065 - Straight time

Synopsis: On release from jail, small time criminal gets himself deeper and deeper into trouble

Director: Ulu Grosbard

Actors: Dustin Hoffman, Harry Dean Stanton, Gary Busey, Theresa Russell, M Emmet Walsh, Kathy Bates

Date: 1978

How viewed: Bought DVD

Rating: 3/5

David Meyer says:

Hoffman presents a once-whole man fractured into pieces. His portrayal of a convict is a Chinese puzzle box of hidden emotions and undiscussed intents.

I say:

Small time criminal (Dustin Hoffman) is released from jail, and tries to make it back into society - finds somewhere to stay, finds a job, finds a girlfriend, generally tries to stay away from old friends - but then falls foul of his parole officer, and suddenly turns manic - contacts his fellow convicts, gets a gun, steals cars, robs grocery stores, borrows money, robs bank, shoot people, and, inevitably, against the advice of his wiser colleague (Harry Dean Stanton) pushes his luck and loses it all. I liked the first half - there was a quietness about it, and you felt sympathy for Hoffman trying to go straight. Then he just seemed to turn from gentle mild mannered Dr Bruce Banner into The Hulk, and it all got really annoying. Having said that the cast was stellar - though all looking a little young! - and it hasn't aged too badly. I was just really upset that his girlfriend, who apparently had just started a very minor post in an employment agency, had a pale blue convertible Mustang - how did she do that!

059 - Rancho Deluxe

Synopsis: Young rustlers against old style rancher in modern day Western 

Director: Frank Perry

Actors: Jeff Bridges, Sam Waterston, Slim Pickens, Elizabeth Ashley, Harry Dean Stanton 

Date: 1975

How viewed: Lovefilm rental

Rating: 3/5

David Meyer says:

The truest, funniest tale of the modern West ever told. It's a longtime cult favourite, the kind of witty, well-written evocative picture that would never get produced today. 

I say:

What a disappointment! Billed by one critic as 'an often hilarious look at how the vast societal upheaval of the 60's and the creeping industrialisation which began at the turn of the century were changing the face of the 'old west', this falls between 2 (or more) stools. It could have been another Blazing Saddles (which surprisingly came out the year before, one might have guessed it would have been the other way around), or it could have been a more serious look at the way modern technology changed the face of ranching I can't decide whether the script is good and the direction is poor, or the direction is good and the script is poor, but it just seemed like a missed opportunity. Nevertheless there are some good one-liners, and I like the way none of the characters are not what they seem (e.g. the ranchers previously owned a beauty parlour) and the likes of Jeff Bridges, Harry Dean Stanton, and Slim Pickens (who I have to admit is great!), are always worth watching, but the story is more 'Dukes of Hazard' than anything else. Ho hum...   

039 - 92 in the shade

Synopsis: Young guy sets up as fishing guide in competition to the 2 regulars

Director: Thomas McGuane

Actors: Peter Fonda, Warren Oates, Harry Dean Stanton, Burgess Meredith, Elizabeth Ashley, Margot Kidder, Sylvia Miles

Date: 1975

How viewed: Bought from J4HI.com

Rating: 3/5

David Meyer says:

.. dark daring wit, stellar understated performances, and the director's gift for capturing American rhythms of speech. It's a cult film for adults: smart, loose, funny, and too ironic for its own good. 

I say:

As I discovered when I used to spend too much time and money on obscure CDs, the reason some music (and some films) are difficult to find, out of print, unreleased, etc, is that they deserve to be! Admit it, there's very few undiscovered gems out there folks! This is a strange little film - the story, such as it is, involves Tom (Fonda) deciding that the only thing he's any good at is taking tourists out to fish in some Florida backwater, but the 2 guys who have the business (Oates and Stanton) take exception, and despite the fact that they're all friends, Oates threatens to shoot him (he's always fooling around with a pistol). Thomas McGuane wrote the script (he also wrote stuff like Tom Horn, Rancho Deluxe and The Missouri Breaks) but this was the only film he directed - and (from other reviews) it sounds like he and a bunch of his movie pals had a holiday in Key West and filmed this. So on the one hand it's always a pleasure to watch the likes of Fonda, Oates, Stanton, Meredith and the rest enjoy playing some crazy characters, but Fonda especially, sleepwalks through the whole thing, and there's no tension, no edge, no passion. The one moment that make you sit up is the ending, but the DVD also includes the alternative happy ending that the studio insisted on, which is just a joke! Anyway, the best scenes are those with Meredith (as Fonda's grandfather), William Hickey (as Fonda's father) and Miles (as Meredith's secretary) - because the one thing that McGuane does well is write good dialogue. Anyway, Brownie points to J4HI.com for making films like this available, even if they don't live up to expectations!