The Getaway (1972)

Call me over-eager but this year I've been all about themed months, and June is action movie month. I finished up the filmsite top 100 and was ready to get a head start on action month. for Christmas I got Schneider's 101 Action Movies to See Before You Die, and over the next month readers will get to see reviews of 30+ action films. This one was not the most thrilling but not a bad start nonetheless.

You really can't go wrong with Steve McQueen, and this is my first Ali MacGraw film. Sally Struthers plays quite the interesting role as she tags along with the bad guy throughout the film. This movie starts out VERY slow. We spend a good chunk of time following McQueen around jail, nothing he does in the jail foreshadows the rest of the film, we are just trying to get a sense of how bored he is. When his wife Carol bargains to get him out, we learn she does it in a not-so respectable way which causes a riff in their relationship throughout the film. Part of the deal is that they have to rob a bank for the guys that helped get him out. The reason this film was included in the 101 Action book is that it does not glamorize their getaway. Hiding in a dumpster, staying in seedy motels, and other difficult scenarios make this film unique. Personally I liked seeing them make their way through Dallas/Fort Worth on their escape to Mexico. Not a bad start to action month.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068638/

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