What It's About:

 Hired by cynical society woman Mrs. Sampson (Bacall), to find her husband, down-at-the-heels (and about to be divorced) LA detective Lew Harper (Newman) soon has run-ins with an odd bevy of fringe types the missing tycoon keeps company with. Careful to avoid the comical but sincere come-ons of Sampson’s kittenish sexpot daughter Miranda (Pamela Tiffin), Harper stumbles onto a lurid and decadent underground culture that’s deadlier than it looks.

Why I Love It:

Based on Ross MacDonald's novel, this big-city thriller is notable for two reasons: It marks the debut of Newman's ultra-cool Lew Harper character (later seen to lesser effect in "The Drowning Pool") and was William Goldman's maiden voyage as a screenwriter. Peppered with witty dialogue and immersed in the sex-and-drugs cult weirdness of mid-sixties California, "Harper" is directed with flair by Jack Smight. Shelley Winters, Janet Leigh, Robert Wagner, Julie Harris, and Bacall all contribute choice characterizations, but the center of gravity here is Newman's Harper, never hipper nor more determined to finish the job. Here's another chance to catch Newman in his prime.