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A Movie A Week: THE GETAWAY (1972) Punch it, baby!
Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with the next installment of A Movie A Week.
[For those who new to the column, A Movie A Week is just that, a dedicated way for me explore vintage cinema every week. I’ll review a movie every Monday and each one will be connected to the one before it via a common thread, either an actor, director, writer, producer or some other crew member. Each film, pulled from my DVD shelf or recorded on the home DVR (I heart TCM) will be one I haven’t seen.]
I need to get this out of the way up front or else it stands a large chance of derailing this review.
1972 Ali MacGraw – hubba-hubba-hubba – ahhhhhh-ooooooggaaaaa! Honk honk honk! Pant-pant-pant, drool, eye-balls-popping, heart-a-pitter-patting… le sigh.
Okay, with that out of the way, let’s take a look at Sam Peckinpah’s crime flick THE GETAWAY starring Steve McQueen, Ali Mac… Mac… Hottie-tehsex-grrrrooowwwlll-bark-bark-bark… MacGraw…, Ben Johnson (who we follow over from last week’s RIO GRANDE), Sally Struthers and a great, great special appearance by the wonderful and sorely missed screen personality Slim Pickens.
I’m a big Peckinpah fan. The way the dude handles violence is unparalleled. It’s raw and somehow both realistically brutal and operatic. Peckinpah and Verhoeven are the two reigning kings of squibs.
This has been a film I’ve been looking forward to getting to for a long, long time. Not only is it Peckinpah, but Peckinpah paired once again with Steve McQueen. Their previous collaboration, JUNIOR BONNER, is one of Peckinpah’s most underseen pieces. It’s not as entertaining as this film or his more popular works, but it’s a fascinating character study with a low-key, multi-faceted performance from McQueen.
In this film McQueen plays Doc McCoy… who is oddly enough not a doctor and just seems to have been named Doc by his mother as no one treats it as a nickname throughout the film.
McCoy is in prison when we first meet him, up for parole. In fact, this film would make a killer double feature with THE BLUES BROTHERS… which is in no way similar except for the framework. Anyway, the hearing doesn’t go well, an aged Ben Johnson on the parole board spends the entire time smirking at McQueen.
For the first 12 minutes of the movie McQueen doesn’t talk, just reacts. In fact I found it a pleasant surprise to watch Peckinpah play a bit with the first reel of the film, which jumps around in time. It’s a very experimental segment of the film with a lot of voiceovers as we see glimpses of McQueen’s daily life in the pen, sometimes cutting back to the person talking, sometimes cutting to the events prior to or after the parole hearing.
MacGraw is Doc’s long suffering wife, Carol, who comes to visit him after our time-skipping opening. He speaks here for the first time, a curt one sentence that he’ll do whatever Jack Benyon wants.
Benyon being Ben Johnson. It’s pretty clear that what Johnson wants is MacGraw (who could blame him?). Whatever transpires, McQueen is out. He’s told by a jackass guard as the gate opens that he’ll be back.
Sure enough, Jack Benyon’s other term for pulling strings ensuring Doc’s release is that he run a heist for him, the target being a mom and pop bank in a small Texas town. McQueen has no option, but doesn’t seem too concerned about reentering the criminal world. The only thing he’s wary about is that Benyon is forcing his own people into the crew.
Those people include the sleazy-looking Rudy Butler (Al Lettieri of THE GODFATHER and MCQ fame) and Bo Hopkins, a Peckinpah regular and staple of Southern movies of the era, like WHITE LIGHTNING.
As you can probably tell from the title, the movie isn’t so much about the robbery, but what happens after. The robbery goes well, actually, but as is common-place in these kinds of stories there are double-crosses, back-stabbing and all other such rudeness that takes place when a bag filled with $500,000 in tax-free cash is up for grabs.
McQueen is a cool cat, man. He takes everything in stride, keeps calm and tries to make the right choice at every turn, even if that puts him at risk. There’s only one scene where he loses control and that’s because he is hurt by the one person that he let past his outer defenses.
I mentioned that the post-robbery scene is filled with double-crosses… You have Al Lettieri taking out everybody in his group and he tries for McQueen and MacGraw, but is too slow. McQueen delivers the money to the big boss man and finds a gun in his back, held by MacGraw. It’s actually a really shocking moment, I didn’t see it coming. But there’s too much history between them and MacGraw makes the right choice, forcing them to run for Mexico from not only Benyon’s kin, but also from Lettieri who really wants his damn money.
After McQueen and MacGraw get to a relatively safe area, she starts trying to explain what happened only to be interrupted by a slap to the face. A real slap to the face. I have read that this was unscripted and I believe it. The look of hurt and shock on MacGraw’s face is about as real as it can get. Then she’s pummeled with more slaps as McQueen, face set, makes it quite clear how pissed he is.
I’m in the “you never hit a woman for any reason” camp in reality, but this isn’t reality. For these characters, this scene represents punishment and penance. It’s raw emotion expressed violently and Peckinpah forces us to watch, not cutting or moving the camera in any way.
There is a scene later where the annoying Southern Belle twit played by Sally Struthers gets a knuckle sandwich courtesy of McQueen, but that’s an audience satisfaction moment, not as important to the complex character relationship between MacGraw and McQueen.
This is a good time to step away and look off-camera for a bit. If you’ve read Robert Evan’s THE KID STAYS IN THE PICTURE or seen the documentary based on it you’ll know that the Paramount exec. was married to MacGraw and that he lost her to Steve McQueen on this picture… which he produced.
If nothing else in this picture worked it’s just fascinating watching the chemistry between McQueen and MacGraw develop. You can see the budding love ingrained in every frame. I don’t remember the specifics on how Evans found out about the affair, but I can’t imagine he saw these dailies and couldn’t see there was trouble in Whoville.
The film splits into two narratives once MacGraw and McQueen go on the run. There’s their story and then Lettieri’s story as he recovers from his altercation with McQueen and forces his doctor (Jack Dodson) and the doctor’s dumb bimbo wife (Struthers) as his personal entourage as he tries to beat the McCoys to El Paso.
The B story is just wrong. Dodson just watches as his dumb, flirty wife makes eyes, then makes much more with Lettieri. There’s also a scene in a car involving lots of BBQ that is that story-line’s equivalent of the McQueen/MacGraw slap-happy scene. It goes very violent very fast.
When everything converges in El Paso that’s when Peckinpah really steps up to the plate and says “This is one of my movies and you’re gonna damn well fucking know it!” McQueen gets a pump action shotgun and boy does the dude know how to use it.
The last 25 minutes is everything you ever want in a Peckinpah flick. The action choreography and character beats are never better than in a grade A Peckinpah film, which is where this film falls.
The only thing I didn’t really dig about the movie was the completely out of place score by Quincy Jones. Not surprisingly that was a last minute change, at the demand of McQueen and the light jazz just doesn’t fit at all. In fact, it’s distracting at times. There’s an option on the DVD to watch the film with the original Jerry Fielding (WILD BUNCH, STRAW DOGS, OUTLAW JOSEY WALES) score. I’m gonna have to give the movie another viewing with that track on. It can only make the movie better.
I mentioned Slim Pickens at the start of the review and he’s great in the movie. I was becoming more and more saddened as the movie went on and he didn’t pop up, thinking that it must be a small cameo instead of a real part. I was right and wrong. It is a small part, but definitely not a cameo. It’s a great, great role, the right bit of fun injected at the right time. I won’t give away his part for those that haven’t seen the flick yet because it’s at the very tail end of the movie, but it made me smile.
Also keep an eye out for Richard Bright as a small time con who stumbles into the story and is way out of his depth. He lifts MacGraw’s suitcase not realizing it had half a million bucks in it… or that he would have to deal with a pissed off Steve McQueen. Bright was very familiar to me and looking him up after the movie I smacked my hand to my head… Of course, he was Al Neri in THE GODFATHER films… as well as a real role in Leone’s ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA and Dennis Leary’s nervous little pal in THE REF.
Final Thoughts: Peckinpah’s film is sexy, funny, violent, exciting, fun and strangely experimental. It’s the kind of movie that could only be made by a master at this particular point in Hollywood history, when studio films could be strange, hardcore and not solely appealing to the lowest common denominator. THE GETAWAY might not be as much of a gut-punch as STRAW DOGS or as iconic as THE WILD BUNCH, but it’s every bit as good as those two films in its own individual way.
Upcoming A Movie A Week Titles:
Monday, June 29th: THE MACKINTOSH MAN (1973)
Monday, July 6th: THE LONG HOT SUMMER (1958)
Monday, July 13th: JOURNEY INTO FEAR (1943)
Monday, July 20th: HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962)
Next week we look at another ‘70s flick, the Paul Newman vehicle THE MACKINTOSH MAN via THE GETAWAY’s screenwriter (and future geektastic director) Walter Hill. See you folks next week for that!
-Quint
quint@aintitcool.com
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Previous AMAWs:
April 27th: How To Marry a Millionaire
May 4th: Phone Call From A Stranger
May 11th: Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte
May 18th: Too Late The Hero
May 25th: The Best Man
June 1st: The Catered Affair
June 8th: The Quiet Man
June 15th: Rio Grande
Click here for the full 215 movie run of A Movie A Day!
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..the leader of the Pharoes who will not hesitate to tie you to the back of the car and drag you..(according to Lauries brother Curt)
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it seems almost a kissing cousin of No Country For Old Men. I love it!
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Robert Wolfe was a genius. He also cut "All The President's Men." BTW, the 1994 remake with Alec Baldwin is an entertaining guilty pleasure. It doesn't hold a candle to the original, but it's fun nonetheless.
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Jun 22, 2009 11:26:10 PM CDT
The slap was real and unexpected--not in the script.
by cylon_conspiracy
MacGraw didnt know it was coming. That's f'd up that Steve improved it. Different era I supposed, he'd be in jail right now if it was a current film.
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The way Sally Struther's husband reacted to having his wife fall in love with the criminal was tragic and heartbreaking. I saw this movie for the first time a couple years ago, and that scene really stayed with me for some reason.
So raw, and TRUE. To see your girl get off on you being emasculated like that... harsh stuff. Not the type of thing you'd expect from such an "old" film. -
That is what this movie is. The editing in this movie is so damn cool especially in the earlier scenes. This movie just oozes with style. This movie was my introduction to the cool of Steve McQueen when I watched it back to back with Bullitt. Sure, Bullitt had the cool car chase, but The Getaway was cool right from frame one. Still my favorite McQueen movie I've seen thus far. Also, Peckinpah is insanely cool.
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very tomboyish and annoying. Badass movie tho.
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Wrong.
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This movie is full of memorable setpieces and downbeat character moments. Unlike the remake starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger, about which all I can remember is it had something to do with a Butterfinger candy bar...which pretty much says it all.
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She just seems like another frizzy-haired, quiet-spoken '70s hippie chick to me. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I can't imagine turning into that Warner Bros cartoon wolf over her like Quint did in the intro to this review. Different strokes though, right?
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A lot of times I'm amazed by the things Quint hasn't seen, but to think that there's a Walter Hill scripted, Peckinpah-directed, Steve McQueen-with-a-shotgun movie and I haven't seen it... shit.
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....look it up.
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I would love see this again without knowing what it is; without knowing how amazing it is and reliving that experience for the first time. Amazing film.
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The title sequence is a favorite of mine. No music; just sound effects; voice-overs and freeze-frames. It looks so cool and when it’s over you’ve got all the back story. The score for THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES by Jerry Fielding is fantastic, BTW. Fielding’s as under-appreciated as JUNIOR BONNER.
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i'm amazed that there isnt more discussion about this. i love reading these reviews of movies i should've seen by now.
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...says Quint, who has NEVER seen this film?
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And Bo Hopkins. Yessir yer in the early '70's! All good character actors. I've enjoyed watching this the times it came on AMC or whatever, worth seeing again too.
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And I agree with all the McGraw comments. Holy-moly.
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Jun 23, 2009 6:28:41 AM CDT
This film is just pure fucking brilliance in all it's brilliance
by stuntcock mike
The side of the road Ali smackdown is pretty harsh. She kinda deserved it. Robert Evans masturbates to that scene on a daily basis.
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if Doc had executed Rudy in that hallway. There is a really good harshness to this film.
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Ali McGraw was THE definition of HOT you retard..
kick ass movie..if ya dont know it already...SHAME -
The slap scene is great - vicious, wounded. The garbage dump scene is great too. Didn't realize there was an alternate score.
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I think I'm the only human on the planet that also loves the remake with Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger.
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Just down the road from us in Austin.
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All I recall from that movie is a oft-played video clip of the naked naughty scene...
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Ali was hotter.
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but PAT GARRETT & BILLY THE KID is still my personal favorite, with WILD BUNCH a close 2nd, this, STRAW DOGS then either MAJOR DUNDEE or ALFREDO GARCIA. Only thing I remember of the Baldwin/Basinger remake was the nice unrated sex scene.
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Sorry guys, i know i'm supposed to worship everything Peckinpah did, but c'mon - there's better character development, more likable characters (yeah, i know they're not supposed to be likable, blah blah) and I actually liked the action scenes better. There, I said it. The car chase in the remake is awesome, and the showdown between Rudy and Doc is ten times better. Seriously, you can't tell me with a straight face that you liked the Rudy/Doc finale in the first one. Oh, and the sex scene in the unrated version is easily the most hardcore sex scene you'll ever see two major film stars in. It's that good.
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Jun 23, 2009 8:30:13 AM CDT
Remake was pretty good, but original GETAWAY = classic!
by motoko kusanagi
Ali MacGraw > Kim Basinger.Steve McQueen > Alec Baldwin.But the action and the sex in the remake were pretty good.
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This film was always special to me, and I have it on Blu-ray now. The ending is so satisfying too. And yes, I thought Ali McGraw was the most beautiful thing I ever saw when I watched this in the 70s. Oh, and "No Country for Old Men" stole the hotel scene from this movie. A nice tribute.
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Please don't come on here talking that nonsense.
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And I think he did a really good job updating his film to put a bit more action and a few more twists that modern audiences would expect in a modern (90s) movie.Both the leads were stronger in the original, but I'll take Jen Tilley over Sally Struthers and James Woods is the man. Philip Seymor Hoffman is in there as "Phil Hoffman", I guess he figured out if he had a big name he'd get bigger parts. It worked.
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before she went the Kirstie Alley route and devoured half a nation.The ending shootout in the hotel is classic, and should be studied by todays so-called action directors.The only thing I remember in the remake, is we get to see Basinger's breasts. Does Alec Baldwin play that scene intercut with the MacGraw slap scene, and masturbate to it daily?
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I just realised that movie with the Butterfingers bar was The Chase, from the same year (1994) (where he kidnaps Kristy Swanson by pretending it's a gun). Which means I remember absolutely nothing about the Getaway remake. Not even the sex scene, which is kinda concerning.
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I love early 70s crime films, especially ones set in the Southwest.
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Oh, the ravages of time!
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but its biggest flaw is Ali McGraw. she is hollow, lacking any substance. it is impossible to believe that so implacable a criminal as Doc McCoy would have developed an unbreakable bond with such a flibbertygibbet. McGraw's lack of charisma/presence/call it what you will fatally undermines the entire film. had the role gone to an actress with the range and depth of say, Karen Black and the Getaway would have been a stone-cold hardcore classic.
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A great double feature with THE GETAWAY would be the CHARLES BRONSON flick MR MAJESTYK. The three common threads being a scary, scary, scary villian played by AL LETTIERI, lots of shotgun action and two cool lead actors at their best (SM and CB). AL LETTIERI died at age 47. What a scary SOB he played in his short film career. Sally Struthers character was HOT dancing in her halter, but painfully weak-willed in this movie. She is a girlfriend nightmare, changing allegiance from Mayberry's HOWARD SPRAGUE at the first threat to her from A L. Great acting by Sally. Great movie. The remake is lousy.