The President's Analyst (1967)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Theodore J. Flicker

Writer:

Theodore J. Flicker (writer)

Release Date:

21 December 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Only two people on earth want Sidney Schaefer alive. Sidney Schaefer. And the President of the United States.

Plot:

At first, Dr. Sidney Schaefer feels honored and thrilled to be offered the job of the President's Analyst...

Plot Keywords:

Spy | Cold War | Nightclub | Gong | Sunglasses

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

James Coburn	...	Dr. Sidney Schaefer
Godfrey Cambridge	...	Don Masters, CEA Agent
Severn Darden	...	V.I. Kydor Kropotkin
Joan Delaney	...	Nan Butler
Pat Harrington Jr.	...	Arlington Hewes, President of TPC (as Pat Harrington)
Barry McGuire	...	Old Wrangler
Jill Banner	...	Snow White
Eduard Franz	...	Ethan Allen Cocket, CEA Director
Walter Burke	...	Henry Lux, FBR Chief
Will Geer	...	Dr. Lee-Evans
William Daniels	...	Wynn Quantrill
Joan Darling	...	Jeff Quantrill
Sheldon Collins	...	Bing Quantrill
Arte Johnson	...	Sullivan, FBR Agent
Martin Horsey	...	1st Puddlian (Canadian Secret Service)

Also Known As:

C.E.A:n takaa-ajama (Finland) [fi]
Demasiados secretos para un hombre solo (Spain) [es]
Jagad av C.E.A. (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Jagt Dr. Sheefer (West Germany) [de]
La folle impresa del dottor Schaefer (Italy) [it]
La folle mission du docteur Schaeffer (France) [fr]
O Analista do Presidente (Portugal) [pt]
O mystikosymvoulos tou kyriou Proedrou (Greece) [el]

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Russian | Mandarin

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Lincoln Memorial, National Mall, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

Company:

Panpiper Productions

Trivia:

'Barry McGuire' (Old Wrangler) made his own flowered pants for the movie. During that time they were quite the rage.

Goofs:

Continuity: Don gives Sidney an ID badge. Looking over Sidney's shoulder, both hands are on the ID, but when seen from the front his hands are apart and the ID is in his right hand.

Quotes:

Dr. Sidney Schaefer: If I was a psychiatrist, which I am, I would say that I was turning into some sort of paranoid personality, which I am!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Burn After Reading (2008)

Soundtrack:

Joy to the World

Drugs, death and John Adams, too.

When James Coburn passed away in 2002, it was sad to see how little fanfare was generated by this event. Coburn's resume is as strong as any actor of the Sixties and Seventies. For almost a decade, Coburn played in some of the strangest and most unorthodox films of the era. Everyone knows that he capably spoofed the popular spy genre with his "Flint" films. But it wasn't until he became the President's analyst that he really hit his stride. The fabulous panoramic views of a pre-World Trade Center New York duel with the more grimy shots of the Manhattan Garment District. Look for a humorous assassination involving a knife and a clothing pushcart. Nostalgic observation: the New York Skyline appears the way it does on the New York Mets' uniform patch. The plot concerns the President's need for a head shrinker. Wanted: a man who can be trusted with the leader of the free world's secrets. Grandpa Walton (Will Gear) shows up as the President's prior therapist. He is wonderful as always. Edgy pop singer, Barry McGuire, plays a stoner with a catchy song on his acoustic guitar. One memorable sequence combines McGuire's tune (something about "changes") and a team of assassins in a field, attempting to kill our hero, Coburn. The killers use everything from guns to gas to blow darts. Even a net. In widescreen, the final shot of the movie resonates with a sly, satirical nod to the genre. The villain of the piece comes as a big surprise to anyone under the age of forty: think telephone exchanges and room-size computers. And mix. Bravo!