Runtime: 112 minutes
Directed by: Jerry Schatzberg
Starring: Gene Hackman, Al Pacino, Dorothy Tristan, Ann Wedgeworth, Richard Lynch
From: Warner Bros.
Eat Cantaloupe You Bellyachin' Rhinoceros! While I've known of this 70's road movie for a long time now, the impetus behind finally giving this a spin: a recent realization that more Gene Hackman should be seen by myself. Something that also starred Al Pacino & featured cinematography from Vilmos Zsigmond was only icing on the cake. At first the movie was amusing as we got to see the two leads (drifters who were hitchhiking and both had lonely existences, for differing reasons) meet each other and after initial wariness they become pals. There are some funny moments as Pacino was happy/carefree while Hackman was quite gruff and a loner. They join up to travel across the country so Al can see his ex in Detroit and visit their kid for the first time while Gene has a dream of... opening a carwash in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The mystery of why he chose Pittsburgh is addressed in the film although never answered. That's right, a Pittsburgh MacGuffin.
Then the second half of the movie happens... things change and trying to be vague, I'll just say that “it's a 70's film” and for certain only something that could be made in that decade. As usually happens, whenever Richard Lynch enters a flick, it's bad news for at least a few characters. It ended up being a more moving and powerful motion picture than what I was expecting going in. The cast as a whole is good overall (other familiar faces include Eileen Brennan & Rutanya Alda) but naturally it's the two leads who receive the lion's share of the attention and they are both great in what was not an easy role for either actor. It also has a nice musical score.
I do understand how many don't rate this as highly as I do, or feel that this has flaws, or that it's more about an actor's showcase than anything else. This happened to work like gangbusters for me. The performances delivered by and the characters brought to life by the two leads was so great, it won me over with all those poor sad-sacks went through. The filmmaking that had long takes, static shots that could last for a long while & took its time was also greatly appealing to my sensibilities. Besides watching more Gene Hackman, the same should go for the genre of 70's dramas.
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