Runtime: 104 minutes
Directed by: Hal Ashby
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Otis Young, Randy Quaid, various performers in small roles
From: Columbia
RIP Robert Towne
I’ve seen a few movies written (whether credited or not) from the famed writer/script doctor, including the first two Mission: Impossible pictures because he was great pals w/ Tom Cruise. Instead of revisiting one of his classics-like Chinatown-I instead picked one of high regard which was free on Prime for me and I figured there needed to be more Hal Ashby and Jack Nicholson experienced by me.
Nicholson and Otis Young are Navy men tasked with escorting Randy Quaid to the brig; no, not for his bizarre legal issues in the past 15 to 20 years but rather for theft. He’s a kleptomaniac, you see. Much of the movie is just these three different characters interacting w/ each other. Jack is of course a wild guy while Young is more sober in demeanor and Quaid is a meek, withdrawn man. They have excess time for the trip to the naval prison so the trio engage in profane shenanigans.
The plot descriptions you find online make note of their profane antics; to clarify, the F-bombs used (which weren’t that many by modern standards but at the time actually caused some controversy) and other foul language didn’t bother me too much as they usually were artfully used rather than what we get now—which are salvos upon salvos of F-bombs used artlessly. As for the movie, it was riveting seeing the trio change throughout this journey filled with debauchery and touching moments alike. Of course Jack and Quaid did swell jobs with their roles; so did Young, who was someone I was far less familiar with but despite having a brief career on screen, his Letterboxd bio notes how he became a pastor and a teacher before passing away in 2001.
Serious character-driven 70’s dramas are apparently my jam; this likely pairs well with either Scarecrow or another Nicholson movie, Five Easy Pieces. Besides assisting me with viewing something worthwhile from a number of quality talents (including cinematographer Michael Chapman), seeing several familiar faces in bit parts and hearing a Johnny Mandel score that appropriately incorporating military marching music, it was a great story that captured the zeitgeist of the country in the early 70’s. This is a must if you’re interested in this era.
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