My Top Ten Sam Peckinpah Films 

Sam Peckinpah, or "Bloody Sam" as he was also known as, is an American filmmaker that transcended cinema with his view. He brought along new innovations in filming action scenes and his contributions to the Western genre. His personal life saw him battling drug abuse and alcohol, which would cause film studios to keep him far away. Regardless of this, I think he is an important filmmaker that has influenced many of today's filmmakers, like Quentin Tarantino. Here are my picks for his top ten films based on the ones I've seen. I know there are a couple of other films he made but I want to focus on the ones that will be remembered. 

10. Junior Bonner (1972)

Steve McQueen stars as a rodeo cowboy who goes to his hometown when the rodeo passes by. J.R., as he is called, is a man who lives his way f life and does not seem to want to change. His brother on the other hand is in real estate and goes as far as to tear up the family home to make way for his property. His mother and father are separated but are on friendly terms. His father was also a big rodeo star and seems to have found potential work in Australia. The focus of the film is a big contest where the top prize is cash and J.R. is determined to win it.

In his first collaboration with Sam Peckinpah, McQueen shines as a man who refuses to go with the flow. (A theme that recurs in his work.) Much of the film’s humor stems from J.R.’s relationship with his hard drinking, womanizing father played wonderfully by Robert Preston. When the film was first released, it was received well critically but audiences did not show up to the film. I think what appealed to Peckinpah were the themes of change and family. If you enjoy Steve McQueen, rodeos, humor and family drama, this is a film you might enjoy.

9. Major Dundee (1965)

In his third film, Peckinpah attempts to make an epic American civil war picture. Charlton Heston plays the titular union officer in charge of locating children taken by the Apache. He enlists the help of his soldiers, Confederate prisoners and other drifters. Richard Harris plays the Confederate Captain Tyreen in charge of his men obeying to Dundee.

The film’s troubled production included studio interference, a feud between Heston and Harris and a drunken Peckinpah verbally abusing his crew. It got so bad that Heston reportedly threatened Sam with his character’s sword if he did not show any respect. With the film going over budget and a troubled director, Columbia took the film out of his hands and released their version to negative reviews and low box office numbers, In 2005, the director’s cut was released based on his notes and the film is an improvement over the theatrical release and worth checking out.

8. Cross of Iron (1977)

In his only war film, Peckinpah depicts the battle between the German and Russian forces on the Eastern front. James Coburn portrays Sgt. Steiner, a war weary man who wants to the war to be done. He has earned honor among his platoon and other German officers. Maximilian Schell plays an aristocratic Prussian officer who joins Steiner’s platoon to earn the iron cross. James Mason, Seneta Berger and the great David Warner round up the cast.

Peckinpah’s film makes it clear that war is hell and not glamorous. Coburn and Schell excel in their performances as two men who have different ideologies of war. The battle sequences still contain his trademark slow motion. The film did poorly at the box office and with “Star Wars” coming out two weeks later, the film was forgotten. Regardless of success, the film is really well made and here is hoping they will make a better DVD release.

7. The Getaway (1972)

Steve McQueen plays Doc McCoy, a recently paroled thief tasked with a robbery by a corrupt businessman. Ali McGraw plays his wife and accomplice along with two other men. After the robbery, a double cross occurs that leaves the couple running away from both the law and criminals.

McQueen once again teams up with Peckinpah to create a well crafted action film. The chemistry between McGraw and McQueen made it clear that sparks were flying both on and off the screen. Many Peckinpah aficionados will claim this film is really not his but I beg to differ. This film contains many of the director’s trademarks such as going to Mexico, slow motion action sequences, and the times changing.

6. Ride The High Country (1962)

Classical Hollywood stars Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott star in what many will consider to be Peckinpah’s breakout. McCrea stars as a former law man, Judd, tasked with guarding a shipment of gold. He asks his friend Gil (Scott) to accompany along with Gil’s sidekick. Unknown to Judd, the two plan to take the gold for themselves. Along the way, they meet a young woman whose future marriage to a drunkard adds another conflict.

This is an important film for Peckinpah as he plays his themes and foreshadows his later work for the western genre. Both McCrea and Scott were staples of the genre and also their first and final time working together on screen.

5. Straw Dogs (1971)

Dustin Hoffman stars as David, a timid math professor who moves to England with his young wife in her hometown. Soon, they are terrorized by the locals as their antics turn from horsing around to pretty dark stuff.   

This may well be Peckinpah’s most controversial film due to not only the depiction of violence but also rape. Hoffman brilliantly plays David as a man who slowly descends into his violent nature despite his hatred of it. The director also has displeasure for violence but shows it to remind people that it is an ugly scene.  

4. Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973)

James Coburn stars as outlaw turned law man Pat Garret tasked to capture Kris Kristofferson’s Billy the Kid to justice, either alive or dead. The film explores the relationship between these characters and the journey they go through. All set to the music of Bob Dylan who plays a supporting role.

Peckinpah could have made an old fashioned shoot’em up western but instead, we are given a tragedy and a character study of the two characters. Pat Garrett did not enjoy having to hunt down his former friend but he had a job to do while Billy tries to evade capture. Like “Dundee”, this film was taken away by the director post-production and their version was harshly criticsized upon release. Fifteen years after the film was released, a director’s cut was released posthumously based on his notes and it is the version that is available on DVD.

3. The Ballad of Cable Houge (1970)

Peckinpah's follow up to "The Wild Bunch" retains that film's themes but with a different, light-hearted tone this time. Jason Robards stars as Cable Houge, who is left behind to die in the desert and finds fortune when he finds water, quickly building a rest stop for stagecoach passengers. The film's comedic tone stems from Cable Houge being a relic of the past as the people he encounters are with the current time.

Estella Warren stars as the prostitute with the heart of gold and a young David Warner as a womanizing preacher who befriends Houge. Peckinpah would later go on to name this film as his favorite out of all the films he has made.

2. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)

The underrated Warren Oates plays Benny, an American piano player living in Mexico. He gets tasked with bringing the head of a dead gigolo to a Mexican rancher in exchange for money. Benny hits the road with his girlfriend and chaos ensues as usual in a Peckinpah film.

The film’s genre is a mixture of crime, action, neo-western and black comedy. It is a film that can only be seen as a plot summary does not do justice to the story. In a way, the film was a personal one for Peckinpah. This can be evidenced in the character of Benny and Warren Oates even borrowed Sam’s sunglasses for the film. It also explores the evils of men and the process they pay in achieving a goal.

1.   The Wild Bunch (1969)

A group of aging outlaws go for one last score in Mexico during the revolution. In pursuit of them is a former member of the gang tasked by the government to capture them or go back to prison. The outlaws also have to come to terms with the end of their era. While my summary of the film is short, it is a grand treat.

This was the film that got the attention of both critics and audiences of Peckinpah’s visceral style to violence. It is also a personal favorite film of mine and I can put it in my top five. I love the story of the outlaws who are facing the end of their prime and decide to head down south of the border. The characters are another favorite of mine being played by William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Ben Johnson, Warren Oates, Edmond O’Brien and Jaime Sanchez. Robert Ryan plays a former member who goes after them to reduce his sentence. Like “Pat Garrett”, the film can be seen as a tragedy for the characters despite their violent and misogynistic ways. Technically wise, Peckinpah finally achieves his slow motion editing for the film’s three main set pieces: The opening robbery, the train robbery and the epic shoot out finale. The film’s violence was meant as an allegory for the Vietnam War and to show audiences that being shot at is painful. After its release, a slew of violent films began to emerge. 

On Why I Love Long Films

When Quentin Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” was released last year, a friend of mine complained about the film’s running time that was close to the three hour mark. However, that did not affect me in watching it. In fact, a lot of my favorite films have a running time close to three or even four hours. Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” films, David Lean’s “Lawrence of Arabia” and “Doctor Zhivago”, Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai”, Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in America” and Stanley Kubrick’s “Barry Lyndon” are some of my favorite films that exceed those running times. The running times of those films may seem daunted but by the end, you are awarded an experience. I get that film studios today try their best to keep a film’s length right around two hours so that there will be more showtimes. For all that, cutting a film’s length just to get that two hour mark will tarnish the story. Take for example Ridley Scott’s 2005 historical epic “Kingdom of Heaven”. The theatrical cut was two hours and forty four minutes and was criticized for the uneven plot. The following year, Scott released his director’s cut that added forty five minutes, bringing the film’s running time to three hours and fifteen minutes. This made the film not only better but also necessary to tell a story, especially for an epic. Those kinds of films were made to be watched on the biggest screen at the theater. “The Hateful Eight” was shot on 70mm as was Paul Thomas Anderson’s “The Master” that only a select number of theatres were presenting it in that form versus the preferred digital projection. Next summer, Warner Bros. will release Christopher Nolan’s war epic “Dunkirk”, shot in IMAX 70 mm in select theatres that will show it in its true form. Hopefully, that will transition into more films that are longer and visually stunning.   

What are some of your thoughts on long films? Love or Hate? 

Ten Films That Never Got Made

Each year, a film gets made and there are steps that go into making one. There is a story that gets turned into a screenplay, a director who has a vision, how much money it would take to make, casting, post-production and release. A lot of time, there a films that prove to be difficult to not be made. I enjoy reading up on films that never got made because I would like to imagine what the finished product would have been. Last December, I bought a book titled "The Greatest Movies You'll Never See" by Simon Braund that I read almost everyday. I highly recommend checking it out since it goes into details on why certain films get made. For this post, I did borrow a lot of information from the book and I would like to personally thank Mr. Simon Braund. (With the exception of number six.) I had a lot of fun writing this and reading up on these.  

Before I go list off my top ten, I just want to mention a few honorable mentions that did not make the final list. The "Casablanca" sequel, "Brazzaville", Steven Spielberg's sci-fi horror "Night Skies", Francis Ford Coppola's "Megalopolis", Tim Burton's "Superman Lives" and David Lean's adaptation of Joseph Conrad's "Nostromo", While I should have added Jerry Lewis' "The Day The Clown Cried", it should be noted that the film has already been shot but Lewis refuses to release the film. 

10. Alejandro Jodrowsky’s Dune

As “El Topo” and “The Holy Mountain” were gaining a cult following, Chilean filmmaker Alejandro Jodrowsky set his eye on adapting Frank Herbert’s novel, “Dune”, to the big screen. The novel tells the story of a powerful spice that starts a war. After the release of “2001: A Space Odyssey”, science fiction became a hot commodity. Jodrowsky then assembles a team to bring his vision to life. “Dark Star” co-writer, special effects guy and star Dan O’Bannon, French comic book artist Moebius, British artist Chris Foss and Swiss artist H.R. Giger were brought to do the visuals and storyboard. For the lead, Jodrowsky hired his son, Brontis, to play the hero. In addition, Mick Jagger, Salvidor Dali and Orson Welles were up for roles. The soundtrack would have been composed by Pink Floyd.  Jodrowsky’s vision of the film would have been an acid trip without taking it.

You might be wondering why this film never got made? Not only was the budget ballooning up but the film would have been fourteen hours long. Then “Star Wars” comes out, a space opera that was close to Jodrowsky’s vision. Ridley Scott’s “Alien” borrowed O’Bannon’s script and Moebius, Foss and Giger did some of the visuals of the film. I think it is interesting that a film like “Dune” did not get made and yet, many sci-fi films that came after “borrow” from it. There is a documentary, “Jodrowsky’s Dune”, which does answer the question. 

9. To The White Sea

The Coen Brother’s filmography prior to “No Country For Old Men” consisted of films that were loosely based on literary works. “Miller’s Crossing” was inspired by the works of Dashiell Hammett, “The Big Lebowksi” borrowed from Raymond Chandler’s “The Big Sleep” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” referenced Homer’s “The Odyssey”. “To The White Sea” would have been their first adaption. Based on a novel by James Dickey, whose other novel “Deliverance” was turned into a film, the story follows a U.S. Air Force pilot stranded in Japan during WWII. The film would have followed his journey across the war torn country, his violent encounters and the bitter weather.

The film would have had spare dialogue while the Coen’s script added a voice over and flashback that were not in the novel. Even with Brad Pitt set to star, the film was shut down due to budget issues. It would have been shot entirely in Japan and a chunk of the budget would have been on recreating the firebombing of Tokyo. For me, this film would have seen the Coen Brothers trek a new genre but still be their own film.

8. Crusade

 Paul Verhoeven’s American films such as “Robocop”, “Total Recall”, “Basic Instinct” and “Starship Troopers” combined violence, sex and social commentary. After “Instinct”, he was set to team up with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a film about the crusades. Schwarzenegger would have played a thief who gets caught up in the conflict as he goes into battle.

The screenplay was written “The Wild Bunch” co-writer Walon Green. The script itself has been described as both epic and shockingly violent. The Catholic Church would have been depicted as corrupt, the knights would have been seen as psychopaths and the depictions of both Muslim and Jews would have been sympathetic. With a budget of between $100-$130 million dollars, the film was all set to be shot in Spain. While at a studio meeting to discuss the budget, Verhoeven got angry and went on a tirade after being told if there was any guarantee on the budget going up. Schwarzenegger was even present at the meeting and had this to say, “I kept kicking Verhoeven under the table and trying to tell him to shut up while we’re ahead.” I am a fan of Verhoeven and I try to picture what his version of medieval times would have been. Plus, it would have been great to see Schwarzenegger do his one liners in a different time period.

7. Gemini Man

 Here is the premise of the film: An aging hit man, considered to be the best in the world, is getting to settle down. The Orwellian type government then decides to eliminate him by sending a younger clone to kill him. A game of cat and mouse begins as they try to eliminate ne another.

That is the coolest premise I have heard for a film. It even got the attention of Hollywood producers and studio heads. This is thanks in no part to Darren Lemke’s script. Sean Connery was at the top of list to play both characters. After he passed, Harrison Ford and Mel Gibson were considered. This is right around 2002 and six years before David Fincher perfected the de-aging process in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”. The script is still floating around and various directors, including Curtis Hanson and Joe Carnahan, were attached at some point. Carnahan put together a sizzle reel that featured Clint Eastwood, both old and young. If you ask me, I think they should go with someone in their 50’s or early 60’s. While it may sound cliché, Liam Neeson would be a good choice. Denzel Washington perhaps could tackle the role.

6. Yucatan

Twenty five years after famed actor Steve McQueen passed away, two trunks were discovered.  According to the New York Times, they contained sixteen leathered bound notebooks. All of these contained about 17,000 pages for a film project he had wanted to do. The film would have followed a renegade Navy diver salvaging for Mayan treasure in the Yucatan peninsula. He smuggles the treasure via a motorcycle race.

This was discovered in 2005 and being a fan of McQueen, it sounded like a passion project of his. The film has been described as an adventure fused with a heist. Robert Downey Jr is currently at development with the film but he has been so since 2010. If the film does get made though, it would probably be different than McQueen’s silent treatment he was going to give. The artwork above depicts one of the many motorcycle chases that McQueen had a passion for. 

5. Napoleon

After the release of “2001”, Stanley Kubrick settled on making an epic biographical drama on the life and death of Napoleon Bonaparte. Kubrick did an abundance of research, even telling his assistants to go buy all books on Napoleon. He also went on scouting locations to the same places Napoleon’s battles occurred and gaining permission from the Romanian army to use their men as extras.

                                        

Several names were listed to play the emperor; Peter O’Toole, David Hemmings, Alec Guinness, Peter Ustinov, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Oscar Werner and Jack Nicholson were on the list.  Audrey Hepburn, Julie Andrews and Vanessa Redgrave were courted to play Josephine. With large numbers on expensive sets, military uniforms, extras and movie stars, the film would have been expensive. Then two Napoleon themed films were released and did not do well at the box office. As a result, the film was cancelled and Kubrick began working on “A Clockwork Orange” at Warner Brothers. His research did to go to waste as he used it for his 1975 film “Barry Lyndon”. Recently, Steven Spielberg is set to produce an HBO miniseries based on Kubrick’s original screenplay.

4. Kaleidoscope

By the mid 60’s, Alfred Hitchcock suffered from the financial failures of “Marnie” and “Torn Curtain”. His previous films before those, “North by Northwest”, “Psycho” and “The Birds”, were hits. Hitchcock then saw Michelangelo Antonioni’s “Blow Up”, a film about a London Photographer in the swinging 1960’s who may have captured a murder with his camera. The film’s risqué nudity and themes of voyeurism attracted the Master of Suspense. He has said “These Italian directors are a century ahead of me in terms of technique.” It is here that Hitchcock decided to once again re-invent himself.

The film would have told the story of a man who seduces women and murders them. As Hitchcock was busy with the technical aspects, he enlisted writers to help him on the script. His approach would have been owed to the French New Wave and Cinema-Verte. Hitchcock even went on to shoot test footage, which depicted the first murder. Even with a low budget, Universal decided not to green lit the project due to the sex and violence that would be shown. Perhaps the film was just way ahead of its time in 1967. In the next following years, slasher horror films would depict murderers targeting innocent or not so innocent victims. Hitchcock would borrow aspects of the script into his 1972 film “Frenzy” and the world would never see this unmade film.

3. Batman: Year One

  After “Batman and Robin” became a laughing stock, Warner Brothers cancelled the fifth film and decided to start fresh. It was a smart decision to try and adapt Frank Miller’s “Year One” story with telling the Batman origins. Before Christopher Nolan became interested, the studio approached another indie filmmaker in Darren Aronofsky, (Pi and Requiem For a Dream) who also co-wrote the screenplay with Miller. The film would have a different origin story, where Bruce Wayne loses everything after the death of his parents. Alfred would be a black mechanic who takes Wayne in and works at his auto shop. Wayne would have psychological issues like Travis Bickle. Gotham City would still be portrayed as a dangerous place as Wayne roams around in a Lincoln car that becomes the Batmobile. The suit would have been similar to a medieval knight. Jim Gordon would have been portrayed like Dirty Harry.

The tone of the film would have been like the gritty films of the 70’s such as “The French Connection”, “Death Wish” and “Taxi Driver”. Did I mention the film would have had an R rating? WB decided not to move forward since the film would not have been difficult to market. As a Batman fan, the concept sounds both drastic but interesting. I could see it as an Elseworlds tale and perhaps with the success of “Deadpool”, the idea of an R rated Batman film sounds bad ass.

2. Leningrad

Italian maestro Sergio Leone was known for his spaghetti westerns and his last film, “Once Upon a Time in America”, was an epic crime drama. Before he passed away, Leone was keen on making an epic war romance about the Leningrad battle during WWII. The story would have followed a cynical American newsreel camera man covering the war and falling in love with a Russian woman.

Robert De Niro was offered the role of the camera man and shooting was to happen in the Soviet Union. Leone had envisioned the opening of the film as a continuous shot from a musician composing music to Russian snipers lining up and the German tanks soon followed. The film would have had a budget of $100 million dollars and before Terminator 2; this would have been the most expensive film. Sadly, Leone died two days before going to Los Angeles to discuss the budget of a heart attack. I am a fan of films set during WWII and it would have been a spectacle to see Leone tackle a different gene as he did previously. 

    1.   L’Enfer

A hotel owner, Marcel, begins to grow jealous of his young wife hanging out with the local townspeople, including the handsome mechanic. Soon, he begins to have nightmares that consume him. The film would have been shot in black and white while the nightmare sequences would have been in a hyper stylized color.

For me, this is the film I would have love to see in it’s entirely as it would have been a masterpiece. Henri-Georges Clouzot made classics such as The Wages of Fear and Diabolique but took a break when his wife passed away. Plus, French cinema in the 1960’s saw the New Wave with films being made n the fly versus crafting the story. Clouzot was soon plagued by nightmares which formed the basis for this project. Columbia Pictures agreed to finance his film, a rare deal for an American studio. Clouzot then began to shoot test footage, where he experimented with colors and shots. He also tested the sound as it would have played a role in the film. The photo shown above has lead actress Romy Schneider in weird color scheme that would have invoke a nightmare. Then about halfway into shooting the film, the director suffered a heart attack and did not return to finish the film. If interested, there is a documentary, “L’Enfer d’Henri-Georges Clouzot”, by Serge Bromberg that both talks about the making of the film and pieces of what the finished film would have looked like. In a way, it is the closest thing anyone would get at watching Clouzot’s unfinished work.