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Many folks think Nicholson can do no wrong. But in my book, this mess has to be the nadir of his often outstanding career. When he's got a strong guiding hand, as in 5 Easy Pieces (1970) or Chinatown (1974), he can deliver aces. Here, however, he's directing himself, and the result is a leering, eye-rolling, slice of buffoonery, perhaps an ego-trip of some misguided sort. The movie itself collapses into near incoherence, lacking both narrative sense and timing. Events follow in no particular order, while scenes too often appear to indulge the actor instead of playing to others or advancing the story.
Actually, the movie reminds me perversely of a kids Saturday matinée, where the baddie schemes to grab the good girl's land and Gabby Hayes or Smiley Burnette supplies comic relief. Except here, there's only the buffoon, the land- grabber, and the good girl. I do, however, feel sorry for Mary Steenburgen whose affecting performance gets lost amid the eye-rolling antics. Now, I don't know if Nicholson went on a coke binge while shooting in Mexico, as did his buddy Dennis Hopper when he made the disastrous The Last Movie (1971) in Peru. But it would explain a lot. Anyway, the 100 minutes remains an obscure mess, even 40-years later, and is not so much rollicking as just plain idiotic.
score /10
dougdoepke 7 September 2014
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3082644/ |
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1-2-2021 00:06:24
