Filmstruck Friday: Klute (1971)

Donald Sutherland plays John Klute, a detective who is hired to try and trace the whereabouts of a missing man. The only clue he has are some rude letters to a New York prostitute (Bree Daniels, played by Jane Fonda). As Klute tries to make progress with the case, he becomes more closely connected to Bree, wandering further into her world and finding out more about a woman who has spent most of her time maintaining a barrier between herself and anyone around her.

Written by Andy and Dave Lewis, this is a film that is part detective story and part character study. Despite the main character, and some enjoyably frank conversations about sex and why people shouldn't feel asahmed about doing something they enjoy so much, it's not made to be any kind of erotic thriller. It's simply a detective story that looks at some very different attiitudes to sex while bringing together two main characters who seem to be polar opposites of one another. That's not to say that the content lacks any kind of sexual frisson, not at all. Every time Fonda is onscreen there's an aura emanating from her frankness and confidence that perfectly shows why her character would be so greatly desired by her clientele.

Director Alan J. Pakula, a man with one hell of an impressive directorial filmography to check out, allows viewers to get lost in the midst of this potential blossoming relationship. We spend an awful lot of time watching Fonda go about her day, either speaking to her therapist or shopping or being with clients, and then see the immediate comparison to Sutherland's much quieter character. Despite his name being used as the title of the movie, Klute is always secondary to Bree, and the main detective strand is always secondary to the exploration of the different attitudes of the leads.

In case you couldn't tell already, both Sutherland and Fonda are fantastic. The latter is the definite highlight but it's unfair to completely overlook how well Sutherland does in an atypically understated performance. Elsewhere, Charles Cioffi does okay in a small role and Roy Scheider adds another great role to his roster (I am slightly embarrassed that I only ever knew him from the masterpiece that is Jaws for a number of decades).

Falling slightly between the likes of Chinatown and Blow Up, with a dash of onscreen self-awareness and self-analysis that would suit a character in a Woody Allen movie, Klute is not a film you should be overly concerned with categorising. You should just seek it out and find out why so many others have already heaped lots of praise upon it. Disappointing finale aside, this is well worth your time.

8/10

Klute can be bought here.
And I am sure other places have it, but I don't see many opportunities. Click the link and buy whatever you like, it all works for me.