Saturday, August 3, 2013

Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry (1974)

Director: John Hough                                     Writers: Leigh Chapman & Antonio Santean
Film Score: Jimmie Haskell                            Cinematography: Michael Margulies
Starring: Peter Fonda, Susan George, Adam Roarke and Vic Morrow

This is one of those films that enthralled me as a kid in the local movie house--they were actual theaters back then--like Sky Riders, which has held up remarkably well over the decades. Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry, however . . . not so much. This is an exploitation film, pure and simple, with lots of sex, violence, and car chases. Even though it was a low-budget venture, it still has a nice quality to the print, and some descent production values. It also boasts some fine acting talent, especially in the smaller roles, and also has one of the great film endings of all time, foreshadowed by the opening shot in the credits. The film is also a terrific look back at the early seventies, nostalgic for those who lived it and historical for those who didn’t.

The film begins in Stockton, California, with Peter Fonda and Adam Roarke embarking on an ingenious grocery store heist. Roddy McDowall is the store manager, and his wife, Lynn Borden, and their daughter are being held hostage secure his compliance. Unfortunately for Fonda, he slept with Susan George the night before and she doesn’t like being a one-night stand. He finds her sitting in his car when he comes out and, rather than argue about it, Fonda takes her along on the getaway. Vic Morrow is the cop assigned to track down the trio, and Kenneth Tobey is the sheriff in charge. The chase begins as the criminals head south along the back roads toward Manteca, with Morrow taking their successful evasion as a personal affront, similar to what Smokey and the Bandit would do as farce a few years later. And the outlaws avoid their pursuers in pretty much the same way, with the cops making mistakes and spinning out or crashing.

It’s unfair to compare this to today’s chase films. Next to something like The Transporter this seems almost sedate. But that’s part of its charm. Despite the title, both Fonda and George seem very much in control of the situation. In fact, at one point Fonda pulls out what looks like a hundred-page copied report of escape routes and switch cars that was obviously prepared well ahead of time. And like the film Drive, there is a real need for the criminals to stop occasionally in order to create holes and breaks to go through. Non-stop action in real life, it would seem, is not the best way to elude capture. The weakest part of the film is easily the script. There’s almost nothing about it that’s original, save the X-rated threats that Fonda makes against George when he gets mad. Still, there’s nothing about it that is pointedly bad. In some ways, it is as natural and innocuous as the script for Two-Lane Blacktop.

Fonda and George are fine in their roles, though honestly it could have been any stars from the period and it would have been just as good, if not better. And can anyone imagine a star like Susan George working today without having her teeth fixed? One also wonders if rock star Steve Miller wasn’t inspired a little by the film when he wrote “Take The Money and Run” in 1976. The car chase doesn’t really get exciting until the end of the film. The really unique part of the story, which was based on the novel The Chase by Richard Unekis, is the surprise ending, and it does pack a wallop. I can remember my jaw dropping to the theater floor as a kid and barely being able to get up out of my seat at the end. Is that enough to make it a great film? No. But as a time capsule to the period--in any number of nostalgic ways--it sure is a fun film to watch again. I can’t say I would recommend Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry to everyone, but if you saw it way back when then it’s definitely worth another look.

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