John Flynn’s 1973 adaptation of Donald E. Westlake’s 1963 Parker novel of the same name is brutal and ruthlessly efficient. It’s the epitome of hard-boiled.

An outline of the plot would make it sound pretty routine, but what makes the picture superior is its richness of detail.

An homage to hard-lived authenticity.

Assembled with an unfussy expertise that seemed like no great shakes to film critics 49 years ago, but feels like a lost art today.