The two Thomas Crown Affair movies

There are two Thomas Crown Affair movies: the original released in 1968 with Steve McQueen in the title role; and a re-make released in 1999, with Pierce Brosnan in the title role. Faye Dunnaway plays Catherine Banning in the 1968 release, and plays a psychotherapist in the 1999 relaease.Rene Russo plays Catherine Banning in the re-make.

Together the two releases make an excellent pair, to be watched back to back. Both have a strong, similar though slightly different, storyline: the premise of the 1968 movie is a bank robbery, whereas that of the 1999 movie is an art heist. The effect of this difference is to make the 1968 robbery more believable, but the 1999 heist less morally challenging. If, as is proposed, Thomas Crown has everything, has done everything, and is bored, then the 1999 remake allows us to accept this, whereas in the 1968 movie, the line "What would someone who already has $4 million want with $2 million more" misfocuses our attention on a motive of greed. Both movies pose at least two ethical questions: a) considering what he does for a living, how great is Thomas Crown's sin in organising the heist? b) should Catherine Banning be true to her feelings or true to her job?

In both movies Thomas Crown becomes besotted with Catherine Banning, the insurance investigator, although the apparent chemistry between Brosnan and Rene Russo is mesmeric.The chess scene in the original is bursting with sexual tension, echoed by the tango dance scene in the re-maike.

Style figures in both movies, for example in Catherine Banning's costumes, in the locations (such as expensive houses), in the activities (such as gliding, and playing chess). The 1968 moviie was consciously stylish in its impressionistic use of multiple images, whereas the 1999 movie feels a little more formulaic.

In the original, music is used to occupy space where there is no dialogue, whereas in the re-make music is used to set mood, to great effect. The song, Windmills of Your Mind, was made famous by the original movie, during the gliding scene. In the re-make, the gliding scene is given music that is more upbeat, and the song Windmills of Your Mind is covered during the credits. The stand-out song in the 1999 re-make is Sinnerman.

The 1968 movie has a bittersweet ending, whereas the 1999 movie has a feel-good ending.