Here Walter Mattthaw is Charley Varrick, a small-time hood as well as crop dusting pilot , The Last of the Independents, who robs a bank along with his wife, Jacqueline Scott, and his youngest pal , Andrew Robinson. As they unwittingly hit a bank where ill-gotten gains are laundred by Mafia, finding out its illegal origin from drugs, prostitution and blackmails . Things go wrong when Varrick learns one of its depositors is the Mob. Varrick and his colleague stayingly alive means outwittingly a freak-murderer, Molly : Joe Don Baker. As they are mercilessly pursued by a vicious hitman hired by a mobster chief : John Vernon.
Wonderful toughly eccentric thriller with noisy action, nail-biting scenes, violence, twists and turns. The violent bank robbery leads to a twisted, relentless and defensive odyssey through sunlit Noir territory, being crammed with cherishably individuated oddballs. Filmmaker Siegel follows Dirty Harry wake, but here Donald has more responses to the typical Seventies' paranoia than a mere Magnum blast and he provides a compelling and original thriller. Walter Matthaw plays as a small time crook who accidentally steals money from the Mafia, giving a terrific acting. This role decisively removed Matthaw from his usual performances in comedy movies, Jack Lemmon's partenaire and wasteland of Neil Simon wit . In addtion, Joe Don Baker is excellent as the vicious killer assigned the job getting the loot back , his performance sends chills up the spine. And other support actors also provide fine interpretations such as : Andrew Robinson, Jacqueline Scott, John Vernon, Norman Fell, Shree North, Poppy Popwell, Woodrow Parfrey, Tom Tully and Felicia Farr who married Jack Lemmon. Adding a stunning and moving musical score accompanying perfectly the action by Lalo Schifrin composed in his usual style.
Still on a roll after Dirty Harry hit, Donald Siegel turns into an on-the-mark classic and well-paced yarn about a robber who unwittingly hits a Mob payroll. Donald was a splendid director who excelled in all kinds of genres as Thriller : Escape from Alcatraz, Telefon, Madigan, Rough cut, Private hell, The black windmill, Coogan's bluff, Jinxed . Noir Film as The big steal, Riot in cell block eleven . Western as Flaming Star, The shootist, The beguiled, Two mules for Sister Sara. And the classy SciFi : Invasion of body snatchers, among others.
Wonderful toughly eccentric thriller with noisy action, nail-biting scenes, violence, twists and turns. The violent bank robbery leads to a twisted, relentless and defensive odyssey through sunlit Noir territory, being crammed with cherishably individuated oddballs. Filmmaker Siegel follows Dirty Harry wake, but here Donald has more responses to the typical Seventies' paranoia than a mere Magnum blast and he provides a compelling and original thriller. Walter Matthaw plays as a small time crook who accidentally steals money from the Mafia, giving a terrific acting. This role decisively removed Matthaw from his usual performances in comedy movies, Jack Lemmon's partenaire and wasteland of Neil Simon wit . In addtion, Joe Don Baker is excellent as the vicious killer assigned the job getting the loot back , his performance sends chills up the spine. And other support actors also provide fine interpretations such as : Andrew Robinson, Jacqueline Scott, John Vernon, Norman Fell, Shree North, Poppy Popwell, Woodrow Parfrey, Tom Tully and Felicia Farr who married Jack Lemmon. Adding a stunning and moving musical score accompanying perfectly the action by Lalo Schifrin composed in his usual style.
Still on a roll after Dirty Harry hit, Donald Siegel turns into an on-the-mark classic and well-paced yarn about a robber who unwittingly hits a Mob payroll. Donald was a splendid director who excelled in all kinds of genres as Thriller : Escape from Alcatraz, Telefon, Madigan, Rough cut, Private hell, The black windmill, Coogan's bluff, Jinxed . Noir Film as The big steal, Riot in cell block eleven . Western as Flaming Star, The shootist, The beguiled, Two mules for Sister Sara. And the classy SciFi : Invasion of body snatchers, among others.