This is a film about a group of auto shop workers who are dissatisfied with elements of their union. I thought this would be another typical film about the lower class struggling for their rights, and any of these such films that attempt to be worth anything at all usually put some sort of twist on that basic premise, however in this film, it shifts away from its apparent initial focus, and becomes much more complex.
One comment said it was a bad film because the main 3 characters were not sympathetic enough, which is always a stupid basis on which to judge a film's caliber. The whole point of the film, which any objective viewer will see midway through, is that the lines between good and bad and right and wrong among the different classes is very blurred, and in the end everyone has aspirations, and each party wants to keep what they own and possibly strive for more, whatever the cost. The focus of this film thereby becomes a criminal plot involving a robbery of the union funds which develops into a complex entanglement of various illegal or under the table activities which soon the 3 main characters are no longer able to deal with.
Richard Pryor gives a surprisingly powerful performance while the character Smokey is also very well portrayed by the actor playing him. I saw this film because I like Harvey Keitel and anticipated good things with Paul Shraeder as the director. Keitel is no disappointment but his role doesn't really lend itself to anything extremely impressive.
Paul Schraeder is a fairly good director who seems to add a certain realism to his films that very few directors are able to capture in the way he sets up the scene and dialogue. Also here he is able to depict a really spectacularly done death scene in my opinion, but as you get into it, like in most of his films, certain technical flaws begin to surface, and in part spoil the good elements; for example something as plainly careless as having 4 pins lined up in the bowling scene for 1 shot, and then only 3 in the next shot. Also the break-in into the building was not very convincing while not completely laughable, but I suppose one could let both these failings pass. Harvey Keitel's continued contact with the FBI character towards the end is a little too ambiguous for my liking, but by far the biggest flaw is the introduction of the debt collector to whom Smokey owed money. He is by far the most important plot device but we are given no background on him, he just suddenly shows up in Smokey's back car seat one day, then soon after, gets pinched for likely shooting a cop and sells the 3 workers out to the police. Also the whole setup when Smokey just HAPPENS to overhear some thugs calling up his friend's wife, and he shows up waiting for them with a baseball bat, (clearly after having to break in himself) while the entire family just HAPPENS to be not at home, adds to the list of stretchy plot development. When dealing with a complex plot, Schraeder often fails to strengthen or properly establish many important plot devices, and in the end they simply appear as that... plot devices. Though I cannot exaggerate too profoundly how most directors are much worse than him in this regard.
This is a film that has a powerful message, good acting, and some very good scenes, but the plot just becomes too complex and it appears somewhat stagy by the near end, however it is a very engaging movie with an overall interesting story, it simply could have been greater. the first 80 minutes of this film is really nothing but buildup up to the point of the robbery. only roughly 25 minutes is left when all the real complex development unfolds. If perhaps the resolution was 10 or 15 minutes longer, it would have strengthenned the film.
One comment said it was a bad film because the main 3 characters were not sympathetic enough, which is always a stupid basis on which to judge a film's caliber. The whole point of the film, which any objective viewer will see midway through, is that the lines between good and bad and right and wrong among the different classes is very blurred, and in the end everyone has aspirations, and each party wants to keep what they own and possibly strive for more, whatever the cost. The focus of this film thereby becomes a criminal plot involving a robbery of the union funds which develops into a complex entanglement of various illegal or under the table activities which soon the 3 main characters are no longer able to deal with.
Richard Pryor gives a surprisingly powerful performance while the character Smokey is also very well portrayed by the actor playing him. I saw this film because I like Harvey Keitel and anticipated good things with Paul Shraeder as the director. Keitel is no disappointment but his role doesn't really lend itself to anything extremely impressive.
Paul Schraeder is a fairly good director who seems to add a certain realism to his films that very few directors are able to capture in the way he sets up the scene and dialogue. Also here he is able to depict a really spectacularly done death scene in my opinion, but as you get into it, like in most of his films, certain technical flaws begin to surface, and in part spoil the good elements; for example something as plainly careless as having 4 pins lined up in the bowling scene for 1 shot, and then only 3 in the next shot. Also the break-in into the building was not very convincing while not completely laughable, but I suppose one could let both these failings pass. Harvey Keitel's continued contact with the FBI character towards the end is a little too ambiguous for my liking, but by far the biggest flaw is the introduction of the debt collector to whom Smokey owed money. He is by far the most important plot device but we are given no background on him, he just suddenly shows up in Smokey's back car seat one day, then soon after, gets pinched for likely shooting a cop and sells the 3 workers out to the police. Also the whole setup when Smokey just HAPPENS to overhear some thugs calling up his friend's wife, and he shows up waiting for them with a baseball bat, (clearly after having to break in himself) while the entire family just HAPPENS to be not at home, adds to the list of stretchy plot development. When dealing with a complex plot, Schraeder often fails to strengthen or properly establish many important plot devices, and in the end they simply appear as that... plot devices. Though I cannot exaggerate too profoundly how most directors are much worse than him in this regard.
This is a film that has a powerful message, good acting, and some very good scenes, but the plot just becomes too complex and it appears somewhat stagy by the near end, however it is a very engaging movie with an overall interesting story, it simply could have been greater. the first 80 minutes of this film is really nothing but buildup up to the point of the robbery. only roughly 25 minutes is left when all the real complex development unfolds. If perhaps the resolution was 10 or 15 minutes longer, it would have strengthenned the film.