The Paper Chase (1973)

John Houseman's Oscar winning performance as Harvard Law Professor Charles W. Kingsfield is the main draw of this film, but it's also a great time capsule of college life in the early seventies. Kingsfield is the kind of superstar professor most well known universities have one or two of, and he's brilliant, aloof, intimidating and authoritative all presented in a personality full of the hauteur of one looking down from Olympus. Timothy Bottoms is a likeable student entering his first year of Law at Harvard, takes his work seriously, and believes Dr. Kingsfield has taken a personal interest in him. Along the way he meets a young woman and begins to have a relationship with her, not knowing that she is Kingsfield's daughter, though this fact does not take he film in the direction one might suspect. His other relationships consist entirely with the fellow students in his study group. In a way that would prevent the film from being made today, the plot moves slowly and not all that much really happens. It's mostly about the student, James Hart (Timothy Bottoms) inner life, his expectations and ability to cope with the pressures of Harvard Law. In one of those fortuitous Hollywood flukes, Houseman, who had primarily been a producer, was cast only after many actors turned down the role, and ended up with a whole second career as an actor even though he was in his seventies. Though it's mainly his show, Timothy Bottoms holds his end up well and creates a winning and sympathetic character as "Mr. Hart". Lindsay Wagner plays Susan, the love interest, a part either undrewritten or written in such a way as to be at odds with herself, does as well as she can with a small part. The film is shot in a naturalistic way that makes much of it seem like a documentary, especially scenes of the classroom and dorm life.For those who went to college during the time shown, all will be familiar. For younger viewers there will be many surprises: the long hair on the male students, the fact they take notes on paper in notebooks, and most of all the dorm, where there is one pay phone for all the students on the floor, who line up to use it.

good product, just what we needed, good price, fast service

I loved the TV series and continually look for an on-demand outlet that has it. After many unsuccessful searches that repeatedly came up with only the movie, I finally acquiesced to the movie Universe and decided to try it. After all, it still did have the can't-quite-hate-him-but-you-gotta-love-him John Houseman and an old adolescent hearth-throb, Lindsay Wagner. And it was a cheap rent. As expected, it was a pleasant, thought-provoking cerebral love story/boy meets himself stroll. Things aren't always what they seem. Can't judge a book by its cover. Sometimes it's not what a teacher says to you but what he does to you. Education isn't limited to the classroom. Pick any sub theme--it has plenty to ponder. The characterizations were pretty well-done, believable, and refreshingly deep. I've seen, or been, those people, reacting similarly in similar situations. No skin or automatic weapons fire. No CG special effects or concussive surround-sounds. It is a perfect pick for a contemplative evening on a comfy couch. I'll watch it again--after The Italian Job.

John Houseman was part of the entertainment world for decades, working with such heavyweights as Orsen Welles, but perhaps popularly he will be best remembered for his portrayal of Professor Kingsfield, a conservative, dour Contract Law professor at Harvard Law School, who, for all his professionalism and singleness of purpose, lets a bit of humanity creep out from beneath the surface. Houseman won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role. Timothy Bottoms played Hart, the idealistic young 1-L (first year law student) who comes to Harvard from the midwest primarily because of his fascination with Kingsfield. He forms friendships and relationship with a circle of friends, each of whom is eccentric, driven, and slightly certifiable (which fits most of the law students I've known). His problems increase as he meets and begins a relationship with Kingsfield's daughter (played by Lindsay Wagner). This movie provided the inspiration for a television series, which followed some of the same characters from the film, in necessarily a different time-frame and different situations. Houseman reprised his role in this, and became a 'star' by this vehicle. My favourite scene in the film has to be (being the bibiophile that I am) the time Hart breaks into the closed stacks in the library (which contain the personal papers of the professors) to look for Kingsfield's early work, including his original notes from when he was a student in Contracts. Hart's reflection on Kingsfield's philosophical musings ('Can one make a binding contract with God?' Kingsfield had written) almost convinced me to go to law school in America (and indeed, I took the LSAT and did well). Houseman found the role of Kingsfield a double-edged sword, that, while fueling his stardom and exposure, also obscured the real person behind the role. He became typecast. Even when he went on speaking tours (coming once to my university to speak before a standing-room-only crowd at the auditorium) his Kingsfield routine was what the audience wanted; they tended to drift away as he spoke about his own life, and that was sad. Make a contract with yourself to see this excellent film, and, should the series be repeated on cable, check that out too. You'll be glad you did, or your money back (contract void wherever prohibited).

This is one of my favorite movies and showcases a fabulous performance by John Houseman, who was asked at the last minute to act the part. Other stars,including James Mason, John Gielgud, and Edward G. Robinson had been asked to take the lead but refused, so finally director James Bridges asked his mentor Houseman to take the role. And Houseman won an Oscar for it as Best Supporting Actor! He fills the role with dignity and intellect and thoroughly intimidates Timothy Bottoms starring as an eager law student from Minnesota. The film is also the debut of Lindsay Wagner, see mostly doing mattress commercials these days, but she really is a good actress. The film is set at Harvard Law School but since the school hated the publicity from "Love Story", also set on the famous Cambridge campus, most of "Paper Chase" was filmed in Toronto. The movie has many touching and amusing moments and carries you along briskly to the end where the filmmakers finally hit a false note. I understand what the characters were doing but it struck me as out of character and I never found the ending very satisfying. That said, the film still has so much to offer including a fun score by John Williams from early in his brilliant career. The supporting cast is uniformly fine and this is a movie I enjoying watching again and again.

disc played perfectly

Some intelligent youngsters study law. Not just anywhere, no, but in Harvard!! This movie tells a coming of age story that made me feel rather uncomfortable. The reason: bright kids are depicted as snooty and the same time impressionable. Their being undergraduates is a stage they are going through, but the thought about where they were headed made my hairs stand on end. They do not seem to have a shred of idealism left at the start (could be a reason to study law, theoretically) and it does not look like they will get it back the rest of their lives. They try to impress a pompous lecturer whose sole purpose seems to consist in intimidating undergraduates. The main character beds the lecturer's daughter who, besides, seems to do nothing but wait for her divorce to get through - her dad's handling it, "of course". The movie is beautiful, but the world in it rather ugly. Strangely, the only likeable person in it is the wife of the most interesting and best constructed character of the movie, the undergraduate with a photographic memory who is intelligent enough to know that he will not make the grade in Harvard. Non lawyers will not like lawyers more after having seen this movie.

I always warned students at the beginning of each year that I had screened "The Paper Chase" once again and was interested in using the Socratic method to spin the little tumblers of their minds. Certainly this was the film that made me want to curb my innate desire to stand up in the classroom and pontificate on every subject under the sun. Ostensibly the film is about the pressures of first year students at Harvard Law School, but since most of us do not want to become lawyers, know any lawyers, have any dealings with lawyers or even watch television programs with lawyers, "The Paper Chase" ultimately succeeds as a film about wanting to learn and learning to think. At the heart of the film is James Hart (Timothy Bottoms), come from Minnesota to learn at the feet of the great Professor Charles Kingsfield. Despite some painful moments of confrontation in the classroom with his would be mentor-my favorite: "Mr. Hart, here is a dime. Take it, call your mother, and tell her there is serious doubt about you ever becoming a lawyer"-Hart finds he can play the game and play it well. Having given his mind over to Kingsfield, the question then becomes whether his heart and soul will follow as well. The other members of his study group (which includes Edward Herrmann and James Naughton), make different choices and take different paths in order to survive the year. By the end of the film Hart is more alone than he was at the beginning. As Kingsfield, John Houseman is the powerful center of the film. A producer and drama teacher for almost half a century, Houseman won the 1973 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and began a new career as an actor in films and a pitchman in television commercials (however, this was not Houseman's first film, since I know he played an admiral in the political thriller "Seven Days in May"). Indeed, Houseman went on to play the Kingsfield character in the ambitious television versions of the movie. However, it is important to note that those who knew Houseman as a producer or teacher were always quick to point out that he really was acting in "The Paper Chase." There might be Harvard professors fighting over the honor of being the real Kingfield, but Houseman was indeed just doing a role. As the autocratic master of his domain, Kingsfield is very much the antithesis of the traditional dedicated teacher usually presented in films about school, a point driven home in the film's final meeting between Hart and Kingsfield. If there is a happy ending in this film, it is achieved by Hart's character on a personal, almost private level. The original novel by John Jay Osborn, Jr. was brought to the film my director James Bridges, who also did the screenplay. Although the sub-plot where Hart discovers the young woman of his affections (Lindsay Wagner) is in fact (gasp!) Kingsfield's daughter is decidedly contrived, overall the film is an intelligent and thoughtful piece. If you are a teacher, or are thinking about becoming a teacher, "The Paper Chase" is just as much recommended viewing as the more conventional fare as such classics as "Goodbye, Mr. Chips," "To Sir, With Love," "Up the Down Staircase," or more contemporary efforts such as "Songs of the Heart."

Enjoyed movie. Arrived on time.

Much cheaper than R2 so if you can play R1 go for this version, also includes audio commentary by the Producer. An excellent, intelligent and thought provoking film, and yes, it will make you smile too. Performances are spot on throughout. Too young to see it when first released but many who did swear it changed their lives. Although made in the 70's it is as relevant today as then, of course time dilutes any films impact when viewed by a new generation but this really does hold up well. Have noticed many reviews are very superficial, this is not just about a boy at law school, a teacher and a girl!! It is a highly complex and symbolic film which is why so many people find it so fascinating, even though many don't know why they are so drawn to it. Read Carl Jung and you'll understand it so much better.

Bon film qui nous a fait passé une soirée agréable devant l'écran. Le jeu des acteurs est excellent et vaut la peine.

Esta es una super pelicula basada en las actividades academicas de unos estudiantes de posgrado de primer ingreso a la Universidad de Harvard, en especial en la Facultad de Derecho. Las actuaciones son magnificas de la actriz principal (en la pelicula es la hija del Profesor), el actor principal (en la pelicula es un estudinate muy inteligente, muy ambicioso, pero empatico y amable con sus compañeros de clase) y el segundo actor principal (realiza el papel del Profesor en la Facultad de Derecho en la Universidad de Harvard). La recomiento 100 por ciento a todos los estudiantes que recien ingresan a sus estudios de posgrado.

It is a great movie.