Harry is a married writer who has an affair with a woman whose husband knows that she is unfaithful. As a result of his work, Harry has trouble distinguishing between fantasy and reality leaving us to wonder whether the affair is real or just a figment of Harry's imagination.
Direction
Frankenheimer fractures narrative like Harry fractures his own life.
Acting
Bates carries crushing ambiguity in every glance.
Cinematography
Dreamlike 70s grain that refuses to anchor reality.
Director
John Frankenheimer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Frankenheimer called this his 'most personal film,' adapting a novel by his friend Christopher Isherwood while grappling with his own marriage's collapse.
The film was shelved for two years and barely released; Frankenheimer claimed studio executives 'didn't know what they'd bought' and feared audiences would feel similarly lost.
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