I have always had an interest in the career of Steve McQueen, at least since he starred in the TV series "Wanted Dead Or Alive".
Steve was born near my home, at St Francis Hospital in Beech Grove,Indiana..a suburb of Indianapolis.
A former U.S. Marine, McQueen used his G.I.Bill to attend acting classes and using his fierce competitive traits (learned in his rough childhood and military service), he refused to take the same "door in the face" experienced by so many new actors..and instead wedged his way into acting jobs..working as an extra against some of the biggest names in the business, till he himself became noticed for his talents, and the crowds he was pulling in at the box office.
By the Sixties, he had become the highest paid of the bunch, and was recognized as the world's greatest actor.
Steve spent his money as he made it and while he partied, he also took time to give to charities...and supported the Boys Ranch which helped raise him when his family had basically abandoned him.
In spite of his financial wealth, and talents...like all of his, he learned the hard way we are all mortal, and each of his has a date with destiny.
Steve was diagnosed with a Cancer...and even with his money, the illness could not be beaten.
This movie is based on the book (written by ex-wife) Barbra Minty), and it details how Mr McQueen learned to face his own mortality, and the decisions he made as that final curtain started to come down.
His priorities were adjusted and even towards the end, we see in this remarkable film how he continued to live unafraid, with the same courage he displayed on that motorcycle in The Great Escape...(even though it was his friend Bud Elkins who made the final jump, due to the studios demands).
This is IMHO the absolute best biography of Steve McQueen and shows his life from beginning...to end...and never leaves the viewer on a "downer" feeling as one might expect of a film showing those final days.
Review of Steve McQueen: American Icon
