The Art of Conspiracy: The Parallax View at 50

Inspired by JFK's assassination, a paranoid aesthetic found stylish expression in American cinema via the director who gave us All the President's Men

A promotional photo depicts the movie’s sensational opening scene, involving a U.S. senator’s assassination (Credit: Paramount Pictures Corporation)

Most people know producer, director and screenwriter Alan J. Pakula best for a string of big Hollywood motion pictures spanning three decades that racked up a pile of awards and nominations. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), Klute (1971), and Sophie’s Choice (1982) make up only a few of Pakula’s critically acclaimed big-screen triumphs. The Watergate scandal inspired his All the President’s Men (1976), alone nominated for eight Oscars that included four wins.

A movie Pakula is perhaps less well known for is The Parallax View (1974), a stylish and unusual work that garnered no big prizes. The narrative follows investigative reporter Joe Frady (Warren Beatty), who is obsessed with mysteries and unlikely coincidences in the assassination of a popular senator, Charles Carroll, at a July 4th campaign event.