"The Prize" is a fitfully entertaining, slickly made Hitchcock-like thriller. The premise is somewhat reminiscent of "The Lady Vanishes" and screenwriter Lehman, who also wrote the script for "North By Northwest", includes a scene here - the one involving a convention of nudists - that plays like a direct homage to the unforgettable auction sequence of the 1959 Hitchcock classic. The film stars Paul Newman, who is nearly as enjoyable to watch in his role as Cary Grant, and it's full of lively dialogue and colorful performances. But it goes on too long and the pace seems slack at times; if the storytelling was tighter, the film would be much more exciting. Now, it's only a mild entertainment.
