Klute
Movie, 1971, Named by critics, Set in First in the trilogy
Klute is #9 of 48 in release order and #16 of 48 in chronological order in the Spiritual Trilogies.
The story
A high-priced call girl is forced to depend on a reluctant private eye when she is stalked by a psychopath.
Klute recap
Tom Gruneman, an executive from a Pennsylvania chemical company, disappears, and the only lead is an obscene letter he apparently wrote to Bree Daniels, a New York call girl. Months later his colleague Peter Cable hires John Klute, a small-town detective and family friend, to find him. Klute rents a basement flat in Bree's building, taps her phone and follows her as she meets clients and goes to acting auditions. Bree tells her therapist her work gives her control but her life feels empty. She says a client once beat her, and Klute traces that man through her old pimp Frank Ligourin to two other women: Jane McKenna, who apparently killed herself, and Arlyn Page, who became an addict. Klute and Bree grow close. Arlyn is found dead in the river, and Klute realises someone is killing the women. It opens Alan J. Pakula's Paranoia Trilogy, three 1970s thrillers built on surveillance, tapes and hidden watchers.
Klute ending explained
Cable is the killer, and he falls to his death attacking Bree. Klute traces the letters to Cable's typewriter and baits him with talk of a client book. Cable corners Bree after hours in a garment-district office, admits he was the man who beat the women, killed Jane and Arlyn, and framed Gruneman, then plays her a tape of Arlyn's murder. Klute arrives and Cable goes through a window. Bree packs up her flat. In voiceover she tells her therapist a settled life would drive her mad, then tells a client on the phone she is leaving New York and walks out with Klute.
Post-credits scenes
No. There is no post-credits scene.
Where to watch Klute
Klute is streaming on Kanopy, Plex, and Tubi in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.1/10, Rotten Tomatoes 92%
Where it fits
- Release order: after Rosemary's Baby, before The Parallax View.
- Chronological order: after Wind River, before The Parallax View.
Cast
- Jane Fonda as Bree Daniels
- Donald Sutherland as John Klute
- Charles Cioffi as Peter Cable
- Roy Scheider as Frank Ligourin
- Dorothy Tristan as Arlyn Page
- Rita Gam as Trina
- Vivian Nathan as Psychiatrist
- Nathan George as Trask
- Morris Strassberg as Mr. Goldfarb
- Barry Snider as Berger
- Anthony Holland as Actor's Agent
- Richard B. Shull as Sugarman
Directed by Alan J. Pakula.