Kirk Douglas has described this film as being amongst his
favorites. The story takes place in the modern day west of the early 1960’s.
The Wild West had been long gone by that time, but sometimes people are
unwilling, or even unable, to change with the times. Jack Burns, played by Kirk
Douglas, is such a man. Riding his horse across the freeway is just one of the
many ways he chooses to show his pure contempt for the modern world with its myriad
of rules and excess regulations. He carries no identification, has no driver’s
license, no military record, and as a matter of fact; if he weren’t standing
before you; he officially would not exist.
But when he sets out in order to get arrested so that he can
break his friend out of jail, he finds that though his spirit for the fight has
not diminished over the years, the fight has become harder than it ever was. With
all of these fences and signs and rules, a man could lose his most valuable asset;
himself.
When his friend Paul Bondi; played by Michael Kane; decides
to stick out his final 2 years in prison, Jack breaks out without him, igniting
a manhunt which includes the Sheriff; played with great sympathy by Walter
Matthau; and also the Deputy Sheriff; viciously portrayed by George Kennedy.
Throughout the movie Paul Bondi’s wife, Jerry; played by
Gena Rowlands in stretch pants; is on the sidelines, rooting for her husband’s
best friend, while reviling the modern world which cannot accept an individual
for what he is.
In the end, when justice is served, the viewer has to wonder
what justice really is. Is it just a set of rules which must be followed at all
costs? And, does the crime of being true to oneself, and a set of values, ever
justify squashing the individual spirit? Reminiscent in many ways of “Cool Hand
Luke”, which also featured George Kennedy, and even “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s
Nest”, this film will stay with you long after you have watched the ending
credits.
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