The Falcon and the Snowman
Encyclopedia
The Falcon and the Snowman is a 1985
film
directed by John Schlesinger
about two young American
men, Christopher Boyce (played by Timothy Hutton
) and Daulton Lee (played by Sean Penn
), who sold U.S. security secrets to the Soviet Union
. The film is based upon the 1979 book The Falcon and the Snowman: A True Story of Friendship and Espionage by Robert Lindsey
, and features the song "This Is Not America
", written and performed by David Bowie
and the Pat Metheny Group
.
student Christopher Boyce and fellow former altar boy turned drug dealer Andrew Daulton Lee
, two young men from wealthy California families who sold classified government information to the Soviet Union
during the mid 1970s.
Boyce, an expert in the sport of falconry
—thus, the nickname "Falcon"—gets a job at a civilian defense contractor (TRW
, though it is called "RTX" in the movie) working in the so-called "Black Vault", a secure communication facility through which flows information on some of the most classified U.S. operations in the world. Boyce becomes disillusioned with the U.S. government through his new position, especially after reading a misrouted communiqué dealing with the CIA's plan to depose the Prime Minister of Australia. Frustrated by this duplicity, Boyce decides to repay his government by passing classified secrets to the Soviets. Lee, a drug addict and minor smuggler sometimes called "the snowman" (in reference to his cocaine sales), agrees to actually contact and deal with the KGB on Boyce's behalf, motivated not by idealism, but by what he perceives as an opportunity to make money and eventually settle in his idea of paradise, Costa Rica.
As the pair become increasingly involved with espionage, Lee's ambition to create a major espionage business coupled with his excessive drug use began alienating the two men from each other, and their Soviet handler becomes increasingly reluctant to deal through Lee as the middleman because of Lee's periods of irrationality. Boyce wants to end the espionage so that he can attend college and meets with Lee's KGB handler to explain the situation. When Lee, desperate to regain the Soviets' regard after realizing that the KGB no longer needs him as a courier now that they have direct contact with Boyce, is observed tossing a note over the fence at the Soviet embassy in Mexico
, he is arrested by Mexican police, and a U.S. Foreign Services officer accompanies him to the police station.
When the police search his pockets and find film (from a Minox
spy camera Boyce used to photograph documents) and a postcard (used by the Soviets to show the haphazard Lee the location of a drop zone), they produce pictures of the same location that was on the postcard, showing officers surrounding a dead man on the street: the Foreign Services officer explains that the Mexican police are trying to implicate him with the murder of a policeman, a charge Lee denies. The police drag away Lee and torture him.
Hours later, he reveals finally that he is a Soviet spy... the real reason the police had been ordered to detain him. Told by the Mexican police that he will be deported, Lee is asked to where he should be deported. Lee suggests Costa Rica: the police give him a choice between the Soviet Union and the U.S.A. Lee reluctantly agrees to go back to America and is arrested as he walks across the border.
Boyce learns of Lee's arrest and, knowing that he too will soon be captured, releases his pet falcon named "Fawkes"
in a field and then sits down to wait. Moments later, U.S. Marshals and FBI agents surround and capture him. The movie ends with both Lee and Boyce in prisoner jumpsuits and shackles, flanked on either side by officers escorting them to prison.
.
1985 in film
-Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out Of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.* Bliss wins AFI Award for best Movie...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
directed by John Schlesinger
John Schlesinger
John Richard Schlesinger, CBE was an English film and stage director and actor.-Early life:Schlesinger was born in London into a middle-class Jewish family, the son of Winifred Henrietta and Bernard Edward Schlesinger, a physician...
about two young American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
men, Christopher Boyce (played by Timothy Hutton
Timothy Hutton
Timothy Tarquin Hutton is an American actor. He is the youngest actor to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, which he won at the age of 20 for his performance as Conrad Jarrett in Ordinary People . He currently stars as Nathan "Nate" Ford on the TNT series Leverage.-Early life:Timothy...
) and Daulton Lee (played by Sean Penn
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...
), who sold U.S. security secrets to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. The film is based upon the 1979 book The Falcon and the Snowman: A True Story of Friendship and Espionage by Robert Lindsey
Robert Lindsey (journalist)
Robert Lindsey is a journalist and author of several true crime books, including The Falcon and the Snowman: A True Story of Friendship and Espionage , the story of Christopher John Boyce and Andrew Daulton Lee, who were both convicted of selling information to the Soviets...
, and features the song "This Is Not America
This Is Not America
"This Is Not America" is a song from the soundtrack for the film The Falcon and the Snowman.The track is the result of a collaboration between the jazz fusion Pat Metheny Group and rock singer David Bowie who provided the lyrics and vocals....
", written and performed by David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and the Pat Metheny Group
Pat Metheny Group
The Pat Metheny Group is a jazz group founded in 1977. The core members of the group are guitarist and bandleader Pat Metheny, composer, keyboardist and pianist Lyle Mays , and bassist and producer Steve Rodby...
.
Plot synopsis
The Falcon and the Snowman is based on the true story of former altar boy and former Catholic seminarySeminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
student Christopher Boyce and fellow former altar boy turned drug dealer Andrew Daulton Lee
Andrew Daulton Lee
Andrew Daulton Lee is an American who was convicted of espionage for his involvement in the spying activities of his childhood friend, Christopher Boyce.Lee was the adopted eldest son of Dr. Daulton Lee, a wealthy California physician...
, two young men from wealthy California families who sold classified government information to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
during the mid 1970s.
Boyce, an expert in the sport of falconry
Falconry
Falconry is "the taking of wild quarry in its natural state and habitat by means of a trained raptor". There are two traditional terms used to describe a person involved in falconry: a falconer flies a falcon; an austringer flies a hawk or an eagle...
—thus, the nickname "Falcon"—gets a job at a civilian defense contractor (TRW
TRW
TRW Inc. was an American corporation involved in a variety of businesses, mainly aerospace, automotive, and credit reporting. It was a pioneer in multiple fields including electronic components, integrated circuits, computers, software and systems engineering. TRW built many spacecraft,...
, though it is called "RTX" in the movie) working in the so-called "Black Vault", a secure communication facility through which flows information on some of the most classified U.S. operations in the world. Boyce becomes disillusioned with the U.S. government through his new position, especially after reading a misrouted communiqué dealing with the CIA's plan to depose the Prime Minister of Australia. Frustrated by this duplicity, Boyce decides to repay his government by passing classified secrets to the Soviets. Lee, a drug addict and minor smuggler sometimes called "the snowman" (in reference to his cocaine sales), agrees to actually contact and deal with the KGB on Boyce's behalf, motivated not by idealism, but by what he perceives as an opportunity to make money and eventually settle in his idea of paradise, Costa Rica.
As the pair become increasingly involved with espionage, Lee's ambition to create a major espionage business coupled with his excessive drug use began alienating the two men from each other, and their Soviet handler becomes increasingly reluctant to deal through Lee as the middleman because of Lee's periods of irrationality. Boyce wants to end the espionage so that he can attend college and meets with Lee's KGB handler to explain the situation. When Lee, desperate to regain the Soviets' regard after realizing that the KGB no longer needs him as a courier now that they have direct contact with Boyce, is observed tossing a note over the fence at the Soviet embassy in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, he is arrested by Mexican police, and a U.S. Foreign Services officer accompanies him to the police station.
When the police search his pockets and find film (from a Minox
Minox
The Minox is a subminiature camera conceived in 1922 and invented in 1936 by German-Latvian Walter Zapp, which Latvian factory VEF manufactured from 1937 to 1943. After World War II, the camera was redesigned and production resumed in Germany in 1948. Originally envisioned as a luxury item, it...
spy camera Boyce used to photograph documents) and a postcard (used by the Soviets to show the haphazard Lee the location of a drop zone), they produce pictures of the same location that was on the postcard, showing officers surrounding a dead man on the street: the Foreign Services officer explains that the Mexican police are trying to implicate him with the murder of a policeman, a charge Lee denies. The police drag away Lee and torture him.
Hours later, he reveals finally that he is a Soviet spy... the real reason the police had been ordered to detain him. Told by the Mexican police that he will be deported, Lee is asked to where he should be deported. Lee suggests Costa Rica: the police give him a choice between the Soviet Union and the U.S.A. Lee reluctantly agrees to go back to America and is arrested as he walks across the border.
Boyce learns of Lee's arrest and, knowing that he too will soon be captured, releases his pet falcon named "Fawkes"
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...
in a field and then sits down to wait. Moments later, U.S. Marshals and FBI agents surround and capture him. The movie ends with both Lee and Boyce in prisoner jumpsuits and shackles, flanked on either side by officers escorting them to prison.
Cast
- Christopher Boyce (Timothy HuttonTimothy HuttonTimothy Tarquin Hutton is an American actor. He is the youngest actor to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, which he won at the age of 20 for his performance as Conrad Jarrett in Ordinary People . He currently stars as Nathan "Nate" Ford on the TNT series Leverage.-Early life:Timothy...
) - Daulton Lee (Sean PennSean PennSean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...
) - Mr. Boyce (Pat HinglePat HingleMartin Patterson "Pat" Hingle was an American actor.-Early life:Hingle was born Martin Patterson Hingle in Miami, Florida, the son of Marvin Louise , a schoolteacher and musician, and Clarence Martin Hingle, a building contractor. Hingle enlisted in the U.S. Navy in December 1941, dropping out of...
) - Mrs. Boyce (Joyce Van PattenJoyce Van PattenJoyce Benignia Van Patten is an American stage, film and television actress.-Personal life:Van Patten was born in New York City, the daughter of Josephine Rose , an Italian American magazine advertising executive, and Richard Byron Van Patten, a Dutch American interior decorator.She is the younger...
) - Boyce Child (Rob Reed)
- Dr. Lee (Richard A. Dysart)
- Mrs. Lee (Priscilla PointerPriscilla PointerPriscilla Pointer is an American stage, film and television character actress. She began her career in the theater, including productions on Broadway. Later, Pointer moved to Hollywood to act in films and on television...
) - David Lee (Chris MakepeaceChris Makepeace- Life and career :Makepeace was born in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Doreen and Harry Makepeace. He began his acting career in a 1974 Canadian television special, The Ottawa Valley. His next role was in 1979's Canadian comedy, Meatballs, in which he starred opposite Bill Murray, playing one of the...
) - Gene (Dorian HarewoodDorian HarewoodW. Dorian Harewood is an American actor. He first garnered attention for his portrayal of Simon Haley in the ABC miniseries Roots: The Next Generations.-Career:...
) - Laurie (Mady Kaplan)
- Larry Rogers (Macon McCalmanMacon McCalmanWillis Macon "Sonny" McCalman aka Macon McCalman was an American television, stage and big screen movie actor.-Acting career:...
) - Tony Owens (Jerry HardinJerry HardinJerry Hardin is an American actor who has made many television and film appearances. He played illegitimate heir, Wild Bill Westchester, in the failed 1982 television series Filthy Rich. One of his most recognizable roles was that of the character Deep Throat in the series The X-Files...
) - Lana (Lori SingerLori SingerLori Singer is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Ariel Moore, the female lead in the 1984 feature film Footloose, and as Julie Miller in the television series Fame.-Film and television career:...
) - Alex (David SuchetDavid SuchetDavid Suchet, CBE, is an English actor, known for his work on British television. He is recognised for his RTS- and BPG award-winning performance as Augustus Melmotte in the 2001 British TV mini-drama The Way We Live Now, alongside Matthew Macfadyen and Paloma Baeza, and a 1991 British Academy...
)
HBO broadcast jamming
The film has obtained some notoriety as a showing of the movie on HBO in 1986 was jammed by a satellite broadcast operator calling himself Captain MidnightCaptain Midnight (HBO)
John R. MacDougall also known as Captain Midnight, is a Florida electronic engineer and business owner who jammed HBO's satellite signal in 1986 to broadcast a message protesting their rates for satellite dish owners.- Scrambling :...
.
External links
- Lucy, the Peregrine Falcon used in the movie.
- Movie stills