The Hireling in 35mm

Sean Connery made his second appearance as agent 007 in this gripping film version of Ian Fleming’s novel, one of the highpoints of the long-running James Bond movie series. Bond finds himself involved in a twisty mission in Istanbul when a beautiful Russian (Daniela Bianchi) offers him the chance to obtain a much-desired code-breaking device, leading to betrayal and cross-continental danger.

Connery’s friend and TV costar Robert Shaw made a big impression with audiences via his chilling portrayal of the assassin Donald Grant, one of the most threatening of all Bond villains and a key step in the actor’s path to international stardom.

Harold Pinter adapted his own 1957 play for this tense psychological drama, the second film directed by Oscar winner William Friedkin (The French Connection, 1971). Robert Shaw plays Stanley, a boarding-house resident, whose quiet life is upended by the arrival of two sinister strangers. This faithful version of the stage classic, Shaw’s second appearance in a Pinter adaptation following 1964’s The Caretaker, gave the star a rare chance to play a figure who is as much menaced as menacing, and allowed moviegoers to experience the subtlety and range of his stage performances.

Robert Bolt’s adaptation of his own Tony Award–winning play tells the inspiring true story of Thomas More, the Lord Chancellor of England, who risked his life in defying the will of King Henry VIII, who demanded the church’s permission to divorce his first wife in order to marry Anne Boleyn.

The film won Oscars for Best Picture, Directing (both for producer-director Fred Zinnemann), Bolt’s screenplay, Paul Scofield’s performance as More, and the film’s color cinematography and costume design. Oscar winner Wendy Hiller (Separate Tables, 1958) was nominated for her touching performance as More’s wife, and Robert Shaw earned his only nomination for his charismatic performance as the mercurial Henry, commanding the screen with only a few scenes.

Four armed men hijack a subway car on a sweltering Manhattan day in this witty thriller adapted by Peter Stone (Charade, 1963) from the bestseller by John Godey. Walter Matthau is the cynical transit cop who must negotiate with the hostage-takers, led by a subtly menacing Robert Shaw as an ex-mercenary.

Expertly directed by Joseph Sargent (Colossus: The Forbin Project, 1970), this classic from the Fun City era of New York features gritty wide-screen cinematography by five-time Academy Award nominee and Honorary Award winner Owen Roizman (The French Connection, 1971) and a brassy and percussive score by Oscar winner David Shire (Norma Rae, 1979).

Audrey Hepburn made a welcome return to the big screen after a nine-year absence in a touching performance as Maid Marian in this romantic swashbuckler with Sean Connery (at his most vulnerable) as Robin Hood.

Richard Lester (The Three Musketeers, 1973) directed the tragicomic original screenplay by Oscar winner James Goldman (The Lion in Winter, 1968), and the supporting cast features an astonishing assemblage of British acting talent including Richard Harris, Denholm Elliott, Nicol Williamson, Ian Holm, and Robert Shaw in a quietly powerful performance as Robin’s perennial nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham.

John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate, 1962) directed this epic international thriller based on the debut novel by Thomas Harris, creator of Hannibal Lecter. Robert Shaw, in a rare and welcome heroic leading role, is a world-weary Mossad agent on the trail of a Black September terrorist (Marthe Keller) and her unstable partner (Bruce Dern) planning an unthinkable crime on US soil.

John Williams’s score adds to the pulse-pounding excitement, and the screenplay by Ernest Lehman, Kenneth Ross, and Ivan Moffat gives the characters on both sides of the conflict their due.

The bestselling aquatic thriller by Jaws author Peter Benchley became a summer blockbuster under the direction of four-time Oscar nominee Peter Yates (Bullitt, 1968), with Robert Shaw commanding the screen as a Bahamas treasure hunter who aids a vacationing couple (Jacqueline Bisset and Nick Nolte) in a dangerous hunt for a sunken fortune.

The film’s memorable diving scenes benefit from the impressive underwater cinematography of second unit directors Al Giddings (The Abyss, 1989) and Stan Waterman, and the evocative score by five-time Oscar winner John Barry.