Rolling Thunder (1977) - Page 2

Nice. Thanks, guys.

After reading through this thread, imagine my diappointment when I couldn't find the movie on Netflix instant view. Seems to have left us.

I can only hope it was removed to make way for a dvd release.

Well that sucks. And I was thinking of watching it again. Movies that aren't available on DVD shouldn't be removed from Instant.

Trailer for all of you who never got around to the film.

I watched this last night.

I thought it started very strong for the reasons that have already been noted. The couch scene with his wife was incredible as was the "learn to love the rope"/"don't call my kid a runt" scene showcasing the torture he went through and his resilence, however i felt it became a lot less interesting once he leaves on his journey of revenge. For me, it then became typical of its genre. I was slightly disappointed and it took what potentially could have been a great film down a notch to just enjoyable.

Devane is strong in his minimalistic performace, conveying a lot with very little, he's always been fascinating to watch with his strong physicality and interesting face but his eerie zen-like calm/numbness takes his mystique to another level. It's a leading man role giving to a character actor to play with and it pays off wonderfully. I think thats the selling point in recommending the film to someone.

I can understand the cult status but i don't believe it deserves anything more than that.

MGM bought most of AIP's library including Rolling Thunder so why no DVD release? Bit weird when you see that MGM have released Cutter's Way, Dog Soldiers... in their lower budget/no frills range.

http://www.mgm.com/title_title.php?title_star=ROLLINGT

Just adding to the lovefest. I think the aspect that impresses me the most is the way the storyline just simmers - occasionally boiling over - coming back to a simmer - and then just blowing the top off at the conclusion. Seriously, this is textbook pacing on a minimal budget. Great stuff.

I can see Schrader's point, but his sense of disappointment over what was intended and what was made seems to blind him to the film's qualities. Fascist feels off the mark to me in that the violence is specifically enacted for the sake of revenge. Simplistic? Maybe. Blood-thirsty? Probably. But it's not like the violence is arbitrary or without consequence. I'm thinking Schrader intended a deeper meditation on violence and wasn't pleased that it was essentially turned into a revenge thriller.

I don't think you'll find anyone singing the praises of the third act that loudly. The more traditional second half of the film works because of Devane's invested performance in the first half. Sure, we've seen the revenge plot before, but because of the groundwork laid down by Devane and director Flynn in the first act, it resonates a bit more for me. The shot of Devane loading a revolver with his hook packs a wallop BECAUSE of the earlier, quiet hospital scene where he's practicing putting cigarettes into their pack one at a time.

MGM has more films than they know what to do with. I just watched an hour and 15 minutes of White Line Fever before the bootleg DVD stopped cooperating.

I think the third act is powerful because of how well the second act is constructed. As said, it surely wasn't what Schrader expected, but using violence as commentary, it's almost as powerful as Peckinpah's Wild Bunch or Patt G. & Billy the Kid.

A lot of what made the third act work for me was Tommy Lee Jones. There was something both frightening and pathetic about watching a man so clearly lost and without purpose for most of the film only come fully to life when asked to pick up a gun and start killing people.

I totally agree. I actually thought Jones was giving something of a wooden performance. Until the end. Then I understood where he was coming from the whole time. It was actually an incredibly thoughtful, chilling performance. Devane has the showier role (and he's terrific) but Jones is just as good, just in a different way.

Is this legit?

Not sure.

Nope.

Devane's great in this, but Tommy Lee's deadpan delivery at the climax is what seals the love for me:

Hooker: What the fuck are you gonna do?!
TLJ: I'm gonna kill a bunch of people.

So awesome.

Didn't think so. Oh well.

It's probably sourced from the same place I got my bootleg, and it's not bad quality, but with Netflix having it on Watch It Now, then pulling it off, that means some sort of activity with MGM. I'm hoping a real version is coming down the pike.

Saw this last night for the first time. Holy shit.

Thanks Phil for your avatar and your constant pimping of Devane. I'm a believer now.

I loved Tommy Lee Jones getting a handjob and casually arming his shotgun. "We are gonna kill a bunch of people"

The last shot has to be one of the simplest and best EVER. BOOM, walking away while credits roll.

Awesome.

Yeah, I had the same revelation during this one. I felt bad thinking how much Jones sucked at first when this was all over with.

I actually loved his blank expression at the beginning. He was completely lost and alone. Then the moment he smiled when Devane asks him to go on a mission was a terrific payoff.

I hadn't seen this film in years. But I remember just how fucking badass it is.

Finally bought a pretty good quality dvd at a convention last month. Nifty looking cover art and case too.

How fucking sorry do you feel for Jones when he's with his family? And now Major Charles Rane has to be subjected to the banality of it all?

What a great, great underplayed scene showing what complete bullshit American life is, especially for these poor souls (Devane and Jones) who've just returned from an extended stay in Hell.

And what dastardly bastards the Fat Man, Automatic Slim and the others are. Willing to kill an entire family for like two grand. Jesus.

I was let down by WHITE LINE FEVER. A considerable cult has developed around that one over the years, but I feel it is very undeserved. It's just paper thin.

Perhaps we can all start sending emails or something to MGM? Isn't that why they released TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A., because of overwhelming support from the internet?

Hate when people read homo-eroticism or subtext into something that's not there, but here I go!

Watching ROLLING THUNDER again in the wee hours last night, picked up the hint of a physical relationship between TLJ and Devane.

It's in the body language, and the way they interact with each other and the women they come in contact with.

They were in a state of constant torture--even rape--for all those years, and in this state of despair, and as a result of "learning to love the rope", if something occurred, it was probably something they fell into, that the two of them just had to in order to survive . This would parallel Devane's wife's infidelity, and partly explain his reaction to her.

With Devane it was something that just happened in the dark--whatever gets you through the night, right?-, but underneath TLJ's subtle and emotionless performance, you sense he's still affected, and struggling with homosexual feelings neither of these men would ever acknowledge or could face. (during the hospital scenes especially, you can sense his longing, and see the confused pain on his face--a very Schrader touch)

TLJ's hell is not just making it home to the suffocating banality of family life and a nagging wife he doesn't want anymore, if ever--but the denial of the only relationship that matters to him at all. When Devane shows up again, needing him, you can see his whole demeanor change. Even in facing death, he's alive again.

The third act is, at its heart, not so much an act of revenge, but a desperate reclaiming of their masculinity, actions all at once WILD BUNCH resigned nobility and a fearful, shame-driven betrayal of their true nature and desires.

Their kill-crazy rampage ultimately is a hollow victory; a small battle, in a larger war they've already lost. Walking out of the brothel, all hope of a happily ever after is gone.

Nuts?

Maybe a little nuts. But the script started with Paul Schrader, so I'd never be so obnoxious as to say "no way".

What you suggest is a bit of a game changer, to the point that I'd need to rewatch the film entirely to give it proper consideration. (That speaks to your take on it as much as it does to the specialness of the film to me, in my canon.)

But at first blush, the men strike me more as asexual monks as a result of their severe (and yes, shared) experience. Neither has anyone in their life that can relate to what they've been through except each other, and it's tempting to call this intense, private connection a sexual one. After all. they're closer than any lovers could be; who knows what they saw each other endure. But unless you're completely moving beyond the intent of the author(s), and analyzing their own motivations and such, I don't see a 70s revenge pic as having intentional gay subtext as particularly likely. Really interesting take, though, and I'm not ready to dismiss it without revisiting the film. Twist my arm.

This is what I thought of, based on two moments: Jones' embarrassment and quick departure when Linda comes into the hospital room with flowers, and when he's walking Devane in the wheelchair and they stop at a bench. Jones sits down and crosses his legs and Devane asks him how his wife is.

Jones: "Oh, it's hard getting used to home life again. You know, getting used to being with a woman."
Devane says nothing, wears sunglasses, puts his hand on his chin, looks away to the sky.
Jones: "Do you wanna head back?"

But it may just be me adding to the minimalism of the performances. I'd say the first half is really great, and a little bit more complexity a la Schrader's ideas would be welcome in the second, like more sympathetic brothel patrons being killed. The third act action movie problems start, for me, with the extended death of Cliff the policeman.

Had no problem with Jones' small role from the start. Loved the whole beginning sequence, the song, the crowd, and their little exchange about the remedy for hating to be around people was sunglasses.

For those in the NYC area, this and some other cool movies are playing August 7-13 at Anthology Film Archives:

http://www.anthologyfilmarchives.org...ED%20TREASURES

Can't do much but echo the love for this film, but wanted to point out it's playing on Retroplex (Comcast channel 168) in 20 minutes. Short notice but I just saw it in the channel guide. If anyone happens to see this message in time I urge you to watch/DVR it

Schrader's script.

Cultcine have remastered Rolling Thunder but I can't speak for the quality. I've seen screencaps for some of their spaghetti western titles and it looks like they do a good job. I'm not sold on the idea of buying DVD-R's but it's another option for those eager to watch it.

Thanks to Chud (and Phil specifically) for inspiring me to track this down. Absolutely excellent. The moment where Devane says he found the bad guys, and Jones slowly turns and looks at him is a chill-inducing moment. It is clear that shit is, in fact, about to go down. James Best is remarkably evil in his small role. No wonder he doesn't like being reminded about Roscoe P. Coltrane.

Thanks for the link, Tom. I ordered it, and will order from MGM if they ever get around to releasing it.

On a semi-related note, Jeffrey Wells just posted a link to Paul Schrader's personal site, featuring some of his film essays.

Oh shit, thanks for the bump, guys. Gonna order that Cultcine version next week when I get paid.

EDIT: ordered it anyway. $12, why not.

Would love to hear some reviews as to how this transfer looks on a 16 x 9. I have one home-burned letterboxed copy but would upgrade if the quality went up.

UPDATE:

So I got this. It came in a clear slipsleeve, simple white DVD labeled Rolling Thunder in Sharpie on the cover. I put it in my computer and it won't play, even though the E drive reads it as Rolling Thunder and being filled with 4.06 GB. I either bought a really expensive coaster or an unwanted collection of bestiality porn. I'll try VLCplayer tonight along with a regular old damn DVD player and see what happens.

Eesh. Thanks for jumping on the grenade.

You should probably loan it to me, just so I can test it on my player.

You just want all that sweet, sweet animal porn to yourself.

Why wouldn't it play if it was full of animal porn? Is your computer a prude or something?

My computer generally has no problem with it.

I had posters for this movie and Manhunter in my dorm last semester. Unfortunately, they went through hell and surgery sidelined me for the semester, so I had to ditch them. But they ruled.

On my old laptop's hard drive, I have an extra credit essay for a class I took on Vietnam on this one too. Also wrote one for Birdy, but I felt so awesome for getting to write a paper on this movie.

Disregard my previous post, it works! The transfer's not AMAZING, but it's head and shoulders above the previous transfer hosted on Netflix. Plus, I love the menu art:

And it's anamorphic. That's the big BUY THIS in this scenario. Looks not too shabby on the upconvert. I am happy.

New favorite moment: the obvious/brilliant staging of Devane in the kitchen when he's first home - drinking a beer, smoking a cigarette, head in complete darkness. Familiar stranger. Love it.

Hey Phil, was my theory bullshit or not?

I dunno! I think from the beginning scene it's clear that TLJ's character is quite literally lost without Devane. "Just put your glasses on, John", etc. TLJ survived 7 years in a POW camp by doing whatever Devane told him. Then he comes home, and again literally sits around waiting for Devane to tell him what to do next.

I think their connection goes beyond a physical relationship; these guys have a bond that 99% of us will never share or comprehend. That's more resonant to me than any kind of sexual subtext.

What a terrific movie.

Caught this on Netflix instant about a year ago after hearing about this from you fine folks and was totally impressed.

Seeing this at the New Bev with Death Wish 3 was such a treat.

William Devane and Tommy Lee Jones own this movie.

Absolutely adore Tommy Lee at the end of this movie " I'll get my gear. ".

I think Vohden is also a little worse off because of his FNL-esque background. He did everything that was required of him - played high school football; married his high school sweetheart; served his country. Things worked out fine for Don Visser, but not for John and thousands like him. Like Phil says, now that he's back his only direction in life now comes from whatever Rane tells him to do.

I'm hopeful, after that final shootout, they may find some peace; when Rane tells him, "Let's go home, John", you get the idea that maybe they'll get able to get on with their lives.

As to the previous question, I don't see any signs of the love that dare not speak its name, although these guys obviously do love each other.

"They're gay lovers" is almost approaching the popularity of "The third act was all a dream/fantasy" among weird movie theories.

Late thanks to Tom Logan for the link to Schrader's script. Reading it now.

I agree, but there is that little hint of the illicit thrill - Cliff's sly smile as he refuses when Rane asks him if he wanted to know what tortures they experienced. Good acting there.

A lot of bootleg outfits stock this one, since it's one of the most dearly coveted not-on-DVD items. I'm inclined to get mine from Shocking Videos — the guy's good people and I've been satisfied with his stuff so far. I will report back on my findings whenever it arrives (the guy's good, not fast).

By doing this, I am also doing every Rolling Thunder fan a solid, because invariably whenever I buy a flick on bootleg, it's announced for release on legit R1 DVD within six months.

Oh, and all the praise about the flick is true. It's a powerhouse.