Back in a time when making of documentaries weren't a trend, mostly just to be shown on TV, this little gem is something magnificent even for today's standards. Unlike the self-congratulatory behind the scenes we're flooded each year by several bonus materials in countless films, this one feels different in several aspects. The making of "Marathon Man" has the film's producer Robert Evans as a host (quite unusual choice but a nice one) presenting a little about the film, his choices for the cast - which he claims were all his first choices and he was successful with that (but not really because word got out that Al Pacino and Julie Christie were considered for the roles that went to Dustin Hoffman and Marthe Keller). The high and mighty Evans also talks about the enormous pleasure he had in making the film, selecting and securing all great talents and also revealing some details about the production.
And we also have Hoffman, Keller, Laurence Olivier and Roy Scheider talking about the film, minor yet balanced points of view and never so awfully optimistic like we tend to see these days in similar projects. It also shows the conception and creation of some of the most memorable sequences, such as the climatic ending and the car crash from the opening. Highest point of this making of was a wrap up party dedicated to Sir Laurence Olivier, who received a kind of award by members of the crew and wonderful tributes by Hoffman, Evans and all. A lovely moment that to me holds more significance (what follows wasn't mentioned there) is the fact that Olivier was really ill at the time of they were shooting the film, he was deemed uninsurable and studio heads had to fight back to get an insurance for the veteran thespian, and not only he completed all his scenes, beat the disease and lived for a few more years and earned an Oscar nomination for his role as the Nazi doctor Szell, one of his most memorable roles. A genuine party and tribute to one of the greatest film legends of all time.
Indeed, "The Magic of Hollywood...Is the Magic of People" is a high note on how making of's should be presented. It doesn't need to show all the film's creations, or get immersed in those fake commentaries about how great the movie is and how spectacular all people are (yes, there are times Evans seems to be following such device but it's forgivable because he was a classy host, really confident and it even made me forget about how difficult he was back in the time when he was the big boss at Paramount). The magic of people involved here was evident and greatly captured here. 9/10
