It's better than the 1994 remake starring Kim Basinger and husband Alec Baldwin, but this 1972 thriller relies too heavily on the low-key star power of Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw, and the stylish violence of director Sam Peckinpah, reduced here to a mechanical echo of his former glory. McQueen plays a bank robber whose wife (MacGraw) makes a deal with a Texas politician to have her husband released from prison in return for a percentage from their next big heist. But when the plan goes sour, the couple must flee to Mexico as fast as they can, with a variety of gun-wielding thugs on their trail. MacGraw was duly skewered at the time for her dubious acting ability, but the film still has a raw, unglamorous quality that lends a timeless spin to the familiar crooks-on-the-lam scenario. As always, Peckinpah rises to the occasion with some audacious scenes of action and suspense, including a memorable chase on a train that still grabs the viewer's attention. Not a great film, but a must for McQueen and Peckinpah fans. --Jeff Shannon
Product Description
Director Sam Peckinpah's exciting, violent adaptation of Jim Thompson's pulp thriller stars Steve McQueen as a Texas ex-con hired by the political boss who arranged for his parole to take part in a bank robbery. The heist falls apart and McQueen, realizing he was set up, flees with the loot and wife Ali MacGraw on a run for the Mexican border. With Ben Johnson, Al Lettieri, Sally Struthers. 123 min. Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtracks: English Dolby Digital mono, French Dolby Digital mono, Spanish Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: English (SDH), French, Spanish.
