The Silent Partner
Encyclopedia
The Silent Partner is a 1978
Canadian crime film
directed by Daryl Duke
. It stars Elliott Gould
, Christopher Plummer
and Susannah York
.
The film was the first to be produced by Carolco Pictures
and one of the earliest films from Canada to take advantage of the Canadian government's "Capital Cost Allowance
" plans. The Silent Partner is also notable for being one of the very few films to have a score composed by Oscar Peterson
, and for featuring an early big-screen appearance by John Candy
.
The Silent Partner is a remake of the Danish film Think of a Number (Tænk på et tal) from 1969 written and directed by Palle Kjærulff-Schmidt
. Both are based on the novel Tænk på et tal by Danish writer Anders Bodelsen
.
shopping mall, accidentally learns that his place of business is about to be robbed when he finds a discarded note on one of the bank's counters one day. He also figures out who the would-be robber will be when he sees a mall Santa Claus hanging around outside the bank whose 'give to charity' sign is similar to the handwriting on the discarded stick-up note.
Instead of informing his bosses or contacting the police, Miles devises a way of keeping the cash from most of his window's transactions in an old lunch box of his own inside his briefcase rather than in the bank's till. As a result, the Santa Claus robber eventually arrives and holds up Miles at the teller's desk, and nets far less than the police and the bank think he has.
The thief, a psychopath named Harry Reikle (Christopher Plummer
), figures out what happened, and makes a series of desperate and violent attempts to get the money (totaling CA$48,300) that Miles has kept for himself. Reikle starts following Miles around to and from his home, and making harassing phone calls to his place of residence.
Miles' coolness under pressure attracts the attention of his bank colleague Julie Carver (Susannah York
), who has been having an affair with the bank's married manager Charles Packard (Michael Kirby
). After escorting Julie to Mr. Packard's Christmas party at his house, he tells Julie about his own attraction to her and disapproves of her dating a married man. In another subplot unrelated to the Miles-Reikle plot, Miles' co-worker Simonson (John Candy
) becomes infatuated with a young ditzy blonde named Louise, who is hired as a teller at the bank. However, though Miles discovers that Louise is cheating on Simonson with another co-worker, he never informs Simonson about Louise's true nature, even after Simonson and the pregnant Louise get engaged and married, apparently to avoid hurting his feelings.
After Reikle breaks into Miles apartment and trashes it to look for the stolen bank money, Miles turns the tables on his stalker yet again by following Reikle back to his apartment and then sets him up to be arrested for the theft of a delivery truck. When Miles is brought to the police station to identify Reikle in a lineup, he does not point him out aware that Reikle would then implicate him in the bank robbery.
A few months later, during the spring, Miles' invalid father, who has been residing in a nursing home, dies. At his father's funeral, Miles meets and takes up with a flirtatious younger woman named Elaine (Celine Lomez
), who tells him that she was a nurse who has been caring for his father. In fact, Elaine is secretly working with Reikle, who is still in jail awaiting trial for the delivery truck theft and unrelated assault and battery charges. For the past several months, Elaine has been visiting Reikle in jail to report her progress to acquire the stolen bank cash. But by the time Elaine discovers that Miles has stashed the holdup money in a vacant safety deposit box at the bank, Reikle no longer trusts her, for he correctly feels that Elaine has fallen in love with Miles.
Miles figures out that Elaine is not who she claims to be when she tells him about his father who had spoken to her about his life. Miles immediately catches her slip and informs Elaine that his invalid father had a stroke two years earlier and could not talk at all. Elaine reveals that she is working with Reikle and wants Miles to hand over the bank loot so they can divided it among themselves.
However, Miles loses the safety deposit key to the box where he has stashed the stolen bank cash. Elaine decides to help Miles and disguises herself as a customer to have copies of the safe deposit keys made in order to remove the money from the bank and she successfully evades Julie who has begun to suspect something off about Miles and his new girlfriend.
A few days later, Reikle is released from jail and confronts Elaine one night over where her loyalties lie. When Elaine admits that she has indeed fallen in love with Miles, an enraged Reikle murders and decapitates her at Miles' apartment. Miles is forced to dispose of her body in the foundation for the new bank building to avoid being investigated by the police. Afterwards, Reikle approaches Miles and says that he intends to kill him too unless he agrees to get the money. Miles, however, refuses to part with it except in a public place where no harm can come to him.
The plan they agree to is that Reikle will come to the bank, again in disguise, and be handed the money at Miles' window. The next day, Reikle arrives dressed as a woman. Once he is paid the money, he promises to kill Miles for the inconvenience that he's been caused. Miles, anticipating Reikle would say just that, immediately presses an alarm button. Reikle shoots Miles and flees into the mall, where he is shot dead by a bank security guard.
A wounded Miles is taken away by an ambulance. Julie tells Miles that she has figured out everything about him and his involvement in the bank robbery. He reveals to Julie that he still has the stolen bank money and that he only gave Reikle again a few thousand dollars of the bank's money from the till. Both of them decide that the time might be right to quit their jobs and find some other line of work.
including Best Picture and Best Director. The film was a sleeper upon its US release, with Brendon Hanley of the film database Allmovie noting that the film"...stands out as one of the best sleepers of the late '70s".
1978 in film
The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 1 - Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour premieres in Los Angeles, California....
Canadian crime film
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
directed by Daryl Duke
Daryl Duke
Daryl Duke was a Canadian film producer and director.Duke was born at Vancouver, British Columbia, where he became one of CBC Television's earliest regional producers...
. It stars Elliott Gould
Elliott Gould
Elliott Gould is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s, and has remained prolific ever since. Some of his most notable films include M*A*S*H and Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, for which he received an Oscar nomination...
, Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
and Susannah York
Susannah York
Susannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
.
The film was the first to be produced by Carolco Pictures
Carolco Pictures
Carolco Pictures, Inc., Carolco International N.V., or Anabasis Investments was an American independent film production company that, within a decade, went from producing such blockbuster successes as Terminator 2: Judgment Day and the first three movies of the Rambo series to being bankrupted by...
and one of the earliest films from Canada to take advantage of the Canadian government's "Capital Cost Allowance
Capital Cost Allowance
Capital Cost Allowance is effectively the means by which Canadian businesses may claim depreciation expense. Depreciable items are deemed to belong to different classes which depreciate at different rates and are subject to different rules...
" plans. The Silent Partner is also notable for being one of the very few films to have a score composed by Oscar Peterson
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career...
, and for featuring an early big-screen appearance by John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
.
The Silent Partner is a remake of the Danish film Think of a Number (Tænk på et tal) from 1969 written and directed by Palle Kjærulff-Schmidt
Palle Kjærulff-Schmidt
Palle Kjærulff-Schmidt is a Danish film director and screenwriter. He has directed 32 films between 1957 and 1995. His 1964 film To was entered into the 15th Berlin International Film Festival...
. Both are based on the novel Tænk på et tal by Danish writer Anders Bodelsen
Anders Bodelsen
Anders Bodelsen is a prolific Danish writer primarily associated with the 1960 new-realism wave in Danish literature, along with Christian Kampmann and Henrik Stangerup. Bodelsen prefers the social-realistic style of writing, often thrillers about middle-class people that faces the consequences of...
.
Plot synopsis
Miles Cullen (Elliot Gould), a bored teller at a small bank in a large TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
shopping mall, accidentally learns that his place of business is about to be robbed when he finds a discarded note on one of the bank's counters one day. He also figures out who the would-be robber will be when he sees a mall Santa Claus hanging around outside the bank whose 'give to charity' sign is similar to the handwriting on the discarded stick-up note.
Instead of informing his bosses or contacting the police, Miles devises a way of keeping the cash from most of his window's transactions in an old lunch box of his own inside his briefcase rather than in the bank's till. As a result, the Santa Claus robber eventually arrives and holds up Miles at the teller's desk, and nets far less than the police and the bank think he has.
The thief, a psychopath named Harry Reikle (Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
), figures out what happened, and makes a series of desperate and violent attempts to get the money (totaling CA$48,300) that Miles has kept for himself. Reikle starts following Miles around to and from his home, and making harassing phone calls to his place of residence.
Miles' coolness under pressure attracts the attention of his bank colleague Julie Carver (Susannah York
Susannah York
Susannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
), who has been having an affair with the bank's married manager Charles Packard (Michael Kirby
Michael Kirby
Michael Donald Kirby AC, CMG, is an Australian retired judge, jurist, and academic who is a former Justice of the High Court of Australia, serving from 1996 to 2009.-Biography:Michael Kirby attended Fort Street High School in Sydney...
). After escorting Julie to Mr. Packard's Christmas party at his house, he tells Julie about his own attraction to her and disapproves of her dating a married man. In another subplot unrelated to the Miles-Reikle plot, Miles' co-worker Simonson (John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
) becomes infatuated with a young ditzy blonde named Louise, who is hired as a teller at the bank. However, though Miles discovers that Louise is cheating on Simonson with another co-worker, he never informs Simonson about Louise's true nature, even after Simonson and the pregnant Louise get engaged and married, apparently to avoid hurting his feelings.
After Reikle breaks into Miles apartment and trashes it to look for the stolen bank money, Miles turns the tables on his stalker yet again by following Reikle back to his apartment and then sets him up to be arrested for the theft of a delivery truck. When Miles is brought to the police station to identify Reikle in a lineup, he does not point him out aware that Reikle would then implicate him in the bank robbery.
A few months later, during the spring, Miles' invalid father, who has been residing in a nursing home, dies. At his father's funeral, Miles meets and takes up with a flirtatious younger woman named Elaine (Celine Lomez
Celine Lomez
Céline Lomez , born Céline Léger in Montreal, is a Canadian actress and singer.Lomez started her show business career singing French-Canadian pop songs with her sister Liette, and the two gained popularity after their performance at the Festival du Disque in Quebec in 1968. Liette went on to join a...
), who tells him that she was a nurse who has been caring for his father. In fact, Elaine is secretly working with Reikle, who is still in jail awaiting trial for the delivery truck theft and unrelated assault and battery charges. For the past several months, Elaine has been visiting Reikle in jail to report her progress to acquire the stolen bank cash. But by the time Elaine discovers that Miles has stashed the holdup money in a vacant safety deposit box at the bank, Reikle no longer trusts her, for he correctly feels that Elaine has fallen in love with Miles.
Miles figures out that Elaine is not who she claims to be when she tells him about his father who had spoken to her about his life. Miles immediately catches her slip and informs Elaine that his invalid father had a stroke two years earlier and could not talk at all. Elaine reveals that she is working with Reikle and wants Miles to hand over the bank loot so they can divided it among themselves.
However, Miles loses the safety deposit key to the box where he has stashed the stolen bank cash. Elaine decides to help Miles and disguises herself as a customer to have copies of the safe deposit keys made in order to remove the money from the bank and she successfully evades Julie who has begun to suspect something off about Miles and his new girlfriend.
A few days later, Reikle is released from jail and confronts Elaine one night over where her loyalties lie. When Elaine admits that she has indeed fallen in love with Miles, an enraged Reikle murders and decapitates her at Miles' apartment. Miles is forced to dispose of her body in the foundation for the new bank building to avoid being investigated by the police. Afterwards, Reikle approaches Miles and says that he intends to kill him too unless he agrees to get the money. Miles, however, refuses to part with it except in a public place where no harm can come to him.
The plan they agree to is that Reikle will come to the bank, again in disguise, and be handed the money at Miles' window. The next day, Reikle arrives dressed as a woman. Once he is paid the money, he promises to kill Miles for the inconvenience that he's been caused. Miles, anticipating Reikle would say just that, immediately presses an alarm button. Reikle shoots Miles and flees into the mall, where he is shot dead by a bank security guard.
A wounded Miles is taken away by an ambulance. Julie tells Miles that she has figured out everything about him and his involvement in the bank robbery. He reveals to Julie that he still has the stolen bank money and that he only gave Reikle again a few thousand dollars of the bank's money from the till. Both of them decide that the time might be right to quit their jobs and find some other line of work.
Cast
- Elliott GouldElliott GouldElliott Gould is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s, and has remained prolific ever since. Some of his most notable films include M*A*S*H and Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, for which he received an Oscar nomination...
- Miles Cullen - Christopher PlummerChristopher PlummerArthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
- Harry Reikle - Susannah YorkSusannah YorkSusannah York was a British film, stage and television actress. She was awarded a BAFTA as Best Supporting Actress for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and was nominated for an Oscar and Golden Globe for the same film. She won best actress for Images at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival...
- Julie Carver - Celine LomezCeline LomezCéline Lomez , born Céline Léger in Montreal, is a Canadian actress and singer.Lomez started her show business career singing French-Canadian pop songs with her sister Liette, and the two gained popularity after their performance at the Festival du Disque in Quebec in 1968. Liette went on to join a...
- Elaine - John CandyJohn CandyJohn Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
- Simonsen - Michael KirbyMichael KirbyMichael Donald Kirby AC, CMG, is an Australian retired judge, jurist, and academic who is a former Justice of the High Court of Australia, serving from 1996 to 2009.-Biography:Michael Kirby attended Fort Street High School in Sydney...
- Charles Packard - Sean SullivanSean SullivanSean Patrick Sullivan is an attorney, a retired submarine commander and was commanding officer of the Naval Submarine Base New London...
- Frank the Security Guard - Gail Dahms - Louise
- Michael Donaghue - Berg
- Ken PogueKen PogueKen Pogue is a Canadian actor.He is married to the actress Diana Barrington. His first motion picture role in 1973 was in The Neptune Factor. He almost drowned in SCUBA gear. He worked at the Stratford Festival and St. Lawrence Centre in the 1960s through 1980s before moving to television and film...
- Detective Willard
Reception
The Silent Parter did well in Canada both critically and financially winning several Canadian Film Academy AwardsCanadian Film Award
The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually except in 1974 when Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation that year....
including Best Picture and Best Director. The film was a sleeper upon its US release, with Brendon Hanley of the film database Allmovie noting that the film"...stands out as one of the best sleepers of the late '70s".