Hard Times/The Streetfighter (1975) - Hill debuts with Bronson gold, a boxing favorite

♥♥♥♥♥♥

 

An imagination-fueling poster for Walter Hill's Hard Times that effectively sets us in a specific place and time

A fortune-hunting boxing promoter finds his new bare-knuckle sensation in an unimpressed man, who can punch so that even the heaviest adversaries see stars. But the promoter will have to borrow a big amount to get his new fighter going.

 

Hard Times is written by Bryan Gindoff (The Candy Snatchers (1973)), Bruce Henstell (The Candy Snatchers, assistant director) and debuting co-writer/director, Californian master filmmaker Walter Hill (48 Hrs. (1982)).

An enormously simple story gets presented in the most beautiful way in Hill's period boxing drama; handsome sets, beautiful image compositions (cinematography by Philip H. Lathrop (Class Reunion (1982))) and an iconic performance by Charles Bronson (Murphy's Law (1986)). Some of the nuances here lie in the fact that one senses the inherent degradation in having to fight until blood spurts in order to survive; SPOILER along with the ending's implicit point about protecting and helping those you have fought along with, even if you don't care much for them.

James Coburn (Intrepid (2000)) is strong as the promoter, a man caught between a rock and a hard place. The scene in which Bronson sets things right in Louisiana is fantastic. The film's final fight, (despite the fact that the camera doesn't linger much on the impact of the punches), is the fight of the decade. 

Hard Times is a phenomenal, inconspicuous song of a hero, a gift for men - and probably Bronson's best starring picture.

 

Related posts:

 

Walter Hill: Alien 3 (1992) or, The Monsters Go to Jail! (co-writer)

Another 48 Hrs. (1990) - More of the same from your buddies Hill, Murphy & Nolte 

48 Hrs. (1982) or, Reluctant Partners

The Getaway (1972) - McQueen/Peckinpah hit the bank with unrefined thriller (writer)

 

 

Watch 3 minutes of the film's beginning here

 

Cost: 2.7 - 3.1 mil. $ (different reports)

Box office: Reportedly 26.5 mil. $

= Mega-hit (returned 8.54-9.81 times its cost)

[Hard Times was released 13 August (France) and runs 93 minutes. AIP producer Lawrence Gordon gave Hill the chance to direct after he had been successful with a number of action screenplays. Bronson was paid "almost 1 mil. $" for his performance. Shooting took place around September 1974 in Texas, Arizona, Los Angeles, California, and in New Orleans, Louisiana. The film's box office numbers are not easy to dig up; the-numbers.com allege that it made 5 mil. $ in North America, relatively little compared to the 26.5 mil. $ total gross listed elsewhere, and the fact that Hill in 2009 said that he still received profits from the film. Roger Ebert gave the film a 3/4 star review, translating to 2 notches under this one. Hill returned with The Driver (1978). Bronson returned in Breakheart Pass (1975); Coburn in Skyriders (1976). Hard Times is fresh at 92 % with a 7.00/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of Hard Times? 

The Getaway (1972) - McQueen/Peckinpah hit the bank with unrefined thriller

♥♥

 

A hilarious poster for Sam Peckinpah's The Getaway, which signals two immortal qualities above all else: Sex and violence

Our anti-hero robber "Doc" McCoy is let out of the can for good behavior after a stint for armed robbery. On the outside he and his lady immediately begin plotting a new robbery. - Which goes completely awry...!

 

The Getaway is written by Walter Hill (The Warriors (1979)), adapting Jim Thompson's (The Kill-Off (1957)) same-titled 1958 novel, and directed by great Californian filmmaker Sam Peckinpah (The Deadly Companions (1961)).

Steve McQueen (The Reivers (1969)) kills at random and beats love interest Ali McGraw (Players (1979)), yet this is still a classic for many people. His character isn't very charismatic or exciting, although he does have a certain sex appeal, which is probably the reason for the celebration. Besides this Peckinpah utilizes his usual stylistic effects; slow-motion shoot-ups and focus on form over substance.

The car chase in The Getaway is surprisingly short. The film is a bit overlong and disappointing.

 

Related posts:

Sam Peckinpah: The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970) - A manly respite with Robards and Peckinpah  

The Deadly Companions (1961) - Peckinpah's debut is a tough, great, suspense-filled western 

Watch a 3-minute clip from the film here

 

Cost: 3.3 mil. $

Box office: 18.9 mil. $ (North America alone)

= Huge hit (returned 5.72 times its cost domestically alone)

[The Getaway was released 16 December (Italy) and runs 122 minutes. Peter Bogdanovich was hired to direct the film, but McQueen fired him upon learning that he was more interested in comedy What's Up, Doc? (1972). Peckinpah was instead hired, fresh from his flop with McQueen, Junior Bonner (1972), as well as Paramount boss Robert Evans' wife, model-turned-actress McGraw. McQueen worked for 10 % of the gross, which accumulated to at least 1.8 mil. $. Shooting took place in Texas and Arizona from February - April 1972. McGraw and McQueen had an affair on the production, which led to McGraw leaving husband Evans and marrying McQueen. She later said she "hated" her performance in the film. Of McQueen's final-cut privilege, Peckinpah said that he was "playing it safe with these pretty-boy shots." McQueen was unhappy with Peckinpah's regular composer Jerry Fielding and instead got Quincy Jones hired to make a jazzy score, angering Peckinpah further. Sources say the film earned rentals of 18 mil. $ in North America and a 18.9 mil. $ gross domestically, becoming the year's 8th highest-grossing film in North America. The-Numbers have an unsupported claim that it made 36.7 mil. $ domestically. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe. Roger Ebert gave it a 2/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. A flop remake was made with same title by Roger Donaldson in 1994 starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Bassinger. Peckinpah returned with Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973). McQueen returned in Papillon (1973); MacGraw in Convoy (1978). The Getaway is fresh at 86 % with a 6.90/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Getaway?

Another 48 Hrs. (1990) - More of the same from your buddies Hill, Murphy & Nolte

♥♥♥


'The boys are back in town', the tagline asserts on this deliciously 1980s-styled poster for Walter Hill's Another 48 Hrs.

Biker hoodlums want to kill Reggie Hammond, as he is finally released from jail. Meanwhile, officer Jack Cates has been hunting criminal mastermind 'The Iceman' for 3 years.

 

Another 48 Hrs. is written by John Fasano (The Visit (1999)), Jeb Stuart (Die Hard (1988)) and Larry Gross (Chinese Box (1997)), with co-writer/co-star Eddie Murphy (Harlem nights (1989)) contributing story elements, and directed by great Californian filmmaker Walter Hill (Hard Times (1975)).  

Murphy has become a superstar in the inevitable sequel to Hill's successful milestone in buddy action-comedy, 48 Hrs. (1982), which the film is tailored to cater to.
It doesn't in itself elevate the film, which falls into the familiar sequel curse in that it brings nothing new to the table, which makes it unoriginal and thereby less outstanding than the first one.
Still in Another 48 Hrs. favor: It is nevertheless an entertaining film, and it has Brion James (Time Runner (1993)) and Ed O'Ross (Six Feet Under (2001-2005)) as effective super bad guys.

Related posts:

Walter Hill: Alien 3 (1992) or, The Monsters Go to Jail! (co-writer)

48 Hrs. (1982) or, Reluctant Partners

The Getaway (1972) - McQueen/Peckinpah hit the bank with unrefined thriller (writer) 

 

Watch a 1-minute clip from the film featuring Murphy here

Cost: 50 mil. $
Box office: 153.5 mil. $
= Box office success (returned 3.07 times its cost)

[Another 48 Hrs. was released 8 June (North America) and runs 95 minutes. Hill was apprehensive about making a sequel but has stated: " A lot of folks will say I'm just doing it for the money. What I want to know is, why do they think I made the first one?" Murphy's salary ballooned from 200k $ for the first film to 12 mil. $ and a gross percentage for the sequel, whereas co-star Nick Nolte's (Blue Chips (1994)) 1-2 mil. $ (different reports) original salary only went up to 3 mil. $ for Another 48 Hrs.. Shooting took place from January - April 1980 in California, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, and in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 145 minute work print was edited down to 120 minutes, but a week before release, the studio cut it down with 25 minutes, creating plot holes and continuity problems and removing any mention of a 48 hour deadline from the finished movie. The film opened #1 to a 19.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it remained in the top 5 for another 3 weeks (#2-#4-#5), grossing 80.8 mil. $ (52.6 % of the total gross). Roger Ebert gave the film a 2/4 star review, translating to a notch harder than this one. Hill returned with Tales from the Crypt (1989-91) and theatrically with Trespass (1992). Murphy returned in Michael Jackson: Remember the Time (1992, music video) and theatrically in Boomerang (1992); Nolte in Cape Fear (1991). Another 48 Hrs. is rotten at 21 % with a 4.00/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of Another 48 Hrs.?

Alien 3 (1992) or, The Monsters Go to Jail!

♥♥♥♥

An effective, icky still make up the majority of this dark poster for David Fincher's Alien 3. Don't miss the foolishly long tagline under the title. - Pretty silly stuff, hu?

Ripley, girl Newt, Hicks and android Bishop escape a fire on their space vessel and land in a penal colony on a strange planet, where bloody deaths later lead Ripley to believe that they may have brought an unwelcome life form along with them.

Coloradoan master filmmaker David Fincher (Se7en (1995)) debuted with Alien 3 after years of music video works. - Imagine the pressure after the first two distinctive worldwide smash hits and genre innovators by Ridley Scott and James Cameron, who both by the 1990s were established masters of cinema. Entering a creative plane full of strife, disagreements, egos and big money as a young, unproven agent assuming the directing responsibilities, I think Fincher actually did really well with Alien 3, all things considered. 
Alien 3 manages straight away to take a big step away from the previous films by relying on a minimum of guns and electronics and changing the scenery dramatically to that of a prison planet. The visual side has evolved as well. And so although many of Fincher's later films are better, it is clear already here that he is himself a highly capable and visionary filmmaker.
All the prisoner-related stuff in the movie works so-so, and at times Alien 3 seems both a bit predictable and a bit overlong. SPOILER But the ending with Ripley and the iron alien is pretty darn cool. It is written by Larry Ferguson (The Presidio (1988)), Walter Hill (Streets of Fire (1984)) and David Giler (The Parallax View (1974)), with Vincent Ward (Vigil (1984)) contributing story elements.

Related posts:

David Fincher: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) - Fincher's Nordic noir is technically astute but overlong and redundant 

The Social Network (2010) - Fincher's a-hole biopic leaves me cold (and more anti-Facebook than ever)

The Alien franchise: AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004) or, Everyone Loses (spin-off)
Alien: Resurrection (1997) or, Queen of the Goo Massacre!
Aliens (1986) or, Alien War
Alien (1979) or, Space Eggs Are Bad News

 

Watch a teaser trailer for the film here

Cost: 50 - 55 mil. $ (different reports)
Box office: 159.8 mil. $
= Box office success (returned at least 2.90 times its cost)
[Alien 3 was released 22 May and runs 114 minutes. The film had a long development process with reportedly 7 mil. $ spent before production could begin. Filming took place in England and California from January - May 1991. The film opened #2, behind holdover hit Lethal Weapon 3, to 23.1 mil. $ in North America, where is spent another week in the top 5 (#3), only ran for 6 weeks and grossed 55.4 mil. $ (34.7 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 28.8 mil. $ (18%) and the UK with 12.7 mil. $ (7.9 %). The film was Oscar-nominated for Best Visual Effects, lost to Death Becomes Her, and for the corresponding BAFTA. In 2003, a 145 minute 'Assembly Cut' of the film was released without the involvement of Fincher, who isn't too fond of the film. Fincher returned with 9 commercials and music videos, before he dared to go back to a feature with thriller masterpiece Se7en (1995). Weaver  returned in 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992). Alien 3 is rotten at 44 % with a 5.4/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Alien 3?

48 Hrs. (1982) or, Reluctant Partners!

♥♥♥♥

A nicely painted,, in-your-face style poster for Walter Hill's 48 Hrs. with its 1980s quality radiating heavily from it

A drunken San Francisco cop named Jack Cates hunts a lunatic cop killer on a tight deadline and gets a new partner to help him in drug convict Reggie Hammond, who himself has a standing debt with the bad guys.
 
Both characters in 48 Hrs. are racists, basically, but charming racists. The chemistry between debuting Eddie Murphy (Beverly Hills Cop (1984)) and Nick Nolte (Cape Fear (1991)) in this possibly the first buddy cop comedy ever is real and palpable. The many arguments they have are almost solely fueled by racial tensions and prejudice. - Now, whether major hit 48 Hrs. let gas out of a tense racial discussion in the US, or predominantly enhanced the sense of division, I can't evaluate. In any regard, it is a highly entertaining, testosterone-filled high-concept movie that works.
48 Hrs. is written by Roger Spottiswoode (The 6th Day (2000), director), Larry Gross (We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004)), Steven E. de Souza (Blast (2004)) and Californian master co-writer/director Walter Hill (Red Heat (1988)).

Related post:

Walter Hill: Another 48 Hrs. (1990) - More of the same from your buddies Murphy & Nolte

Watch a theatrical trailer for the film here

Cost: 12 mil. $
Box office: 78.8 mil. $ (North America only)
= Huge hit (returned more than 6.56 times its cost)
[48 Hrs. was released 8 December and runs 96 minutes. Clint Eastwood (Escape from Alcatraz (1979)) and Richard Pryor (Silver Streak (1976)) were originally contacted to star. Filming took place in California, including LA and San Francisco, from May - August 1982. Also feature-debuting with the film was producer Joel Silver (Demolition Man (1993)), who also since became a powerful Hollywood figure. Paramount execs were worried the film was not funny enough and too violent and promised Hill he would never work for them again. (He still directed the sequel for Paramount 8 years later.) The film opened #3, behind The Toy and Airplane II: The Sequel, to a 4.3 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it stayed in the top 5 for an awesome 13 more weeks, climbing to #2 for 5 of those weeks. It seems likely that its world gross neared or maybe even passed the 100 mil. $ mark, but those figures are not public. Murphy was Golden Globe-nominated as Best Acting Debut - Male. Hill returned with Streets of Fire (1984). Nolte returned in Under Fire (1983), Murphy in Trading Places (1983). 48 Hrs. is fresh at 93 % with a 7.3/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.] 
 
What do you think of 48 Hrs.?
What id your favorite buddy cop movie?