This file was generated 2003-08-26 05:15 GMT. This movie's information hasn't changed since 2003-07-27.

Scott Ventura >> Movie Commentary >> July 2003 >> Hopscotch

Hopscotch

Movie Commentary by Scott Ventura

Details

Scott's Rating:
4 / 5
Times Seen:
1
Viewing Date:
July 2003
IMDB Name:
Hopscotch (1980)
Director:
Ronald Neame
Keywords:
comedy, suspense
Made:
1980
MPAA Rating:
R

Sorry!

This movie's page is incomplete. I hate to admit that I'd put a page on my site only to leave it as "under construction", but it's the easiest way for me to be reminded of the reviews left to write. In this case, I know pretty much what I want to say about this movie, but I have yet to actually type it all in. This message will no longer appear when the I consider the page to be complete. That doesn't mean it won't ever change after that, but you can bet that it's less likely.


Information Theory

The majority of the characters in Hopscotch are spies. Part of the trick of the intelligence game is to make sure that your actions don't reveal everything that you know. If the enemy can figure out, for instance, that you've broken their codes, they will know it's time to change their codes. It is sometimes just as valuable to not change the codes if you plan to send fake messages through that channel, intended entirely for the enemy to read. I'm sure real-life spies are as conscious of information theory as the hero, but this film would be much, much harder to follow if written that way. Instead, we get to see a spy whose every action is carefully planned to send a certain message.

The movie centers around the magnificent Walter Matthau. His face is endlessly expressive




Copyright 2003 by Scott Ventura. All rights reserved.