The Getaway (1972) [Deluxe Edition] [Repost]

Was wondering why they don't make films like this anymore. Then it dawned on me. It has ambiguous morals and doesn't particularly ask for or seek redemption. The hero is a killer and bank robber, he says little and therefore you should have to work hard to empathize with him. But it comes easy because everyone else around Doc McCoy is ten times worse than he is. And Doc is played by Steve McQueen. A magnificent brooding presence who's character doesn't stop to question his actions, because if he did he'd die or get arrested. And this is where it is so much better than a contemporary film of the same vein. It's not made with actors who are scared that their image might be tarnished or misunderstood, it is not made by film-makers who are scared they might upset someone, it is not made by people who particularly need to be loved. So what you get is a story that rings true, a piece of fiction that at no time stops to apologize for itself. It grabs you, says this is what I am, and if you're hooked then great. If not go and watch Bambi or something.

A bona fide classic piece of storytelling.

IMDB Reviewer

Peckinpah does Peckinpah. In one of his most hard-bitten roles, taciturn McQueen is released on a parole arranged for by his wife, MacGraw, who slept with Johnson to get the political big shot to pull the strings. He wants McQueen to lead a group of professional thieves on a bank raid, so McQueen organizes the small band, including MacGraw as a getaway driver and cocky Lettieri and Hopkins as gun-happy goons.

Through an elaborate plan, McQueen and cohorts successfully rob the Southwestern bank of $500,000, but Hopkins spoils the caper by panicking and killing a guard. When the thieves rendezvous, McQueen learns that Lettieri has murdered Hopkins. The gunman tells him, "He didn't make it… neither did you," as he draws a gun. McQueen has anticipated the double cross and is quicker, however, blasting several shots into Lettieri's chest. McQueen now realizes that Johnson has set him up.

This violent film, typical of Peckinpah's slam-bang action movies, relentlessly depicts ruthless robbery and murder, not to mention adultery, kidnaping, bribery, extortion, and general mayhem. The vivid direction and lightning pace, however, make the film completely fascinating as the culprits attempt to destroy each other, and the viewer finds himself actually rooting for McQueen and MacGraw, thieves though they are, hoping they'll get away. No one in this film is honorable or attractive, emphatically symbolized in one cynical Peckinpah scene in which, to escape detection, McQueen and MacGraw hide in a garbage truck and are dumped, along with their stolen loot, in a vast waste area.

Lettieri gives a wonderful study in evil, and Struthers is the ultimate repugnant tramp, obsessed with the gunman's guns and menacing manner, encouraging him to murder her husband. MacGraw is just a waste of time, having no acting ability at all and projecting the attitude of a spoiled rich girl whose Neiman-Marcus charge card has been taken away. But in retrospect, perhaps her blankness deserves another look.

TV Guide

Special Features:
- Audio commentary by Peckinpah biographers/documentarians Paul Seydor, Garner Simmons and David Weddle, moderated by Nick Redman
- "Virtual" audio commentary featuring edited recordings of Sam Peckinpah, Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw from a variety of sources (10:35)
- Theatrical trailer (4:11)