All 5 Sean Connery & Sidney Lumet Movies, Ranked

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Sean Connery and Sidney Lumet worked together on five movies over twenty-five years, but their successful partnership hasn’t gotten as much attention as others, like Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese or Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos. Connery and Lumet made several excellent, but often overlooked, films that deserve to be seen again.

Sean Connery and Sidney Lumet are primarily remembered for different, more famous projects – Connery as James Bond and Lumet for films like 12 Angry Men and Dog Day Afternoon. However, their collaboration resulted in compelling films spanning genres like prison dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. These movies offer a level of depth that continues to appeal to serious film fans looking for more than just the actors’ or director’s best-known work.

Family Business (1989)

The last film Sean Connery and Sidney Lumet worked on together, Family Business, wasn’t their best. This somewhat flawed neo-noir features Connery as a Scottish-American mobster with a surprising family: Dustin Hoffman as his son and Matthew Broderick as his grandson. Despite the talent of all three actors, the movie asks viewers to accept a family connection that feels unrealistic.

From the start, the film Family Business faced challenges, largely because Dustin Hoffman was only seven years younger than Sean Connery. Unfortunately, this lackluster crime story didn’t overcome those issues. It also suffers from a confused tone, never deciding if it wants to be a gritty gangster film, a heartfelt family story, or a suspenseful thriller.

It’s easy to see why Sean Connery and Sidney Lumet didn’t collaborate again after making Family Business. Their previous films had a certain energy and drive that was missing here. Ultimately, Family Business is a forgettable film, only likely to interest those who collect complete filmographies of its talented actors, as they deserve better material than this.

Murder On The Orient Express (1974)

Sidney Lumet’s film adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express was a stylish and assured movie that brought together a remarkable cast of 1970s stars. With Sean Connery, Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, and Ingrid Bergman all appearing in one film, it created a buzz similar to today’s big ensemble movies like those in the Avengers series – audiences loved seeing so many famous faces together.

Sean Connery played Colonel Arbuthnott in Murder on the Orient Express, bringing a sense of mystery and subtle distrust to the role of an English officer traveling back from India. The film is engaging because everyone on the train – traveling from Istanbul to London – becomes a suspect when a mysterious death occurs. While the movie isn’t quite as powerful as some of Sean Connery and director Sidney Lumet’s best work together, it remains compelling.

While many people know the 2017 film adaptation, Agatha Christie herself preferred the 1970s version – a rare instance of her approving a movie based on her writing. The film features captivating performances, and Ingrid Bergman even won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Swedish missionary Greta Ohlsson.

The Anderson Tapes (1971)

Though not as famous as some of his other films, The Anderson Tapes is a truly excellent, yet often overlooked, Sean Connery movie. It’s a gripping, suspenseful thriller featuring a young Christopher Walken, and it cleverly examines themes of surveillance and government power – ideas that wouldn’t become widely discussed until much later, and which now feel remarkably prescient in our tech-driven world.

Watching Sean Connery play John Anderson, a former convict and safe-cracker, was incredibly suspenseful. The police meticulously tracked his latest crime, keeping him under constant observation. This film, the second time Connery and director Sidney Lumet worked together, solidified their strong creative connection and established them as a powerful team.

Released three years before Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation, The Anderson Tapes was the first film to explore how widespread electronic surveillance was becoming and to highlight the troubling consequences of things like security cameras and hidden microphones. Interestingly, the film came out right before the Watergate Scandal, making it surprisingly ahead of its time.

The Hill (1965)

Sean Connery became famous in the 1960s for playing the spy James Bond. However, the film The Hill showed audiences a completely different side of his acting. Unlike the sophisticated world of espionage, Connery challenged himself by playing Trooper Joe Roberts, a soldier in a World War II prisoner-of-war drama.

Sean Connery delivered a powerfully raw performance as a soldier facing harsh punishment in a North African prison, a role that was a departure from his usual suave characters. The performance evoked the psychological intensity of films like Full Metal Jacket, and director Sidney Lumet understood how to draw out Connery’s best work in a way no one else had.

Filmed in black and white, The Hill portrays a tense battle for control between soldiers and their cruel, abusive captors. Considered a hidden gem among war films, it’s understandable why Connery and Lumet continued to collaborate for many years after making this movie.

The Offence (1973)

The most impactful, though also most disturbing, collaboration between Sean Connery and director Sidney Lumet was the crime drama The Offence. The film features Connery as an experienced detective who suffers a complete mental collapse, ultimately killing a suspect during an interrogation for murder, rape, and other violent crimes.

Sean Connery is famous for playful roles like James Bond and exciting action films such as The Hunt for Red October. However, it was in the film The Offence that he truly showcased his dramatic acting talent. The Offence is a powerful and often overlooked film that highlights the skills of both Connery and director Sidney Lumet, offering a deep look into a character’s psychological breakdown.

Although The Offence is a very dark and disturbing film that might not appeal to everyone, Sean Connery delivers a powerful performance, and director Sidney Lumet’s stark style elevates it significantly. It’s a bold and uncompromising film from the 1970s, and it’s unfortunate that it isn’t as well-known or celebrated as other psychological thrillers like Taxi Driver.

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2026-01-18 20:50