Tony Rome

The late 1960s were a turbulent time of new cultures, changing norms, and shifting values, and one place that was immediately obvious was in Hollywood. With the downfall of the studio system, the impending doom of the Code, and the radical growth of political cinema around the world, the American movie industry was working hard to alter its course and deliver films that would satisfy a hungry audience of increasingly younger viewers looking for something new. So it’s fitting that even the detective movie, a standard genre since nearly the inception of film, had been turned on its head a bit at this time—in 1967, we saw crime films increasingly turn away from the infallible hardboiled super genius, moving instead to neo-noir and counterculture films like In the Heat of the Night, In Cold Blood, and Tony Rome.Tony Rome, directed by Gordon Douglas, stars Frank Sinatra as the eponymous detective. The film is set in Miami Beach—or “20 miles of sand in search of a city,” as Tony describes it. A former cop turned private detective now living on a houseboat, he’s called in to help an old friend from the force who’s working private security at a Miami Beach hotel. The beautiful daughter of a wealthy local construction magnate has passed out in one of their rooms, surrounded by expensive vodka, and, seeking to avoid the negative publicity of an official investigation, they ask Tony to bring her home, keeping the hotel’s name out of the press. He accepts the job as a favor to his former partner—as long as they double the rate, of course.The girl is Diana Pines (Sue Lyon), and the dysfunctional family Tony finds at her palatial estate includes father Rudolph Kosterman (Simon Oakland) and stepmother Rita (Gena Rowlands). All three of them end up hiring Tony to their own ends, although, to Tony’s credit, he won’t accept a job that directly conflicts with one he’s already accepted. Tony’s moral compass is firm, even if his idea of “immoral” may be relatively narrow—he does offer information between the various players without much hesitation, uAs a detective, Tony Rome is pretty much exactly what you’d expect given that he’s played by Frank Sinatra: we rarely see him without a drink or a dame in his grip; he’s wry and self-deprecating, but always with an element of bravado in his swagger. He moves seamlessly between respectable types and the criminal underworld, and he spends an almost equal amount of time trading flirty bon mots with pretty women as he does actually working on the case. Of course, it just so happens that many of his clues fortuitously lead him into the arms of said pretty women, so he can’t really help it, and at least he’s able to save some time by doubling up. In at least a few scenes, this can be a bit confusing—there are several points in the story where I have to remind myself which busty redhead he’s talking to.And though it can be hard to keep them straight sometimes, I do love the women of Tony Rome, perhaps most of all. Jill St. John, who plays Ann Archer, has one of my favorite character introductions of all time: still decked immaculately in an evening gown and jewels the morning after a party, she passes Diana on the staircase (we later discover Ann has been sleeping with Diana’s new husband). “Slut!” Diana hisses at her. Without missing a beat, Ann turns to Tony, parlaying the potential embarrassment into a flirtation by purring: “Well, now that I’ve been introduced, who are you?” On the whole, the women of Tony Rome are just as clever as he is, often more aggressive, and able to take control of their own situations, while also acknowledging the limitations of their standing—another describes a fellow as having “bought a few drinks I paid for.”tonyrome-suitThe Miami setting makes perfect sense for the ultimate American view of the Swinging Sixties, but the location also positions Tony as something of an outsider by the way he dresses and carries himself. Even in the midst of bikini beauties—and the Florida heat—when Tony’s on the job, he wears a full suit, black tie, and, of course, his trademark fedora. Off the clock, he’s more casual in polos, khakis, and a sailor’s cap, but his work uniform signifies his membership as part of the old guard. This is likely an influence of Sinatra as well, as he reportedly favored the fedora to mask a receding hairline, and after years of natty dressing, he and his tailors certainly knew what worked for him in the clothing department. But it sets Tony apart from the other younger characters in a big way, as it’s impossible not to notice that he’s often the only person in a room wearing a hat, or in some cases, an actual shirt and pants. It strengthens his balance of the power dynamic visually, but style-wise, it also feels like he’s grasping to hold onto that power in the face of a new generation of hatless youngin’s. That tension between the older and younger generations isn’t explicitly highlighted throughout the film, but I think it’s an important element to observe nonetheless.tonyrome-beachVisually, the film is a great example of trends in late ’60s photography, with cinematographer Joseph Biroc making good use of Miami’s vibrant colors and sun, as well as its dark, seedy underbelly. Jarring camera techniques that call attention to the filmmaking—fast zooms, match cuts between (I swear I’m being totally serious here) two different butts, and the like—add to the hip, irreverent style of the film. Tony Rome is not Sam Spade, and Tony Rome is not Maltese Falcon—and 25 years later, they really shouldn’t be anyway.

Not one of Frank's best, but it was enjoyable. Jill played a fun character that helped pull the movie together. If you like the older PI movies, you will like this one too.

This stylish mystery has the best of the nascent "new" Hollywood, made about the same time as The Graduate, Easy Rider, when the more "realistic" film was in demand, the outsider managing to buck the system and emerge the hero.Here Sinatra is a tough guy, alright, but he admits he's "out of shape", he out of money, out of luck with the broads. An old school Detective, haunted by the violent demise of his idol, his Dad, also with Law Enforcement. He's happy to squeak by, in his run down 1940s styled office in downtown Miami, and maintaining his boat which mostly stays moored to the dock. But he takes on a case involving a millionaire's daughter, missing diamonds, blackmail and bigamy.Alot of plot, as you can imagine, but the Sinatra-isms keep you interested - several cameos add an olive or two to the martini: Joe E. Ross, Rocky Graziano, Beau Jack. Gena Rowlands does a fine job as the unsettled second wife with a past, now married to the wealthy Industrialist, Koperman (Simon Oakland).Sexy ladies include Jill St. John, Sue Lyon, and Deanna Lund (from "Land Of The Giants" and a Jerry Lewis movie).Music is also notworthy, by Nancy Sinatra, Randy Newman. Frank sticks to the drama.Speaking of Sinatra-isms, this one seems to have gotten past alot of people (possibly more than the all-too-quick cameo by the great boxer Beau Jack): Tony finds a hovel run by a drug dealor, where he lies in wait for a main adversary. The doorbell rings, Rome pulls out his gun, and motions to the dealor to act natural - he says "We'll do it my way. Okay?".(Some period stereotyping).

By the time the late sixties rolled around, Frank Sinatra was finishing up perhaps the third incarnation of his lengthy career---That of the Rat Pack leader. He'd already distinguished himself as a singer and won an academy award, having bounced back from the rough times of the early fifties. Tony Rome was made during the heyday of the James Bond craze, and I for one was glad to see the American Private Detective represented with such style and panache. This movie, as well as Paul Newman's Harper, mark a singular time in American cinema. Both protrayed the hardboiled dick the way he supposed to be portrayed: a tough guy with honor. Sinatra is totally believable in the role, which has some great lines for him say. And his delivery was flawless. The plot, while a bit convoluted at times, is still interesting. Anyway, plot was never the main thing in this movie. It was all about ambience and character. Whether Frank grabs a frying pan to fend off an attacker, uses his fists, or has a gun you can see the menace in his eyes every time. And the final fade-away shot of gorgeous Jill St. John makes the whole movie unforgettable. This one is definitely worth a look-see.

What a classic movie Frank Sinatra at his best in a great time period…..

Sinatra plays Tomy Rome who does his darndest to be like Mike Hammer. Insensitive and strictly business, except with the ladies and then another Tony Rome emerges. With Jill St. John filling the damsel role here it is completely understandable why ladies are the exception.This is a combination of a caper movie and a detective movie combining the best of both. Simon Oakland is the rich man who hires Rome to help with his errant daughter wh o he is worried about. Rome gets into and out of several scrapes and eventually gets to the root of the problem and finds the effective cause is his employer's attractive young wife (Gena Rowlands) and her background. Nuff said

I liked A LOT this 1967 half-serious neo-noir with Frank Sinatra. Below, more of my impressions, with some limited SPOILERS.Tony Rome (Frank Sinatra) is a not very good and not entirely serious private detective operating in Miami. He is a former police officer with a major chip on his shoulder - albeit, rather than being really angry at the world he is instead slightly (or maybe not so slightly?) depressed, which causes him to engage in self-destructive behaviour, namely a gambling addiction large like from here to Mars... He still however keeps in touch with his old partner, Santini (Richard Conte), who stayed on the force and became a lieutenant. Eternal bachelor, Tony Rome lives alone on a boat named "Straight Pass" (I admit I don't understand what that name means...) One day, he catches a short, but well paid gig - bring discreetly home a young girl from good family, who was found morbidly drunk in a hotel. The money, he gets it for NOT saying to anybody the name of the hotel... This deceptively simple job will of course land him in an ocean of trouble... And I will say nothing more about the story.This film uses all the characters, techniques and tricks from old "film noirs" from 40s and 50s, but adds to it some flavours from 60s - we meet young junkies and heroine dealers, strippers are shown openly in night clubs, some characters are more or less openly homosexual (including an unpleasant drug dealer but also a surprisingly interesting exotic dancer), there are references to racial problems in the South, etc.Sinatra was already 52 in this film and other than age, alcohol and more generally night life left already a mark on his face - but all of this actually helps him portray a badly-burnt-by-life, slowly aging private eye. The character he plays, although flawed, is actually a rather likeable half-loser. Tony Rome is not against squeezing some extra money from rich client with some creative description of his activities, but on another hand he refuses to engage in anything openly unethical (albeit sometimes reluctantly...). He leads his investigations using considerable wit and some deceptions and when he runs in trouble he gets away by ruse rather than by sheer force, as he is definitely not a very scary guy (Sinatra was barely 170 cm tall and of rather light build). If facing long odds, he will retreat or even surrender - but if forced to fight for his dear life, he still can use this small 0.38 rather well... But his greatest talent is in his tongue - he can talk most people into almost anything and himself out of almost anything.There is a lot of humour in this film, which, under the thin veneer of realism and severity doesn't take itself very seriously and by moments goes even a little bit into a kind of self-parody. Dialogs are the greatest treasure of this film, together with the amazing shapes of the main female character, Ann Archer, played by Jill St. John, the sculpturally beautiful redhead who was going four years later to be one of the most interesting James Bond girls, in "Diamonds are forever". The presence of Gena Rowlands and Sue Lyon (of "Lolita" fame) add also a lot to this movie. And don't miss the opening song by none else than Sinatra's own daughter, Nancy.Last but not least, any feminist exposed to this film will scream in pain and die instantly...)))I found this film a mightily entertaining, clever and well done thing and I am very glad that I bought and watched it. The sequel, "Lady in cement", is on the same excellent level by the way and it is a good idea to watch this film first, as some characters return in the second film. I am so keeping this DVD. ENJOY!

Sinatra makes a cool private detective but needs a hotter plot. Lots of casual brutality and sexual innuendo but nothing really gripping. Watchable but disappointing solution. It's all Sinatra and Jill St. John really and a weak attempt to build something around them.

Fun movie

Good

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