THE PROFESSIONALS (1966). Directed by Richard Brooks. Starring Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode, Jack Palance, Claudia Cardinale, and Ralph Bellamy. During the latter phase of the Mexican Revolution, just prior to World War I, a wealthy rancher (Ralph Bellamy) hires four men to rescue his wife (Claudia Cardinale), who has been kidnapped by the Mexican General Jesus Raza (Jack Palance), a former revolutionary leader turned bandit. The group consists of a weapon’s expert (Lee Marvin), and explosives expert (Burt Lancaster), an expert animal handler (Robert Ryan), and an expert tracker (Woody Strode). They discover, however, that not only will capturing her be easy compared to escaping back across the border alive, but also that not everything in the setup is as it at first appeared. The use of the Mexican Revolution as a backdrop for this film mostly works in its favor because it is a relatively unique time period and aesthetic that has not been explored by many films, and of those that have, only a few have captured it well. The introduction of new military technologies combined with the continued use and popularity of older technologies and tactics make the Mexican Revolutionary period a truly unique one with a lot of flavor. The “Wild West” is still vibrant and active, but it is rapidly changing and disappearing. Unfortunately for The Professionals, however, it cannot escape some comparison with Peckinpagh’s The Wild Bunch (1968), which also involved a comparably sized group of men operating in the same time period and environment. It is perhaps inevitable that The Professionals will be viewed unfavorably in these comparisons, since The Wild Bunch is one of the greatest and most iconic films ever made, and captures the flavor of the time and place better than any film before or since. But it is important to remember that the two films are also trying to be entirely different things. The Wild Bunch is meant to be a harsh and violent rumination on the moral code that binds a band of otherwise disgusting criminals together during the terminal period of the West. The Professionals is supposed to be fun. In that respect, it succeeds, and viewed on its own terms, it is a solid action movie. Despite being labeled as a Western for geographic and temporal reasons, The Professionals is actually approached much differently than a typical Western. It actually has much more in common with mission films or heist films, such as John Huston’s The Asphalt Jungle (1950), which pioneered the “group of disparate individuals, each with a unique specialty or role, attempt to creatively complete a supposedly impossible task” storyline. While this storyline has become trite by now in most contexts, it’s relatively rare for the Western genre, and it helps to keep this film feeling fresh. The screenplay is much tighter and cleverer than the average Western or action film to begin with, and it also happens to be very well executed. The cinematography is fantastic, even for a Western, and especially for an action movie. The use of light, shade, and perspective is brilliant and dynamic. It even managed to convincingly capture a dust storm, simulated through the use of jet airplane engines. Interestingly, a lot of creative filtering techniques were used to simulate the darkness of night during scenes that were actually filmed during the day. This allowed for a level of clarity and depth to the visuals that was unavailable through regular nighttime filming methods. The film’s watchability is also significantly bolstered by the presence of many of the best and most reputable action stars of the day, all perfectly cast. The actresses in the film also hold their own. Burt Lancaster steals the show though, in one of his most memorable roles. Initially portrayed as an amoral adventurer and fortune seeker, he ends up being the moral voice and heart of the movie. My personal favorite scene in the film is his standoff with Raza, his former comrade in the Revolution, while he attempts to singlehandedly buy time for his friends to make their escape across the border. The fact that he can stand out in a film loaded with some of the most charismatic actors of the day is a commendation to him. Having worked as an acrobat prior to beginning his film career, Lancaster also does all of his own stunt-work, which adds some credibility to the action. Amusingly, legend has it that Lancaster kept challenging Woody Strode (one of the African-American athletes to integrate American professional football, and probably the most perfect physical specimen of masculinity of his generation) to feats of strength and athleticism throughout the making of the film, and kept losing. The inimitable Lee Marvin won an award from Motion Picture Magazine in 1967 for Best Action Performance for his role in this film. The same magazine also gave the entire film the Best Action Drama award. It was also one of only four movies to win a Golden Screen Award in Germany in 1967. It received 3 Academy Award nominations in 1967 (Best Writing, Best Director, and Best Cinematography), but did not win. While The Professionals philosophizes a bit about the nature of revolution and idealism as well about as the intersection between morality, loyalty, and money, it is not a particularly deep film. But it never gives off the impression that it is supposed to be. Instead, it is an unusually well-conceived and well-executed shoot-em-up action film bolstered by the presence of some of the most charismatic action stars of all time. It is consistently entertaining, and a lighthearted sense of humor with a dry delivery adds to the fun. Recommended. -MOJO HAND https://youtube/watch?v=Zv-ITJBpWvI
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 01:32:00 +0000
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