The Conversation (1974)

“I don’t have any secrets.”

Lionsgate is currently killing it with their Collector’s Edition releases.  And The Conversation, with its delicious treatment of a web of secrets, is certainly a crowning achievement.  For physical media lovers, it is something to celebrate as it gives us a whole lot of material to wade through, including an orange cassette featuring David Shire’s score.

"a film which needs to be studied, put on repeat, and analyzed for its deeper meaning"


It’s been said a hundred thousand times before but The Conversation, written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, remains a relevant piece of American filmmaking.  From Gene Hackman’s performance as Harry Caul and Billy Butler’s gritty cinematography to the sound design of Walter Murch and the score by David Shire, everything works to create a disturbing look at the role of surveillance in American life . . . and its permanence.

Caul might be knee deep in surveillance, but his love is with jazz.  Nightly, he plays saxophone along with his records in his lonely apartment and it is the perfect life for him . . . but one recent recording - featuring a line of dialogue he is desperate to unscramble - might make returning to his life impossible.

This is unsettling material and it takes a patient viewership but it is beyond rewarding when the curtain is pulled and the consequential narrative is fully revealed.  It will leave you pulling up the floor of your own home, looking for the wiretaps.  Because, after all, you know - you just know - that someone is listening.

They are.  It’s called your smartphone.  No digging is required.  But, in the era of Watergate, The Conversation first alerted audiences of what’s to come as technology and privacy butt heads when one surveillance expert in San Francisco wiretaps an adulterous couple and, as they wander Union Square in San Francisco and study a homeless person, hears something completely disturbing and worries about its implications and how it might be used.  Suddenly, his entire world is rocked upside down as the rules of secrecy are overturned and he becomes the paranoia he has been breeding in his job.  The Conversation (1974)

Featuring fine performances from Cindy Williams, Frederic Forrest, John Cazale, Harrison Ford, Teri Garr, and Robert Duvall, The Conversation is peak Coppola and it is indeed a film which needs to be studied, put on repeat, and analyzed for its deeper meaning.  This is a film filled with societal consequences and it’s hanging there in the conversations happening in the parking garage and in the quieter intimate parts.

If you’ve seen The Conversation before, you are going to want to take a look at this release from Lionsgate, which presents the film  in stunning Dolby Vision HDR mined from a new 4k transfer from a cleaned-up 35mm print.  The results are crisp and intense, presenting a previously unseen passion to the overall design of the thriller, cementing Coppola’s case for labeling this as a neo-noir film.

The future begins here.  Scoop up your copy of The Conversation on 4K and dim the lights.  Be warned, though.  This is not an easy watch.  It will flare up the paranoia that once seemed so far away.

5/5 stars

 

The Conversation (1974)

4k details divider

4k UHDLionsgate Limited Exclusive SteelBook / 50th Anniversary Edition / 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital

Home Video Distributor: Lionsgate
Available on Blu-ray
- December 17, 2025
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles
: English SDH
Audio:
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; English: LPCM 2.0 Mono
Discs: 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set
Region Encoding: 4K region-free; blu-ray locked to Region A

Francis Ford Coppola’s 1974 seminal neo-noir thriller The Conversation symbolizes the uneasy line between technology and privacy — a topic more relevant than ever today. Nominated for three Academy Awards and winner of the prestigious 1974 Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or, this harrowing psychological-thriller stars Gene Hackman alongside Cindy Williams, Frederic Forrest, and Harrison Ford, and is regarded as one of Coppola’s greatest films. Harry Caul (Hackman) is a surveillance expert in San Francisco whose routine wiretapping job turns into a nightmare when he hears something disturbing in his recording of a couple — something a lot more important than adulterous goings-on. His investigation of the tape and how it might be used sends Harry spiraling into a web of secrecy, murder, and paranoia.

VIDEO

This is a masterpiece of 4K handling from Lionsgate.  The lens practically explodes with color, details, and some wonderfully designed scenes that are ripe with details.  Featuring a new 4K scan from the original 35mm negative, the newly minted master is detailed and looks better than ever. Some shots, due to the era of the day, might appear a bit blurrier than others but the image is well defined with crisp contrasts and solid textures. Colors are solid, with reds being a standout. Blacks are, too.  Overall, there’s not a disappointing minute in this textured thriller.

AUDIO

There is a robust DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which gives the film plenty of lift when it comes to sounds, dialogue, and technology.  Of course, Hackman’s sax sounds good, too.

Supplements:

Commentary:

  • Francis Ford Coppola Audio Commentary.
  • Walter Murch Audio Commentary

Special Features:

Now in stunning Dolby Vision HDR, this 4K UH  edition belongs in the collection of every Francis Ford Coppola fan and contains:

  • An exclusive SteelBook (art by Laurent Durieux) with a 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital combo pack
  • A 64-page booklet with behind-the-scenes photos, essays from film journalists, and original 1974 press reviews
  • A cassette tape containing the original motion picture soundtrack scored by David Shire
  • Two collectible posters with theatrical art from 1974 and an illustrations from artist Laurent Durieux
  • Q&A with Sound Editor Walter Murch, Filmed at Curzon Soho, 2017
  • Francis Ford Coppola Audio Commentary.
  • Walter Murch Audio Commentary
  • Close-up on The Conversation
  • Coppola Dictates Script: Opening Sequence, The Life of Harry Caul, The Convention, Introduction to Frank Lovista, Jack Tar Hotel, Police Station Ending
  • Cindy Williams Screen Test
  • Harrison Ford Screen Test
  • David Shire Interviewed by Francis Ford Coppola
  • Interview with Gene Hackman (1973)
  • Harry Caul’s San Francisco: Locations Then & Now
  • No Cigar (1956 Short by Francis Ford Coppola)
  • Original Theatrical Trailer
  • 50th Anniversary Trailer - NEW
  • Intro by Francis Ford Coppola – NEW & EXCLUSIVE
  • 138 minutes of Bonus Content

4k rating divider

  Movie 5/5 stars
  Video  5/5 stars
  Audio 4/5 stars
  Extras 5/5 stars

Composite Blu-ray Grade

5/5 stars


Film Details

The Conversation (1974)

MPAA Rating: PG
Runtime:
113 mins
Director
: Francis Ford Coppola
Writer:
Francis Ford Coppola
Cast:
Gene Hackman; John Cazale; Allen Garfield
Genre
: Mystery | Thriller
Tagline:

Memorable Movie Quote: "He'll kill you if he gets a chance. I'm not afraid of death. I am afraid of murder."
Theatrical Distributor:
Paramount Pictures
Official Site: https://lionsgatelimited.com/products/the-conversation?variant=42589618372719
Release Date:
April, 1974
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
December 17, 2024.
Synopsis: Harry Caul (Hackman) is a surveillance expert in San Francisco whose routine wiretapping job turns into a nightmare when he hears something disturbing in his recording of a couple — something a lot more important than adulterous goings-on. His investigation of the tape and how it might be used sends Harry spiraling into a web of secrecy, murder, and paranoia.

Art

The Conversation (1974)