The Drowning Pool (1975)

Thank god for Paul Newman. The plot of these Harper films are so convoluted and would be worthless without him. Of course, I would not be watching them if he weren’t the star. In this one, we have our private eye travelling to Louisiana in order to investigate who is blackmailing an ex-fling of his (played beautifully by Joanne Woodward). While down there, he instead gets drawn into intrigue involving an oil magnate and a missing account book. There is a drawn out climax in a pool of sorts and a young Melanie Griffith overacts with a poor Southern accent.