Jane Fonda became something of a joke in later years with her mad statements, crazy eyes and appearing in a series of crap movies (was it the lack of offers or just laziness? You could ask the same of Robert de Niro). So it's good to watch her in this thriller to be reminded of what an incredibly performer she could be/is. Frightening, outwardly cocky, sexy, confused, erratic, desiring warmth but also fearing it - it's fantastic work in what is, in its own way, a brilliant star vehicle.
Donald Sutherland is really odd casting as a romantic hero - I know it was the 70s and all but it feels strange even now, with his jug ears and gawky haircut. He isn't given that much of a character to play either - we never really get a sense of what makes Klute tick, but it doesn't matter so much because Fonda carries it.
The other star is Gordon Willis. If ever there was a case to be made for cinematographers as auteurs he could make it; this is such a stunningly shot film with its creepy scary nights and moments of warmth and paranoia and so on.
Oh and it's also one of few Hollywood movies up until then to treat therapy seriously and not in a comic/exaggerated way.
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