world through strange circumstance and have made it their own through hard work and some bluffing. The movie provides glimpses into their lifestyles, and at the same time, keeps them both just outside what you'd expect from a wealthy businessman and a woman working for an insurance company.

Supporting character Mr. Leary makes a cynical, yet caring detective attempting to save face by nabbing Thomas Crown - however it's quite obvious in a city the size of New York that a bored millionaire looking for thrills by staging a theft is not his priority. Mr. Leary is guilty of a bit of cussing and jaded police behaviour, but ya 'gotta hope he's still on the force.

The story races from one clue to the next, and we glimpse a world where time means nothing, and money is just, well, not an issue. The film really sets the tone for the lush life with ultra-posh, elegant sets, millionaire-hobbies and exotic locations. The soundtrack is perfect, giving the entire movie an upmarket, worldly feel that befits a modern romance.

This is really a love story for anyone who imagines being whisked away from the mundane into places that you've only read or heard about in glossy magazines. It's a film for any person out there who'd like to have the freedom to do what they want and damn the consequences. Well, either that or have enough money to do anything, then disappear.

There is some hot on-screen chemistry between Thomas and Catherine, making the love scenes, coupled with the sexy music and breathtaking backgrounds, erotic. They have a healthy appetite for each other so the love scenes in his apartment and 'island retreat' are the 'stuff that dreams are made of.'

Yes, there are little snafus, such as a painting being folded in a manner that would permanently ruin it, and the usual gaffes that serious film-goers will pick over - but heck, it's just a movie and a love story - let yourself go and imagine you're a woman who's just crashed a black tie event in a dress making every man in the room salivate, or that you're the man she's heading for on the dance floor - then have fun with it . . .

In the end, for all their cunning, Thomas and Catherine must decide if they can trust each other, just like most men and women must do in any love story. What you may find hard to decide though, is who to root for, and who really wins the game of cat and mouse at the end of this movie.

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sgpfan from New Zealand
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Those who maintain that remakes never are as good as the original on which they are based should take a look at this film.

Pierce Brosnan recaptures the rebellious cool that Steve McQueen displayed in the original film of the same name and adds a further gloss and polish to the character.

While the story line remains basically true to the original, it has been modernised and comes across even tighter.

As in the original, Thomas Crown is a successful businessman to whom everything comes easily, so much so that everyday dealings leave him bored. Bored enough to strike out in a non-violent way and stage a super art heist, where the thrill of staging the caper and the following cat and mouse game to stay ahead of a feisty female insurance investigator assigned to the case provides the kicks he is missing.

Eventually and expectedly, the relationship develops and the viewer is dragged on an interlude of exotic locales besotted with the props of a very good life.

The lead players display a sizzling chemistry that propels the film along at a scorching pace, culminating in an ending that is better resolved than the original McQueen edition if you are a sentimentalist.

Good support cast, with a cameo by Faye Funaway (who was the female lead for the original), help the film along. If one listens carefully to the background music, the original theme ('Windmills Of Your Mind') may also be heard. It is touches like these that pay homage to the original version, while allowing this renewed edition to have an identity all its own.

Overall, a classy and dynamic remake that scores highly on its own.

Pierce Brosnan performed his own stunts during the boat crash scene.
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When Crown sees Catherine off after they meet at the museum (when he donates the painting) he gives the limo two taps on the hood to signal the driver. This was Pierce Brosnan's trademark send-off to Fred (Blake Clark), the driver, in his breakthrough role, Remington Steele (1982).
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The film originally showed Crown breaking the backing of the Claude Monet painting in order to fit it into his briefcase. However, John McTiernan later decided that audiences might be put off if they saw him in some way damage the painting, so he edited the scene so that it only showed Crown putting the folded painting into his briefcase, and figured most people wouldn't catch on to the fact that the briefcase was half the size of the painting.
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The house used as Crown's Caribbean get-away is owned by one of the 30 original families who settled in Martinique in the 1600s.
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The scene in which Catherine 'lassos' her towel around Thomas' neck took 16 takes to get it just right. Weights were added to the towel to get it to work correctly.
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In the scene where Catherine sees Anna in Thomas' bedroom, Pierce Brosnan was instructed to physically hold onto Rene Russo, so that she would have to struggle to get away from him. Russo did not know that Brosnan was going to hold on to her.
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Rene Russo performed the first nude scenes of her career in this movie.
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The final conversation between Detective McCann and Banning in which he essentially excuses her from the investigation so she can chase down Thomas Crown was not in the original script, but added about halfway through filming.
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The idea of unusual heat in the museum rendering thermal cameras useless came from director John McTiernan's earlier movie Predator (1987). In that movie, McTiernan's actual thermal cameras began to fail when the jungle temperature broke 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Faye Dunaway, who played the psychologist in this movie, played the insurance investigator in the 1968 original.
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The scene of Crown racing a catamaran replaced a similar scene in the original script (and the original movie) that was set at a polo match. Director John McTiernan deemed a polo match to be too much of a cliche, and wanted a scene that conveyed more action and excitement, and not just wealth.
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Director John McTiernan decided to change the heist from a bank robbery, as was seen in the Steve McQueen version, to an art heist. as seen in this version. McTiernan felt that at the time the film was released, audiences would be less forgiving of Thomas Crown if he staged two armed bank robberies for fun than if he staged an unarmed art heist.
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Crown's watch is a Jaeger-Lecoultre Reverso, but the logo doesn't appear because Pierce Brosnan has an exclusive deal with Omega watches.
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The painting that is seen several times in the film depicting a man in a suit with an apple covering his face is "Son of Man," by Renè Magritte.
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When Crown first enters the museum there is a banner advertising an exhibition called "Japan", however the Kanji (Chinese characters) in Japanese say "konbu", which means seaweed.
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The dark green Shelby Mustang that Crown drives on Martinique was originally intended to be used for Arnold Schwarzenegger's character in Last Action Hero (1993), another John McTiernan film, and was retrieved from the director's garage for this film.
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The glider used in the film is a Schempp-Hirth Duo Discus, a German high performance two seater. However, it is physically impossible to reach from the rear seat to the front in flight. So this was arranged in studio. The glider was actually flown by Thomas Knauff, a famous glider pilot from USA. In the original film from 1968 there are similar scenes in another glider, a Schweizer 1-23, an American high performance glider from that time.
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The second painting that comes up missing and is given to Catherine Banning at the heliport is "Banks of the Seine at Argenteuil" by Edouard Manet, 1874 and the real painting resides on long term loan to the Courtauld Institute Gallery in England. It is never explained in the movie how it was taken but hints do exist in the original draft of the script.
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At the time of filming, Pierce Brosnan was not a golfer, and thus he had to take lessons for a couple weeks to make his scene hitting out of a sand trap look believable.
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The line, "You're not boring, I'll give you that," was ad-libbed by Rene Russo.
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When we first see Thomas Crown's bedroom, briefly visible on his dresser is an autographed and personalized black and white photo from supermodel Cindy Crawford.
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The final heist consisted of men wearing bowler hats, trench coats, and carrying briefcases, to confuse the surveillance team. This was similar to The Heist (1989), another Pierce Brosnan film, where a heist at a horse track involved multiple men wearing Hawaiian shirts and straw hats.
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The fire protection system used in the film's finale is not actually used in real museums.
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One of the songs played by the band in the ballroom scene is "Windmills of Your Mind," a song written for the original film, The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), that became a big hit in the late 1960s.
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The six wheeled Jeep seen on Martinique was built for this film.
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art refused permission for their interior to be used in the film, so the filmmakers used the New York Public Library, a few blocks, away for many interior scenes, and a sound stage for the rest. The exterior of the Metropolitan was shown several times, with permission from the city of New York.
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This is the first of two remakes that John McTiernan made from Norman Jewison movies. The other one is Rollerball (2002).
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Despite the fact that the museum is never mentioned by name, in one of the first scenes a proctor is seen wearing a blazer with "Metropolitan Museum" clearly visible on it. It is also noted on the crate carrying the 'trojan horse'.
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Thomas Crown's suite of offices was actually the corporate headquarters of Lucent Technologies, and one of the boats in the race is identified as Lucent.
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The suit designer who appears in Thomas Crown's office is Gino Campagna, who has been featured on CNN's Richard Quest's segment. He also the designer responsible for the look of the clothes in the film
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The last USA Studio cinema film of Ben Gazzara.
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The Claude Monet paintings used in the film, "San Giorgio Maggiore at dusk" and "Wheatstacks", are, of course, reproductions and were supplied by "Troubetzkoy Paintings" in New York, USA. What's more, the originals are not owned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. "San Giorgio Maggiore at dusk" is owned by the Bridgestone Museum of Art in Tokyo, Japan and is currently (2003) on display in the National Museum and Art Gallery, Cardiff, Wales. "Wheatstacks" is at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. The painting Crown admires and calls "his haystacks" is Vincent van Gogh's "Noon: Rest From Work (After Millet)", the original of which is in the Musè e d'Orsay in Paris, France.
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When Thomas Crown is signing the sale contract in the boardroom, it can clearly be seen from the movement of the pen that he is signing "Pierce" and not "Thomas."
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In the elevator after the boardroom meeting, Thomas Crown and his subordinates quote from the Leonard Cohen song "The Stranger Song": "Ah, you hate to see another tired man lay down his hand like he was giving up the holy game of poker."
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The tractor in the background after the glider lands, belongs to director John McTiernan.
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Robert D. Novak, a political columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and co-star (or frequent guest star) of such political talk shows as Crossfire (1982) and The McLaughlin Group (1982), has a cameo appearance as a museum proctor.
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The catamaran that Thomas Crown is seen racing in Long Island Sound is a D-Type Catamaran. The earliest Class D catamarans were designed and built by individual amateur designers as early as 1963. Richard Karcher, Watchung, NJ built either USD#1 or #2 at the time. His "D" boats were sailed on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey for several years on an experimental basis. Richard also designed and manufactured several other types limited production catamarans at the time, one of which was considered as the official Olympic Class Catamaran and participated in the trial in England. Due to the vast amount of power that this design represented, no "production" versions were ever produced and interest and research into this Class waned. Years later in the 1980s interest in this extremely fast and highly unstable yacht design was revived by California based aeronautical engineers who tried to break inshore multi-hull speed records. Today there are only a handful of them left in the world.
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In the scene where Thomas Crown is dancing at the party his tie is untied on his tux and the top buttons unbuttoned. This is because at the time Pierce Brosnan was under contract to play James Bond and a stipulation in that contract was that he could not wear a tuxedo in any non-James Bond movies.
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Cinematographer Tom Priestley Jr. replaced Ericson Core eight days into shooting.
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The painting used several times during the movie, and embodied during the final scene at the museum when Thomas Crown portrays that he is returning the Monet, is the 'Son of Man' by Rene Magritte (man in a bowler hat with a green apple in front of his face).
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The helicopter used in the theft, a Sikorsky S 76, actually has a lift load of almost 4000 lbs., not 600 lbs as stated by Renee Russo
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The last line of the movie where Catherine leans into Thomas on the plane and whispers "Next time, I'll break both your arms" is a reference to Magritte's painting "Son of Man" which is alluded to and shown numerous times during the film and who Thomas pretends to be in the final museum scene. A subtle feature of the "Son of Man" is that the man's left arm appears to bend backwards as if broken at the elbow. Since Thomas models himself as the "Son of Man" she is remarking that she'll break his right arm as well as the already broken left.
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The team of agents that inspect Crown's house emerge from a truck that displays the false company name "Aladdin Cleaning Services". However, the company name is misspelled on the agents' jackets, reading "Alladin".
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Catherine Banning is from Lima, Ohio. Thomas Crown mispronounces the name as LEE-ma. It's actually LIE-ma.
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Catherine Banning, whilst picking holes in the investigating detectives theory, says that "the thieves prepared a load, conservatively, 1,000 lbs of paintings and 800lbs of men that we know about in a chopper with a 600lbs useful load", suggesting that this could never happen.The chopper is then correctly described as a Sikorsky S-76. However, there are four men on the job in total (800lbs), plus the load which is stated to weigh the equivalent of five men (1,000lbs). Add the helicopter pilot and you have the equivalent weight therefore of 10 men. Yet the S76 is a 12 man helicopter so should easily cope with this much weight. Catherine's figure refers to the baggage compartment capacity. They'd simply put the pictures inside the aircraft with the passengers.
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The scene where hundreds of men in bowler-hats cause confusion, carrying with them copies of a painting depicting a business man with an apple obstructing his face, Michael McCann incorrectly calls the painting the Man in the Bowler Hat, a painting by Renè Magritte. The painting is in-fact The Son of Man, a similar painting by the same artist.
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Mr. Crown incorrectly quotes the Leonard Cohen song 'The Stranger Song' - he says "It's sad to see another tired man lay down his hand and quit the holy game of poker" when the actual words are "You hate to watch another tired man lay down his hand like he was giving up the holy game of poker".
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When Thomas "folds" the painting into the briefcase in the first theft he takes it out of the briefcase at his home. He then places it on the hidden shelf with rigid sides. If it had been folded in the briefcase the painting's backside frame would have been broken as well as the painting itself would have cracked. And he didn't have time to fix the canvas or the frame if it had been folded.
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When Crown walks in front of the delivery truck, the shot from the cab clearly shows that a car is stopped 9 feet in front of the truck. So, why was the delivery truck traveling so fast to begin with? Then, in the long shot after the driver moves on, he accelerates at a high rate, as if there was no car stopped in front of him. If there is a traffic-jam, the car would not have traveled far at all during that time.
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When Thomas steals the Monet in the first theft, he puts the painting with wooden canvas stretcher into his briefcase and folds it closed. When he opens the briefcase later, the canvas stretcher is not broken.
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Just before Crown steals the painting, he tells the guard (looking at his watch) that it's quarter to five. But when Catherine and Michael are reviewing the security tape, the tape notes "the time of the robbery" as 5:54.
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During the glider scenes, there's one point where Crown motions for Banning to look to her left but both actors seem to turn their heads to their right. Actually, because of the size constraints of the cockpit, all the interior shots were filmed using a mirror with the camera mounted at an angle. Since the camera sees a mirror image, the actors look to their left out of natural instinct, but appear to look to their right.
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When breakfast is served, Catherine's health drink starts as being dark green when served and then becomes a mint green when she drinks it.
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When the teacher is talking to the children about the monet Bobby the proctor is slowly walking across the floor. From the high angle he has his arms across his front both touching. Almost in a cross armed position. But when the camera angle changes he has one hand near his mouth.
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At the police station Janni is in handcuffs wearing a long sleeve shirt over a white t-shirt. In the next scene he is still wearing handcuffs but the long sleeve shirt is removed. Difficult to get a shirt off over handcuffs.
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During the love scene, the paperback book "High Fidelity" (easily recognizable with its neon green/orange cover) is seen in different locations.
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Catherine's health drink during breakfast appears on the table only 3/4 full. When she drinks it, the drink is almost to the top of the glass.
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When the thieves first cut a hole in the wall with a cutting torch, the piece they cut out pivots to the viewer's left. In the next shot, it pivots towards the floor and in the third shot it pivots to the right.
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On the golf course, Crown bets on his ability to throw the ball by half-burying it into the sand. Yet on he next shot the ball is not buried, but just lying on the ground.
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Someone already commented on the scene when Thomas Crown takes the Monet out of the brief case and puts it on the mantle with the wood frame backing. The same is true when he steals it and first puts it into the brief case. We see him take it off the wall, pull of the frame but not the the wood backing frame it's attached to. Naturally it would splinter being folded into the briefcase with it on but it all looks likes one continuous motion.
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Banning's towel, that she holds around her neck, goes from straight to twisted in following scenes.
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In the detectives office, when he says "I bet you'd stand at the Pearly Gates..." Catherine's purse on the table changes position.
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When Catherine Banning arrives in the office in the early morning she has a very potent drink to wake her up because of the jet lag. But if she comes from London, which the movie suggests, the jet lag should cause her to be wide awake at that time.
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Crown serves "Krug Grande Cuvee 1981". However, Grande Cuveeis a non-vintage blend so this is an oxymoron.
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When Banning has taken Crown's keys, and her people are making duplicates, a close-up is shown on the machine cutting the duplicate key. They are gliding the head across the grooves to cut the slug into the same shape. This is how many keys are duplicated, but not the Medeco high-security model that is shown in the movie. The Medecos are cut one groove at a time, because each groove can be angled in one of three positions.
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In the film the painting stolen by Mr. Crown: "San Giorgio Maggiore at Dusk " by Monet, is said to be the first impressionistic painting in the world. But according to Wikipedia the first painting is "Impression, soleil levant", also by Monet, which gave name to "Impressionism".
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Having established from the security cameras that someone (Mr. Crown) hid a briefcase under the bench in front of the painting to assist in the robbery, it's curious that the security staff never thinks to wind the tape back far enough to see who put it there. However, under thermal imaging it's impossible to make out people's features, so backing up the video would not have identified Crown.
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In the sailing scene, Crown is winding a winch, which clearly has no line on it. This is evident by the empty self-tailing jaws on the top.
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On the day of the original art museum theft, they say it is a very hot day. Yet they then show the streets of New York where several people are wearing overcoats.
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At the end of the film as the sprinkler system is washing the watercolor paint off of the original painting, a small concentrated stream of water can be seen spraying onto the canvas from the left side of the screen. It's at the wrong angle to be coming from the sprinklers in the ceiling. It happens just before Detective McCann yells, "How do we get this gate open??"
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AKAs Titles:



Certifications:
Argentina:13 / Australia:M / Australia:MA (2009 DVD rating) / Brazil:16 / Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) / Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) / Canada:AA (Ontario) / Canada:G (Quebec) / Denmark:7 / Finland:K-12 / France:U / Germany:6 (w) / Hong Kong:IIB / Iceland:L / Ireland:15 / Netherlands:MG6 / New Zealand:M / Norway:11 / Peru:14 / Philippines:PG-13 / Portugal:M/12 / Singapore:PG (original rating) (cut) / Singapore:M18 (re-rating) / South Africa:PG / South Korea:18 / Spain:T / Sweden:Btl / Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) / Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) / UK:15 / USA:R