The Conversation (1974)

Between turning out “The Godfather” Parts 1 and 2, Francis Ford Coppola made another film that ought to be on my All Time Favorites list. With its focus on early 1970s audio surveillance and wicked phone tapping, “The Conversation” defines the era of Nixon paranoia more so than “All the President’s Men.” Yet, its script/production schedule preceded Watergate. The film’s not just about privacy. It’s also about the art of sound, the difference between hearing and listening, and the consequences of the job. Gene Hackman plays Harry Caul, a professional eavesdropper who lives to record the impossible, including a jittery couple walking around San Francisco’s Union Square. As much as Harry strives to invade the privacy of others, he works to guard his own until his latest employer (fronted by a young, quietly menacing Harrison Ford) starts turning the screws. This is Coppola at the height of his powers, laying out a morality tale about technology, privacy and faith, so expect to be intrigued and laid flat by a devastating finale. Hackman gives his greatest slow-burn performance, topped only by his boisterous detective in “The French Connection.” A+