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Strong and Moving!

It is a performances centric movie

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

The completely serious film (Man on a Swing) opens with a one minute-20 second scene shot with a camera mounted on the police car roof about a foot behind the flashing light bar. While I am sure it seemed dramatic in 1974, it's impossible to view now without remembering the comedic rendition of the same viewpoint that forms the opening of "The Naked Gun". While I can't be sure this was the only "cop movie" that had a similar opening sequence, it's pretty clear to me that this film alone would have been sufficient to inspire the Naked Gun spoof scene.

"Man on a Swing" is based on the real-life murder investigation of a young woman. Made in 1972, we have seen many movies about similar investigations before and since. However, this one still has something different to offer.When the girl's body is found in her car in a small town supermarket parking lot, the sheriff, Lee Tucker (Cliff Robertson), investigates the case. Everything looks pretty standard for this kind of film until a self-proclaimed psychic, Franklin Wills (Joel Grey), comes forward with information only the police, or the killer, could have known. This sends the story in a direction that makes this movie standout in a very crowded genre.Cliff Robertson plays it straight, and it's the right move because it's the perfect counterpoint to Joel Grey's fireworks. Grey gives a performance, which is every bit as eye-catching as the one he gave in "Cabaret", made about the same time. His Franklin Wills comes across as annoying, narcissistic, and more than a little creepy.The real point of difference in the "Man on a Swing" is that it deals with clairvoyance, a subject that was debated around that time, especially as it related to solving crime. There were a number of baffling, high profile cases around the world in the 60's and 70's where psychics were called in - without much success if I recall correctly. You don't hear nearly as much about crime solving clairvoyants these days, could it be that computers and DNA have replaced the Ouija board and the psychic? The movie ends on a slightly disturbing note, but doesn't take sides as to whether Franklin is a genuine psychic or not - it's left for the viewers to make up their own minds.Frank Perry was an eclectic director. He didn't make many films, and although he covered quite a few genres from westerns and comedies through to historical sagas, psychological drama was his forte, often in collaboration with his wife Eleanor. "David and Lisa" and "The Swimmer" are two others that I always remembered. If his films have one thing in common it is that Perry chose offbeat stories that challenged his actors, and "Man on a Swing" fits nicely into that category. More than just a police procedural, it's the intensity of the human drama and the clash of wills between Robertson and Grey's characters that drives the film.The movie was made 40 years ago, and although there are many superficial elements that date it to that time, not the least being Cliff Robertson's hairdo, I found it just as intriguing as I did all those years ago.

Oddball mystery that I suspect is not for everyone. Joel Grey plays a psychic, Franklyn Wills, who wants to help the cops solve a gruesome parking lot murder. On their first meeting he establishes some credibility by knowing a number of details not mentioned in the media, thus provoking the curiosity of head cop Lee Tucker (Robertson). How, we wonder, does Wills know these details. Is he a real psychic or maybe even the killer himself just playing games with the cops. Thus begins a stormy collaboration between the head cop and the psychic, as Lee not only investigates the murder but has to figure out what's going on with Wills who keeps coming up with more interesting facts.This is one of the more unsettling films I've seen, mainly because Wills' behavior is completely unpredictable when he goes into his sudden psychic trances. He may leap on a desk, roll on the floor, or go into jerky spasms no matter where he is. Grey is an elfin-like presence anyway, so these sudden seizures are truly disturbing, even scary. When not in a clairvoyant state, he's not what you'd suspect from a killer, all smiles and disarming demeanor, even when Lee throws him against a wall in utter frustration. All in all, Grey delivers a cunning performance, one of the most unusual I've seen. His Franklyn Wills remains truly an enigma.In contrast, Robertson wisely low-keys his role, with a deadpan expression, soft voice, and unblinking stare as he observes the strange little man who seems in communication with something—but what. And when Lee and his wife start getting strange phone calls and knocks on the door, everyone figure it's got to be Wills, but why. What could he hope to gain. His behavior seems beyond strange.In a sense, the movie dwells almost obsessively with the relationship between these two. There are no real subplots or principal characters apart from them. Thus, it's two hours of trying to figure out whether Wills is a true psychic or not. The fact that the film is based on a true story makes the mystery even more intriguing. I suspect many folks are put off by the morbid undertones of the unvarying plot, and that plus an unconventional ending may have something to do with the film's obscurity. Nonetheless, for some folks, like me, it's a fascinating sleeper, with its own style of intrigue, and continues to cast a haunting spell.

Director Frank Perry( David and Lisa, Diary of a Mad Housewife)took a true story and turns it in to a very suspenseful film. Starring Oscar winners Cliff Robertson and Joel Grey, the film concerns a murder of a young girl in a small Connecticut town and the police chief(Robertson) who tries to solve the killing. Enter one clairvoyant(Grey) who claims to have visions of the killing and offers to help the police solve the crime.Director Perry keeps the viewer guessing the whole movie as to whether Grey is legitimate or not. Robertson is wary of Grey but keeps him around just by chance he is what he says he is. The ending has a bizarre twist and I wont reveal it here but remember, it was based on a true story and the film is well worth 90 some minutes of your time.