Marathon Man Details

Dustin Hoffman stars as the bewildered New York student training to run a marathon who inadvertently becomes mixed up in a hunt for a hoard of Nazi diamonds in this gripping thriller from director John Schlesinger, adapted by William Goldman from his own novel. Laurence Olivier is the essence of evil as the former concentration camp sadist who leaves his hiding place in South America to claim his legacy — the priceless gems taken from Jewish victims during the war. Also making an impact is Roy Scheider as Hoffman's secret agent older brother. Schlesinger's film is not without its flaws — it takes rather too long to get started and is too fragmented — but it's a very classy package, and one particular scene involving dentistry will leave a lasting impression and is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

Complex mystery thriller which seems to have things to mutter about freedom and McCarthyism and Nazism, but finally settles down to being a simple shocker with a nick-of-time climax. The presentation is dazzling.