Sam Peckinpah 1925 - 1984

Full Name: David Samuel Peckinpah AKA Bloody Sam
Nationality: US, but lived in Mexico for much of his later life.
Years Active: 1961 - 1983 (22 years)
Feature Length Films Directed: 14

Sam Peckinpah is one the most influential and important directors of the Hollywood New Wave. He is recognised by many Film buffs as one of the most influential or even the most influential director when it comes to violence and action scenes in film.
But in my opinion he has not been getting enough recognition these days, he is gradually being forgotten and although all film buffs have heard of him and have maybe seen one or two of his more well known films (Straw Dogs or the Wild Bunch maybe...) the majority of his work seems to be ignored. He is nowhere near as famous as his contemporaries, Scorsese, Coppola, Spielberg and even Lucas. And yet he has had an undeniable impact of film making and has influenced directors such a Martin Scorsese, Q.T., John Woo...

So I have decided to watch as many of his films as I can get my hands on and consequently write this post designed to celebrate his directional talent and the quality of his films but also to offer criticism on the downsides of his style and body of work.
Before deciding this, I wasn't entirely unfamiliar with his work but I had only seen The Wild Bunch which is perhaps his most celebrated film, as well as Cross of Iron and Bring Me The Head Of Alfredo Garcia.

So in this Peckinpah Marathon I'll be offering my thoughts on every single film he directed from 1961 to 1983 with the exception of any TV work or music video's:
(These aren't really proper reviews, just a few thoughts on each films)

Weekly Collection of Random Film Thoughts

• RIP Elizabeth Taylor, you were brilliant in Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf. 

• I've recently installed a soft that will allow me to take screenshots of films, I don't know why I didn't get this before, but at least I have now so I'll be including some more original images in my reviews from now on instead of finding them on the internet.

Here's an example from one of my favourite films:

Ran - 1985, Kurosawa

Quick Ratings/Reviews of The Week

Junior Bonner - 1972 directed by Sam Peckinpah
8/10
One of Peckinpah's less known films, probably because this one lacks the violence he was most famous for. This is a little, rather modest film that really drew me in as it went along and although I'm not particularly a fan of rodeo (in fact I rather dislike it) the film still had me gripped towards the end. It's a slow film, but it slowly rises in quality as it goes along and you'll surely end up enjoying it. Steve McQueen also gives one of his best performances.

Crying Freeman - 1995

Recently I realised that I'd mainly reviewed excellent films on my blog, so I've decided to write a little post about a film I saw recently entitled Crying Freeman.
A very overlooked film that despite all it's flaws is still a solid action film, much better than a lot of the terrible action films of recent years (The Expendables, The A Team etc...). The reason it was so overlooked is probably because it didn't get a US release, for diverse reasons.
Crying Freeman is based on a popular Manga, which had previously been adapted into an Anime. I am unfamiliar with both the manga and the anime,so I probably enjoyed the film a bit more than those familiar with the source material for I heard it deviates considerably.
Directed by Christoph Gans, mainly known for the Brotherhood of the Wolf.
It stars Mark Dacascos and Julie Condra (who incidentally got married afterwards).

Stylish Blogger Award

 

 Lesya over at Eternity of A Dream was kind enough to bestow the Stylish Blogger award upon me!

So first of all, thanks Lesya!

Now, apparently since I've been awarded this distinction I must name 7 facts about myself, and then pass of the Award to 7 other bloggers who I admire.

Malcolm X - 1992

Spike Lee is in the Director's Chair over at the LAMB. Check the blogathon out to find many reviews and various posts dealing with the directors work. 


Spike Lee is a director who has contributed much to America Cinema throughout his rather long and varied career and even if you don't agree with his strong political and social beliefs you can't deny that his films have proved to be very influential.
Now I will review what I consider to be his most important film in terms of social and political factors, Malcolm X.
(I consider Do The Right Thing to be his most important film from a Cinematic point of view.)

Malcolm X was released in 1992, with a budget of about 33 million dollars and a gross revenue of about 48 million, so it can't really be considered a financial success, although I'm sure it made up for it's costs easily in the international release and the video market.
Denzel Washington stars as Malcolm X, Washington was a regular actor in Lee's films having appeared in 4 of his works.
The rest of the cast contains Angela Basset as Betty X and Spike Lee as Shorty.
It won 16 awards around the world including The Silver Bear for Best Actor (Washington) and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
Malcolm X was one of the most controversial and, in my opinion, one of the most important figures of the past century.
Now, I am not Black but I must say that while watching this film and while reading the book it was based upon I felt very inspired and impressed by this great man.
But this isn't only a film with a powerful and important message, it is an extremely well made film with terrific performances.