Jack-Nicholson Movie Reviews
VHS movie reviews for "Jack-Nicholson" sorted by average review score:
Blood & Wine
Released in VHS Tape by Fox Home Entertainme (03 December, 1997)
Starring: Jack Nicholson and Michael Caine
You can feel the gears grinding, trying to turn this attempt at film noir into something sleek and insinuating, instead of the labored near miss it turns out to be. Jack Nicholson is a Florida wine merchant whose business isn't as good as he has his unhappy wife (Judy Davis) believe. He's also consistently at odds with his churlish stepson (Stephen Dorff). Meanwhile, Nicholson is plotting to steal an expensive diamond necklace and dump his wife, aided by his mistress (Jennifer Lopez) and a sleazy safecracker (Michael Caine). It's the kind of thing James M. Cain used to toss off effortlessly, but in director Bob Rafelson's hands the strain shows at every seam as crime and romantic treachery put all of the characters on a violent collision course. --Marshall Fine
Average review score: 
Bloody Hell
Blood, wine, and a really great storyBlood and Wine follows a very disfunctional family, played by Jack Nicholson, the wonderful Judy Davis, and Stephen Dorff. Also along for the ride are Michael Caine, and even a young Jennifer Lopez, who is actually a good actress.
The story follows Alex (Nicholson), who is a wine seller, but he also has a bit of a larceny problem as well. So as he's selling expensive wine to rich people, he's also stealing their jewels. And he's also cheating on his wife (Davis) with the beautiful nanny (J.Lo). And his stepson (Dorff) absolutely hates him. And his partner in crime (Caine) is an ailing psychotic. And that's just the background to the story.
There are plenty of good twists and turns in this thriller. The direction is great, as is the acting from everyone. If you're looking for a good thriller that you've never heard of, check this one out. You won't be disappointed.
Wonderful characters in this film noirI'm not a diehard fan of film noir movies, but this one appeals to me, largely because of the multi-dimensional characters, written with more insight and compassion than usually found in this genre. Even the most villainous character has an understandable reason for all-consuming greed; the rest exude depths of decency and honor when you least expect it. That makes it all worth watching; these are people worth watching and even rooting for. The main cast is uniformly magnificent... what a treat to see Caine and Nicholson play off each other so expertly, and Judy Davis is intelligent and stellar as always. Stephen Dorff continues to impress me with his "diamond-in-the-rough" surliness and Jennifer Lopez does better work here than I've seen before, adding extra likeableness to a plot that, on the surface, threatens to be more hard-boiled than it actually turns out to be. Although there are plenty of violent scenes, there's also just the right amount of vulnerability mixed in with the toughness, enough self-awareness and kindness mixed in with the hatred and selfishness. Great movie, great surprise!
Blood and Wine
Released in VHS Tape by Twentieth Century Fox (20 May, 2003)
Starring: Jack Nicholson and Michael Caine
You can feel the gears grinding, trying to turn this attempt at film noir into something sleek and insinuating, instead of the labored near miss it turns out to be. Jack Nicholson is a Florida wine merchant whose business isn't as good as he has his unhappy wife (Judy Davis) believe. He's also consistently at odds with his churlish stepson (Stephen Dorff). Meanwhile, Nicholson is plotting to steal an expensive diamond necklace and dump his wife, aided by his mistress (Jennifer Lopez) and a sleazy safecracker (Michael Caine). It's the kind of thing James M. Cain used to toss off effortlessly, but in director Bob Rafelson's hands the strain shows at every seam as crime and romantic treachery put all of the characters on a violent collision course. --Marshall Fine
Average review score:
Bloody HellJack's back in Blood and Wine, but I'm not sure the results will have you drunk with joy. The script does call for the great grinner to be a snake in the grass wine dealer who's looking to score some major jewels. Fine. But there's no zing, no pop, no nothing.
Alex Gates (Nicholson) can't make anybody happy anymore. He's cash-poor and his wine business hasn't aged all that well. His had-it-up-to-here wife Suzanne (Judy Davis) ends up doing more whining then her hubby. He's never home, and when he is, he usually goes at it with Suzanne's son Jason (Stephen Dorff).
The point of all this is theft. Alex calls on old friend Victor Spansky (Michael Caine in the best role he's had in years) to help him pull it off. The two aren't exactly Bonnie and Clyde but they do good work before Suzanne gets wise to Alex and his mistress (the hot, hot, hot Jennifer Lopez).
I find it admirable that Nicholson's been taking pay cuts to star in low budget films like this one and Sean Penn's underrated The Crossing Guard, but what happened to the man's taste in scripts.
The silver lining is when Jack goes toe-to-toe with Davis, who matches him scowl for scowl and wields a golf club like a psycho Tiger Woods. Also, Caine's hacking sleazoid is beautiful, but the two old dragons never get enough room to breathe the fire that's in them.
The problem here has to be director Bob Rafelson who, for whatever reason, can't build the suspense. Under the tutelage of Captain Bob, the stakes are never high enough. What we're left with is a second rate thriller with glimmers of brilliance. It's not enough. Remember friends, Blood and Wine don't mix.
Blood, wine, and a really great storyBlood and Wine follows a very disfunctional family, played by Jack Nicholson, the wonderful Judy Davis, and Stephen Dorff. Also along for the ride are Michael Caine, and even a young Jennifer Lopez, who is actually a good actress.
The story follows Alex (Nicholson), who is a wine seller, but he also has a bit of a larceny problem as well. So as he's selling expensive wine to rich people, he's also stealing their jewels. And he's also cheating on his wife (Davis) with the beautiful nanny (J.Lo). And his stepson (Dorff) absolutely hates him. And his partner in crime (Caine) is an ailing psychotic. And that's just the background to the story.
There are plenty of good twists and turns in this thriller. The direction is great, as is the acting from everyone. If you're looking for a good thriller that you've never heard of, check this one out. You won't be disappointed.
Wonderful characters in this film noirI'm not a diehard fan of film noir movies, but this one appeals to me, largely because of the multi-dimensional characters, written with more insight and compassion than usually found in this genre. Even the most villainous character has an understandable reason for all-consuming greed; the rest exude depths of decency and honor when you least expect it. That makes it all worth watching; these are people worth watching and even rooting for. The main cast is uniformly magnificent... what a treat to see Caine and Nicholson play off each other so expertly, and Judy Davis is intelligent and stellar as always. Stephen Dorff continues to impress me with his "diamond-in-the-rough" surliness and Jennifer Lopez does better work here than I've seen before, adding extra likeableness to a plot that, on the surface, threatens to be more hard-boiled than it actually turns out to be. Although there are plenty of violent scenes, there's also just the right amount of vulnerability mixed in with the toughness, enough self-awareness and kindness mixed in with the hatred and selfishness. Great movie, great surprise!
Hoffa
Released in VHS Tape by Twentieth Century Fox (14 May, 1996)
Starring: Danny DeVito and Jack Nicholson
A titanic performance by Jack Nicholson powers this fact-and-fiction biography of Teamsters president Jimmy Hoffa. From the opening moment--Hoffa sitting alone in the back of a car--Nicholson's performance is one of his best, and a rare role as a historical person. The sweeping all-American story of a common worker who reaches the highest pinnacle in the world's most powerful union is sweepingly told with wondrous detail, in wardrobe, sets, and trucks. The better-documented facts of Hoffa's life, including his struggle against Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Kevin Anderson), supply the backbone of the story. But the hope of what the Teamsters are to the American Dream is what makes the film glow (swept along by David Newman's score). The screenplay by David Mamet takes two wild and entertaining divergences from fact. The first is the character of Hoffa's ubiquitous sidekick Bobby Ciaro, played by the film's director, Danny DeVito. It's a fictitious role, a composite character that allows the story to be clearly told, as does the second--Mamet's explanation of Hoffa's famous disappearance. --Doug Thomas
Average review score:
Terrific, underrated biography of a controversial manA woefully underrated biography of the controversial Teamsters union president that deserved better than it got in 1992. Director Danny Devito and writer David Mamet clearly admire their subject, depicting Hoffa as a hero, a leader who has earned the loyalty of the working men he represents, rather than a self-centered puppet whose strings were pulled by organized crime. Whether or not Hoffa was deserving of such admiration is debatable, but the film offers a convincing argument that he was. As an actor, Devito has little to do but push people around and gape at Hoffa in awe, but behind the camera he performs admirably even if he seems a little too pretentious at times. As for Nicholson, this is one of his most challenging roles, one requiring more than an arch of those famous eyebrows and a flash of that killer smile. With the aid of a hairpiece and a few other modifications to his appearance, he gives one of his best performances in years. This is a fine, memorable film that seemed to have disappeared upon its release as thoroughly as Hoffa himself did in 1975. I don't know the whereabouts of Hoffa the man (and believe it's in my best interests not to know), but the film is on the video shelf. Check it out or buy it, but see it.
Electrifying DramaYou don't have to have any interest in the life of Jimmy Hoffa to like this. This is a film for hard core drama fanatics. If you want to learn how to act, watch Jack Nicholson in this movie, who I feel gave the best performance by any actor in the 1990's. I think the telephone call scene around the latter half of the movie was enough to get Jack an Oscar for best actor. Without him, I don't think this film would be nearly as engrossing or captivating. Danny DeVito is another attraction, and if you're not a fan of him now, you will be after you watch this! The performances of these two men, and Assante as well, simply dwarf the talent of today's "hot" actors. I couldn't recommend it more. This movie needs a DVD widescreen release with commentaries and extras. I've been checking for over a year, so I hope Fox gets on it!
Why isn't this on DVD?? It's brilliant!One of Jack Nicholson's best performances is in this story of former Teamsters leader James R. Hoffa. The film shows Hoffa's rise through the ranks of the Teamsters, his battles with management, RFK, and his fellow Teamsters, and climaxes with his mysterious disappearance. The supporting cast is excellent as well, especially Danny DeVito as Hoffa's aide and best friend. This movie is a "must-own", and hopefully will be available on DVD before too long...If not, it's a shame....
Psych Out
Released in VHS Tape by Hbo, Inc. (06 July, 1988)
Starring: Susan Strasberg, Dean Stockwell, and Jack Nicholson
Average review score:
Funny how time changes perspectives ( & alters history)...I saw this when it first came out. At a midnight showing in Oakland California. I thought it an abomination at the time. Hollywood got it, typically, ALL WRONG, wrong look, wrong dialog, wrong clothes, wrong attitudes. Contrary to a previous review, this movie was not filmed "on location" (unless you consider Culver City an annex of San Francisco). Of all the actors, only Bruce Dern had an authentic aura about him, but the guy was born a bohemian/hippie. I had never seen Jack Nicholson before but I left the theater thinking I'd never see him again, so lousy was his acting. (How wrong could I be!) He was the antithesis of people in & around the Haight. All that said, let me confess that I think Nicholson is one of the outstanding actors of film history (though not in this movie). I also find that time has mitigated my sense of indignation with the accuracy of the Psych-Out. While still not a realistic representation of Haight in the 1960s (except maybe at the end of its dynasty), it is a pretty accurate view of Hollywood's take on & imitation of its Northern neighbors. Psych-Out is what Sunset Strip & its environs became in the 1970s.
God is Alive & Well & Living In a Sugar Cube...Director Richard Rush (The Stuntman) throws deaf 17 year old runaway Susan Strasberg into the Height Ashbury scene in search of her long lost brother played by Bruce Dern. She meets up with muscians Jack Nicholson, Adam Rourke and Max Julian who look after her and help scour San Fransisco in search of her acid-addled brother. During their search they promote their band, calm down a flipped-out friend with a circular saw, play some tunes with the Strawberry Alarm Clock, fight a bunch of hard-hat types and indulge in some downright hillarious dialogue.
While wallowing in a pile of cliches, this film (unlike many of its era) is more realistic than some and the performances are uniformly excellent. Dean Stockwell playing a groovy guru, Jack Nicholson looking hillarious with a ponytail as he belts out a version of 'Purple Haze', Max Julian conveying an all too realistic chemical state of mind and Bruce Dern as the brother who calls himself 'The Seeker' and lives in a garbage dump. The film also benfits from the cinematography by Lazlo Kovaks and would make a great double feature with Roger Corman's "The Trip".
*** 1/2
Psych Out will psych you up!Perhaps no 1960's hippie "exploitation" flick has more realism than 1968's AIC feature: "Psych-Out". With it's filming on location during the height of 1967's Haight Ashbury scene, this fictional account of Susan Strasberg as Jenny, a 17 year old runaway who arrives in the Haight looking for her dropped out acid-head guru brother excels as an unintentional documentary of the time. Along Jenny's way she runs into the trio of Jack Nicholson as Stoney, and 2 sidekick charactors played by Adam Roarke and Max Julien. With very explicit scenes of drug use and drug-induced, trippy "hippie revelations", as well as a scene of a bad LSD trip in progress, the film does not take either side of the establishment/anti-establishment debate of the time. The film is both an exceptional period piece of life as it really was in the Haight's heyday, as well as an excellent study of the dissillusionment of the dropped out youth of the Vietnam era. With the one exception of Jack Nicholson being poorly cast as Stoney, the remaining performances by the others in the cast are all excellent. A must see film for any 1960's countercultural buff. It would make a great DVD release.
Hell's Angels on Wheels/Run Angel Run
Released in VHS Tape by Anchor Bay Entertainment (29 August, 2000)
Starring: Adam Roarke and Jack Nicholson
This pair of Joe Solomon-produced biker dramas are two of the better examples of the '60s subgenre. Jack Nicholson stars in Hell's Angels on Wheels as a moody cycle-riding gas station attendant adopted by Adam Roarke's gang when he jumps into a friendly bar fight. It's a fairly blatant rip-off of Roger Corman's The Wild Angels, but director Richard Rush (who next teamed up with Nicholson for the counterculture classic Psych-Out) offers up a lifestyle that's less nihilistic than simply meaningless and winds the unlikely friendship between restless Nicholson and rootless Roarke into an inevitable clash over basic philosophical differences (namely, Jack wants Adam's girl, and Adam wants Jack to kowtow to his leadership). William Smith is an unusual hero in Run Angel Run: he's a sellout on the run from vengeful biker clubs up and down the coast. Director Jack Starrett, a former actor in biker movies himself (Hell's Angels on Wheels, among others), creates a taut little picture highlighted by impressive stunts (Smith jumps onto the flat car of a moving train). Smith's brooding, taciturn performance mellows when he takes a job on a rural sheep farm and connects with a career farmer who used to be a barnstorming biker in the 1950s. "I gotta be free man, I gotta fly," confesses Angel, but at what price? Both pictures were cheaply made for quick playoff, but there's an interesting attempt to explore the tension between the thrill of the road and the hollow activity passing for freedom. The set comes in a cool-looking 8 by 12 tin storage container, but the tapes do not have separate video sleeves. --Sean Axmaker
Average review score:
Classic Movie --If you want to go back to the '60s then this movie is for you. Put this movie into the VCR and go back in time. Action in a classic way. But again, remember "CLASSIC".
Good biker flickI've seen this one three or four times on Speedvision. Kind of ruthless toward the women but conveys the style of the Hell's Angels. Too bad about Adam Roarke. He was a good guy, a pretty good actor, stunt man and.... well he died a little before his time. I could call myself a biker but my Kawasaki Z1R although quick doesn't quite fit the image of a Harley Davidson. Some how Jack Nicholson just doesn't fit in either. Sonny "Ralph" Barger sure does!
Hells Angels on WheelsThis was just the flick I was looking for. A "bare bones" biker movie (It didn't win an Oscar, like it really matters). Absolutely entertaining and down to earth, I loved it!! If you like "B-movies" get it.
Hells Angels on Wheels
Released in VHS Tape by Anchor Bay Entertainment (11 November, 1997)
Starring: Adam Roarke and Jack Nicholson
This pair of Joe Solomon-produced biker dramas are two of the better examples of the '60s subgenre. Jack Nicholson stars in Hell's Angels on Wheels as a moody cycle-riding gas station attendant adopted by Adam Roarke's gang when he jumps into a friendly bar fight. It's a fairly blatant rip-off of Roger Corman's The Wild Angels, but director Richard Rush (who next teamed up with Nicholson for the counterculture classic Psych-Out) offers up a lifestyle that's less nihilistic than simply meaningless and winds the unlikely friendship between restless Nicholson and rootless Roarke into an inevitable clash over basic philosophical differences (namely, Jack wants Adam's girl, and Adam wants Jack to kowtow to his leadership). William Smith is an unusual hero in Run Angel Run: he's a sellout on the run from vengeful biker clubs up and down the coast. Director Jack Starrett, a former actor in biker movies himself (Hell's Angels on Wheels, among others), creates a taut little picture highlighted by impressive stunts (Smith jumps onto the flat car of a moving train). Smith's brooding, taciturn performance mellows when he takes a job on a rural sheep farm and connects with a career farmer who used to be a barnstorming biker in the 1950s. "I gotta be free man, I gotta fly," confesses Angel, but at what price? Both pictures were cheaply made for quick playoff, but there's an interesting attempt to explore the tension between the thrill of the road and the hollow activity passing for freedom. The set comes in a cool-looking 8 by 12 tin storage container, but the tapes do not have separate video sleeves. --Sean Axmaker
Average review score:
Classic Movie --If you want to go back to the '60s then this movie is for you. Put this movie into the VCR and go back in time. Action in a classic way. But again, remember "CLASSIC".
Good biker flickI've seen this one three or four times on Speedvision. Kind of ruthless toward the women but conveys the style of the Hell's Angels. Too bad about Adam Roarke. He was a good guy, a pretty good actor, stunt man and.... well he died a little before his time. I could call myself a biker but my Kawasaki Z1R although quick doesn't quite fit the image of a Harley Davidson. Some how Jack Nicholson just doesn't fit in either. Sonny "Ralph" Barger sure does!
Hells Angels on WheelsThis was just the flick I was looking for. A "bare bones" biker movie (It didn't win an Oscar, like it really matters). Absolutely entertaining and down to earth, I loved it!! If you like "B-movies" get it.
Hells Angels on Wheels
Released in VHS Tape by Vid-America (08 August, 1990)
Starring: Jack Nicholson
This pair of Joe Solomon-produced biker dramas are two of the better examples of the '60s subgenre. Jack Nicholson stars in Hell's Angels on Wheels as a moody cycle-riding gas station attendant adopted by Adam Roarke's gang when he jumps into a friendly bar fight. It's a fairly blatant rip-off of Roger Corman's The Wild Angels, but director Richard Rush (who next teamed up with Nicholson for the counterculture classic Psych-Out) offers up a lifestyle that's less nihilistic than simply meaningless and winds the unlikely friendship between restless Nicholson and rootless Roarke into an inevitable clash over basic philosophical differences (namely, Jack wants Adam's girl, and Adam wants Jack to kowtow to his leadership). William Smith is an unusual hero in Run Angel Run: he's a sellout on the run from vengeful biker clubs up and down the coast. Director Jack Starrett, a former actor in biker movies himself (Hell's Angels on Wheels, among others), creates a taut little picture highlighted by impressive stunts (Smith jumps onto the flat car of a moving train). Smith's brooding, taciturn performance mellows when he takes a job on a rural sheep farm and connects with a career farmer who used to be a barnstorming biker in the 1950s. "I gotta be free man, I gotta fly," confesses Angel, but at what price? Both pictures were cheaply made for quick playoff, but there's an interesting attempt to explore the tension between the thrill of the road and the hollow activity passing for freedom. The set comes in a cool-looking 8 by 12 tin storage container, but the tapes do not have separate video sleeves. --Sean Axmaker
Average review score:
Classic Movie --If you want to go back to the '60s then this movie is for you. Put this movie into the VCR and go back in time. Action in a classic way. But again, remember "CLASSIC".
Good biker flickI've seen this one three or four times on Speedvision. Kind of ruthless toward the women but conveys the style of the Hell's Angels. Too bad about Adam Roarke. He was a good guy, a pretty good actor, stunt man and.... well he died a little before his time. I could call myself a biker but my Kawasaki Z1R although quick doesn't quite fit the image of a Harley Davidson. Some how Jack Nicholson just doesn't fit in either. Sonny "Ralph" Barger sure does!
Hells Angels on WheelsThis was just the flick I was looking for. A "bare bones" biker movie (It didn't win an Oscar, like it really matters). Absolutely entertaining and down to earth, I loved it!! If you like "B-movies" get it.
Gator
Released in VHS Tape by Mgm/Ua Studios (13 January, 1998)
Starring: Burt Reynolds and Jack Weston
Average review score:
GatorThis was one of those movies I enjoyed watching, and would watch over again and again, it's quick paced, full of action, and light comedy, I would suggest this to anyone. I would have bought this along with White lightning, which came out before Gator. But Alas the Studio's blew it again, by only releasing this and White Lightning in full screen format.
So out of my basket they went. My message to the powers to be at the studio's if your going to release DVD's such as these good fun movies, release them in both widescreen and fullscreen, you might sell more copies. But what do I know I am only a consumer.
So out of my basket they went. My message to the powers to be at the studio's if your going to release DVD's such as these good fun movies, release them in both widescreen and fullscreen, you might sell more copies. But what do I know I am only a consumer.
Enjoy the movie, not the formatI have always enjoyed Burt Reynolds movies and "Gator" is no exception. Oh sure, don't expect any of Burt's offerings to be placed in nomination for any awards, but they are extremely entertaining and always action oriented.
I'm however saddened that the powers-to-be have again chosen to put yet another Burt Reynolds DVD movie out in that dreaded "full screen" format. I just don't understand the rational for some of his best movies like "Sharky's Machine" and "Hooper" and now "Gator" to be released like this. To me, it is akin to buying a "Rolls Royce" with a VW engine.
You will thoroughly enjoy the movie if don't have any preference as to it's format, but I will never again knowingly purchase a DVD in full screen format when it should be in it's theatrically released format, because for me, that is one of the important reasons I am buying DVD's in the first place.
This review is for Floridians only.Once upon a time, "Buddy" Reynolds, star footballer for Florida State was recuperating from an injury at home in Riviera Beach and attending Palm Beach Junior College to keep up with his studies. The head of the English department, Watson B. Duncan III, saw him one day on campus and asked him to read for a role in a play that P.B.J.C. was doing. According to Duncan, this was the beginning of Burt Reynolds' acting career. Years later, Burt honored his beloved teacher (Duncan was beloved by all who knew him) by having him play the press secretary to the Governor in his movie "Gator." The movie is a fun movie. All are having a great time. The cast is a hoot. Easy going Jerry Reed plays the heavy, Burt, the hero (of course), and the rest of the ensemble is a delight. This is light fair with a moral and it is a lot of fun to view.
The Missouri Breaks
Released in VHS Tape by Mgm/Ua Studios (30 July, 2002)
Starring: Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson
Average review score:
Brando vs. PennI read in an old book of movie reviews that Marlon Brando had had script approval of the Missouri Breaks, and that he had forced the director, Arthur Penn, to make nonsensical changes in the script. This is certainly believable once you've seen the film. It seems as though Penn set out to make a neo-Western in the McCabe and Mrs. Miller or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid mold and that Marlon Brando tried to do everything he could to sabotage it. (If this sounds familiar, maybe it's because you've seen Apocalypse Now). Brando is willfully bizarre--particularly his increasingly ridiculous costumes--and if you're not too involved in the "real" story, the whole thing is actually quite funny. Brando's performance is reminiscent of Peter Sellers's in Lolita, except that Brando's co-stars seem to be at a loss when he is on screen with them.
The problem with all this is that, beyond its value as a curiosity, the film as a whole is just not very interesting. Whatever story, drama, tone or theme that was intended simply does not come across. It is a bit like trying to watch two different movies at once, Brando's and everyone else's, and it just doesn't work. Jack Nicholson is fun to watch as always, but the lead actress is mediocre at best and thoroughly 20th century. She sticks out almost as bad as Brando does, and that's really saying something.
The Missouri Breaks is amusing to see once if you're interested in watching Marlon Brando be completely loony (and in that case you'll probably be tempted to see the totally awful Candy), but otherwise I would not recommend it.
Strange and wonderful world of McGuane brought to the screenWhat makes this film brilliant, besides Jack Nicholson in a terrific role, and Marlon Brando really showing his incredible acting range, is a wonderful, funny, bizarre, and engaging script by Thomas McGuane. McGuane is arguably the best living novelist America has (The Bushwhacked Piano, Ninety-two in the Shade, Panama, Keep the Change, et al) and his ear for dialogue is sharp, satirical and in full force in the Missouri Breaks. He lives in Montana and has an incredible love for the land mixed with a disdain for those who exploit it, which is exemplified in this western to end all westerns. As far as what Leonard Maltin says . . .well, let's consider the source, shall we?
One of the best "anti-westerns" of the '60s and '70s.'The Missouri Breaks' caps a short list of "anti-western" films that marked the death of the classic western as an American Icon. Writer Thomas McGuane skillfully weaves the counter-cultural mores of his own generation into the fabric of this non-conformist screenplay in which the "good guys" are the cattle rustlers and the "bad guys" are the law (or what passes for law in the west). Jack Nicholson (as a rustler) and a very scary Marlon Brando as a looney bounty hunter head up this cast, which reads like a rogue's gallery of great character actors such as Frederick Forrest, Harry Dean Stanton and Warren Oates. Many mainstream American critics panned this film, largely because of its refusal to fit within well-defined story arcs, yet foreign critics praised it for its rawness and superb acting. If you're a fan of films that stretch the limits of their genre, then 'The Missouri Breaks' is a must-see Western.
The Missouri Breaks (Widescreen Edition)
Released in VHS Tape by Mgm/Ua Studios (10 April, 2001)
Starring: Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson
Average review score:
Brando vs. PennI read in an old book of movie reviews that Marlon Brando had had script approval of the Missouri Breaks, and that he had forced the director, Arthur Penn, to make nonsensical changes in the script. This is certainly believable once you've seen the film. It seems as though Penn set out to make a neo-Western in the McCabe and Mrs. Miller or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid mold and that Marlon Brando tried to do everything he could to sabotage it. (If this sounds familiar, maybe it's because you've seen Apocalypse Now). Brando is willfully bizarre--particularly his increasingly ridiculous costumes--and if you're not too involved in the "real" story, the whole thing is actually quite funny. Brando's performance is reminiscent of Peter Sellers's in Lolita, except that Brando's co-stars seem to be at a loss when he is on screen with them.
The problem with all this is that, beyond its value as a curiosity, the film as a whole is just not very interesting. Whatever story, drama, tone or theme that was intended simply does not come across. It is a bit like trying to watch two different movies at once, Brando's and everyone else's, and it just doesn't work. Jack Nicholson is fun to watch as always, but the lead actress is mediocre at best and thoroughly 20th century. She sticks out almost as bad as Brando does, and that's really saying something.
The Missouri Breaks is amusing to see once if you're interested in watching Marlon Brando be completely loony (and in that case you'll probably be tempted to see the totally awful Candy), but otherwise I would not recommend it.
Strange and wonderful world of McGuane brought to the screenWhat makes this film brilliant, besides Jack Nicholson in a terrific role, and Marlon Brando really showing his incredible acting range, is a wonderful, funny, bizarre, and engaging script by Thomas McGuane. McGuane is arguably the best living novelist America has (The Bushwhacked Piano, Ninety-two in the Shade, Panama, Keep the Change, et al) and his ear for dialogue is sharp, satirical and in full force in the Missouri Breaks. He lives in Montana and has an incredible love for the land mixed with a disdain for those who exploit it, which is exemplified in this western to end all westerns. As far as what Leonard Maltin says . . .well, let's consider the source, shall we?
One of the best "anti-westerns" of the '60s and '70s.'The Missouri Breaks' caps a short list of "anti-western" films that marked the death of the classic western as an American Icon. Writer Thomas McGuane skillfully weaves the counter-cultural mores of his own generation into the fabric of this non-conformist screenplay in which the "good guys" are the cattle rustlers and the "bad guys" are the law (or what passes for law in the west). Jack Nicholson (as a rustler) and a very scary Marlon Brando as a looney bounty hunter head up this cast, which reads like a rogue's gallery of great character actors such as Frederick Forrest, Harry Dean Stanton and Warren Oates. Many mainstream American critics panned this film, largely because of its refusal to fit within well-defined story arcs, yet foreign critics praised it for its rawness and superb acting. If you're a fan of films that stretch the limits of their genre, then 'The Missouri Breaks' is a must-see Western.
Alex Gates (Nicholson) can't make anybody happy anymore. He's cash-poor and his wine business hasn't aged all that well. His had-it-up-to-here wife Suzanne (Judy Davis) ends up doing more whining then her hubby. He's never home, and when he is, he usually goes at it with Suzanne's son Jason (Stephen Dorff).
The point of all this is theft. Alex calls on old friend Victor Spansky (Michael Caine in the best role he's had in years) to help him pull it off. The two aren't exactly Bonnie and Clyde but they do good work before Suzanne gets wise to Alex and his mistress (the hot, hot, hot Jennifer Lopez).
I find it admirable that Nicholson's been taking pay cuts to star in low budget films like this one and Sean Penn's underrated The Crossing Guard, but what happened to the man's taste in scripts.
The silver lining is when Jack goes toe-to-toe with Davis, who matches him scowl for scowl and wields a golf club like a psycho Tiger Woods. Also, Caine's hacking sleazoid is beautiful, but the two old dragons never get enough room to breathe the fire that's in them.
The problem here has to be director Bob Rafelson who, for whatever reason, can't build the suspense. Under the tutelage of Captain Bob, the stakes are never high enough. What we're left with is a second rate thriller with glimmers of brilliance. It's not enough. Remember friends, Blood and Wine don't mix.