The Getaway (1972) User Reviews (185)

A Peckinpah Home Run

[frankenbenz · 8/10 · 17 July 2008]

Sick and tired of new releases I couldn't get through 45 minutes of, I went back to a classic: Sam Peckinpah's The Getaway. What a breath of fresh air this 1972 heist/chase movie turned out to be. In addition to hyper realistic characterizations of the McCoys (played by Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw), everything else about this movie rings true. 35 years later, Peckinpah's signature slo-motion shoot outs stand up against anything in the theaters today. There's little to dislike about this movie and I can't help but wonder why movies aren't made like this anymore: no special FX, no over-the-top stunt sequences, no melodramatic dialogue, not fat, no filler. This is a movie made by real people, for real people. Plain and simple.

Technically, the stand-out aspect within The Getaway is the editing. Influenced by the French New Wave, Peckinpah defies convention by playing with time and space as he uses disjointed cuts to jump ahead in time before allowing the events within the movie to catch up to the present. The most interesting example of this occurs when Doc and Carol are at a busy park alongside a river. Doc has just been released from prison and he's soaking in the sights and sounds of freedom. Peckinpah cuts to a shot of Doc jumping into the river with his clothes on, followed by Carol. At first this feels like a fantasy in Doc's head since we abruptly cut back to the present where Doc is still standing and looking at the river. But soon he actually does run to and jump into the river. From there we cut directly to Carol's apartment where the two enter soaking wet and smiling. It is atypical and unexpected to see unconventional editing like this in mainstream American movies, but when it's done (and done right) there' something incredibly rewarding about having your brain (and expectations) teased in such a randomly disjointed (yet fluid) way.

Another example of unconventional yet incredibly effective montage happens in the opening thirty minutes. In this sequence Doc McCoy (McQueen) is locked up in prison and slowly losing his wits. Peckinpah portrays Doc's inner head space through a dizzying montage of shots of Doc in and around the prison, where synced sound cuts smash into one another in a relentlessly pounding and oppressive manner. You get the sense something has to break and before long you realize it's Doc's resolve.

Peckinpah proves with The Getaway that you don't need astounding source material to make a great movie. On the written page I'm sure this film seemed like a very standard heist/chase film. But by allowing the actors to bring realistic, idiosyncratic performances to the table and by utilizing unorthodox techniques, such as French New Wave inspired editing, Peckinpah elevates pulp into high art. I know I'm sounding like a broken record by saying this but: where are the artists in Hollywood today?

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Exciting McQueen/MacGraw action movie with violent Peckinpah direction

[sapblatt · 8/10 · 13 December 2003]

This 1972 action crime movie begins with Steve McQueen (Carter `Doc' McCoy) passing time in prison. The fact that the time is slowly destroying him is creatively directed by Sam Peckinpah with lots of repetitive machine images and stop-action photography. McQueen's inner turmoil is exacerbated by losing a chess match with a fellow inmate and by his destruction of an intricate bridge model he spent a great deal of time building. The plot thickens when McCoy tells his wife to contact the local political boss and tell him that he is for sale and will do anything to get paroled.

McQueen gets out and the action is on from this point forward. The bank robbery is screwed up and the leads to the long crazy getaway. McCoy's force partner Rudy, played by Al Lettieri (`Mr. Magestyk,' `The Godfather') has always played the consummate bad guy, and he does not disappoint here. In `The Getaway' Rudy kills the third partner, tries to kill McCoy at the meeting spot and then kidnaps a veterinarian and his wife (Sally Struthers and eventually makes her his girlfriend and her husband, who cannot takes it hangs himself.

Like in most Peckinpah films it is the style and the violence that sticks out. There are memorable fisticuff scenes as well has the required explosions and gunshot scenes. Ones that stand out include the all too realistic slaps to the face to Ali MacGraw after Doc learns that he had been set up by her and the incredible beating of a thief played by Richard Bright (`The Panic in Needle Park' and `The Godfather' who unknowingly steals the bank robbery money in a con game in a train station and is eventually caught by McCoy. Also of note are a series of diversionary explosions that are set off right after the bank robbery and an incredible shotgun destruction of a police car. The grand finale in an El Paso hotel is not to be missed. As rough and violent as all of this is it is important to note a quieter more sympathetic side of McCoy that is played my Steve McQueen. On a few occasions he makes it clear to people in his path that if they do what he says, when he says it they will be left alone and therefore survive. Much like in Peckinpah's earlier film, `The Wild Bunch' there is an honor among thieves, or a code of ethics that is important for the protagonist(s) to uphold.

Another aspect of this morality is played off in a sarcastic and ironic manner in the last seen. A trash collector played by Slim Pickens (`Dr. Strangelove,' `Blazing Saddles') is willingly kidnapped to assist McQueen and MacGraw cross the border into Mexico. Even though he has a good idea of the kinds of life the criminals are leading Pickens is very happy to hear that the couple is married and he feels that society is falling apart due to a lack of morals. In light of the excessive violence that occurs in this film it is funny that Peckinpah's film comments that all would be morally OK if young people just stick to the traditions of marriage.

The Getaway: The last days of the pure Action-film

[latsblaster · 8/10 · 15 August 2004]

Before Action became routine and Bruce Willis there was the 1970´s Action-film, which often had a lot of mood. "The Getaway" is one of those films, showing what range the Action-film could have - there is more than violence and wannabe-cool dialog here. This was before the Action-films became exaggerated, instead of having just explosions and being over-explicit there is booth plot and suspense in "The Getaway". It let Peckinpah use his well known style, in the way of Boorman´s "Point Blank". The result is pure. Ali McGraw is said to be limited and stiff, but Peckinpah made her solid here. I guess that Steve McQueen never was better than here, even if some wouldn't agree. Some of Peckinpah´s regular starred (such as Ben Johnson, Slim Pickens, Bo Hopkins and Dub Taylor) which makes it even better today - the impact of Peckinpah is powerful.

Rating: 8 of 10.

Hypnotic, violent classic

[narmkids · 2 October 2002]

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.

Good and violent Peckinpah movie

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 16 November 2004]

The film centers about a robber named "Doc" McCoy (Steve McQueen) is paroled from a Texas state prison , somewhat to his surprise . His spouse , Carol (Ali McGraw) , has arranged for his freedom by sleeping with the corrupt but politically well connected Jack Benyon (Ben Johnson) . Ben Johnson assigns him a heist helped by Al Lettieri and Bo Hopkins but he's betrayed and the events burst .

In the motion picture there is suspense , drama , thriller, car pursuits and amount of violence reflected in slow-moving shots typical of Peckinpah . From the beginning to the end the action-packed is interminable . The final confrontation at hotel between the starring , Steve McQueen , Ali McGraw and the enemies is breathtaking and overwhelming . The picture has been classified ¨R¨ for crude murders and isn't apt for little boys , neither squeamish . However , it was rated PG by the MPAA in the United States. A few years later, in retrospect, this was considered a mistake and the board believed that the film should have been rated one step higher, an R . Steve McQeen and Ali McGraw's (marriage in real life) interpretation is top-notch . Sam Peckinpah direction is excellent though is better in Western films (Wild bunch , Pat Garret and Billy the Kid , Bring me the head Alfredo Garcia and Major Dundee).

The movie obtained success and originated a remake featured by Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger (marriage in real life, too) although failed at box office . The yarn will appeal to action buffs and Peckinpah fans . Rating : 7/10 .Well catching

This movie is a true masterpiece

[pzanardo · 10/10 · 17 December 2001]

I consider "The getaway" a true masterpiece, on the same level of Sam Peckinpah's major achievements (save "The wild bunch", of course). I learn from IMDb comments that the final cut of the movie was made by other people (McQueen ?!) than the director. Moreover the plot is much unfaithful to the original novel... Well... anyway the result is excellent.

Doc (Steve McQueen) is a tough, laconic guy, Carol (Ali McGraw) a tough, laconic woman. In some sense, they mostly speak just for technical reasons: "Take the money-bag", "Don't scratch your wound"... If they've nothing to say, they keep quiet. They seem shy to express their reciprocal feelings, even unable to say "I love you". Doc cannot accept what Carol has done, although just to help him out of jail. They both silently suffer for this, with some explosions of violence by Doc, and a ready gritty reply by Carol. But the audience well understand from their body-language how much they love each other. I think that McQueen and McGraw made a superb job in their difficult roles. Strangely enough, their performances, as well as their lines, received much criticism. I fear that people didn't like their job since they are too used to the current way of acting: hysterical, screaming, awfully clown-like. With lines that are just floods of stupid, pointless, annoying chats. A not welcome legacy of the style created by Tarantino, Oliver Stone and imitators. Nothing could be more far-away from Peckinpah's artistic taste.

The story of the movie is linear, but not trivial. The cinematography and montage are outstanding. The pace is somewhat slow, partially due to the great care paid to details. But when it's the time of action, nobody can compete with Peckinpah's grand style.

In every movie of his, Peckinpah shows his genius with some astonishing, stark new cinematic ideas. In "The getaway" we find the paramount representation of the "power of the shot-gun". Doc's shot-gun bullets destroy police-cars, devastate a whole hotel, demolish an elevator, knock down a door slaughtering the thug hidden behind... the recoil of the weapon lifts Doc's shoulder... Who remembers that this stuff, nowadays almost a cliche in action-movies, was introduced in "The getaway"? It's worth noting that an early imitator of Peckinpah's "shot-gun scenes" was Steven Spielberg in "Sugarland express".

Some words on the sub-plot concerned with the hateful Rudy (Al Lettieri) and the cretinous Fran (Sally Struthers). This part of the film is deliberately disagreeable, up to an almost unbearable point. As usual, Peckinpah doesn't miss his chance to be hated by the feminists, with his design of Fran. A damned idiot, nymphomaniac just for stupidity. At the end, when Doc hits her (a punch straight on her prating, whimpering mouth!) the director nearly provokes a standing ovation by the audience (men and women, as well). If that's not cinematic genius, what else is it? And, speaking of imitators, how much Tarantino's characters owe to Rudy and Fran?

Perhaps "The getaway" could have been even better without extraneous interference. Nonetheless, it is a fantastic film, a must-see.

Elegant amidst all the glorified violence...very 1972 and strong stuff

[secondtake · 7/10 · 13 July 2017]

The Getaway (1972)

A striking, very characteristic period piece that owes something (a lot) to "Bonnie and Clyde" from five years earlier. Steve McQueen is strong, in his silently brooding, intense way. And he rules the movie. His counterpart (his wife, actually), is played by Ali MacGraw (of "Love Story" fame) who is predictably a bit drab, though she fits the mold of the times.

So who makes the movie even slightly great? The photographer and editor, and therefore the director, Sam Pickinpaw, who had risen up with "The Wild Bunch" and "Straw Dogs," both better films than this one. The combination of natural, smart visuals (thanks to Lucian Ballard) and amazingly back and forth editing that would make Christopher Nolan proud (thanks to Robert Wolfe, who would go on to do a number of interesting films), the movie has punch and fresh energy.

The plot is fairly straight up—Doc McCoy gets out of jail thanks to a "favor" by his wife with a crime king. The debt is paid with more crime, and so the movie follows the new heist. Parallel to this is the reunification of McCoy with his wife. And she is involved in the new job, so the interweaving continues.

So in a way, the plot does its job keeping the other elements in place. The movie is fast, and has a lot of changes and interesting aspects. The settings are great—Texas in the early 1970s— and the feeling of small crime in the big world makes a great backdrop. McQueen is smart and wily, and a lot of the small parts are strong, especially Slim Pickens at the end.

It also sums up the attempts in New Hollywood to be shocking and new. Worth seeing.

Bloody, exciting, and amazing on all accounts

[J-Bizzle · 9/10 · 20 July 2005]

Steve McQueen, the number one bad ass of his time (aside from Clint Eastwood of course). So what's wrong with rooting for the bad guy? This movie seems almost flawless with its excellently executed car chases, it's suspenseful and exciting shoot-outs, and its riveting emotional sequences. Both McGraw and McQueen make this movie well worth the experience. While it is a violent movie (especially for the year it was released!) its moments of comic relief and even serenity make this movie worthy of any moral person's eyes.

Without spoiling the movie, just imagine Bonnie and Clyde with the greatest action/adventure experience ever. And to think it was over a measley $500,000... Of course, they were being chased for $750,000.

9/10 for an adventure close to perfection.

A Peckinpah classic with substantial flaws

[erniemunger · 7/10 · 11 December 2005]

Of all things, Getaway is a very uneven effort by Sam Peckinpah that doesn't live up to its famous predecessors, The Wild Bunch (1969) and Straw Dogs (1971). With both, it shares the director's known liking for graphic violence (preferably using slow-motion gun shots) and queasy moral standards (that affect women and men alike), but too many flaws get in its way to make it a truly great thriller. The film opens with a very promising atmospheric prelude showing Doc McCoy (Steve McQueen) grappling with the hardship of prison life. When his request for parole is rejected by the Prison Board, he summons his wife Carol (Ali MacGraw) to barter an agreement with corrupt sheriff Jack Beynon (Ben Johnson) to get him released. The price to pay, or so it seems, is a bank robbery McCoy must carry out for Beynon's benefit. When McCoy learns that he will have to "work" with two of Beynon's men, his natural instinct tells him that he and his partner are in for trouble. Sure enough, things turn sour and McCoy is a man on the run. The main plot line is about deceit and suspicion. McCoy's near pathological mistrust in anyone crossing his way repeatedly saves his life but almost ruins it too, as it threatens to terminate his relationship with Carol as well. The film is served well by Peckinpah's utter lack of moralising impetus; the only things that make people tick in this movie are money and distrust (and, occasionally, sex; though that is more of an occupational gadget), and life is fundamentally a struggle against your next neighbour. Tellingly, redemption (a safe and proper life) lies beyond the border, in a fantasmagoric other territory, in this case Mexico, which in itself reeks of sarcasm. Though the main story has great moments in store, and the filming is spotless, the entire venture is at times obstructed by the overly caricatural subplot relating Rudy Butler's (Al Lettieri) chase of his one-day accomplice Doc. Aside from Quincy Jones' partly obnoxious soundtrack (and notwithstanding the eternal Toots Thieleman's harmonica spleen), another major defection in conjuring up the main protagonists' inner turmoil – the only "ethical" point, if you will – and give this film substance is MacGraw's sub-zero acting performance throughout. If she isn't a miscast, who is? And though McQueen turns in a standard no-kidding act, and most side acts certainly deserve a mention, nothing will do to bring life into the love plot. This in turn prevents the film from becoming a true 1970s Bonnie and Clyde journey, which would certainly have given it the edge it lacks. It is therefore no wonder that Getaway, unlike your classic crime romance, ends with a happy end – be it a rather cold one, fitting in with the overall sentiment that pervades the film. But since it's a Peckinpah after all, you won't regret spending your money on it.

Who needs Baldwin/Basinger when you've got McQueen/McGraw??

[chaz-18 · 10/10 · 1 January 1999]

Steve McQueen was one of the most naturally talented actors to come along, and this movie, along with 'The Sand Pebbles', is one of my favorite McQueen movies. Ali McGraw is excellent (much better here, as compared to that sappy role she had in 'Love Story') as his on-screen wife, a team which is used to rob a bank but is double crossed by the insiders who stand to profit from the robbery. Sally Struthers even turns in a credible performance as someone exhibiting what will later be coined as the "Stockholm Syndrome", and the late Al Lettieri is great as one of their pursuers.

A far better movie than the 1994 remake.

typical Sam Peckinpah

[trashgang · 7/10 · 6 March 2020]

If you are going to watch it nowadays you will sadly see that it is a bit outdated. Some scene's are too slow or are taking too long, but it's still worth seeing to see a classic.

It's the way that the opening is done that made it back in the days worth seeing. A nervous montage of noise and freezed shots. It do takes a while, just over 20 minutes before that's over. Once you passed that it's just wxhat the title syas, trying to get away when a robbery goes wrong.

There's blood here and there when people get shot, and yes, it's the extremely red stuff as seen in the sixties. You can easily spot when stunt people are coming in but hey, it's almost 50 years old.

If ypy want to see McQueen in a typical role then this is it, and for the lovers of cars, made just before the heydays of the muscle cars. If you want to see McQuenn in a muscle go see Bullit, but watch this one first

Gore 0/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 1/5 Story 2,5/5 Comedy 0/5

Sam Peckinpah's Best Violence Ballet

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 22 September 2007]

Steve McQueen and Sam Peckinpah teamed to do two straight films, probably some of the best work in both of their careers. But the difference in a nice character study like Junior Bonner and a tough crime drama like The Getaway shows the versatility of both these remarkable men. The Getaway seems to take its inspiration from John Huston's classic, The Asphalt Jungle.

McQueen is a career criminal whose parole has once again been denied in the ten year stretch he's doing. Wife Ali McGraw submits to parole board chief Ben Johnson's sexual advances to spring McQueen.

But the corrupt Johnson isn't just about sexual harassment. He wants McQueen to rob a bank that his brother is a director, to cover a nice case of embezzlement. He even recruits another pair of criminals, Bo Hopkins and Al Lettieri as part of the gang.

Of course the plan goes wrong as a bank guard is killed and then Hopkins is killed in a double-cross by Lettieri who then fails to do the same to McQueen and McGraw. After that it's a three way race to the border between Johnson's men, Lettieri, and McQueen.

Al Lettieri is a talent that was lost to us way too soon. He played some of the best villains in the early seventies and this one is one of them. He kidnaps veterinarian Jack Dodson and his slut of a wife Sally Struthers. Soon she's more than willing to go and be his girl. Struthers has a great part, so far from being Gloria Bunker Stivic on All in the Family.

My favorite Sam Peckinpah moment in all of his films is that climax at Dub Taylor's flea bag hotel where all the forces meet and shoot up the place. It's Peckinpah's best violence ballet in all of his films, I never tire of seeing it.

The whole film was shot in Texas and I'm not sure how residents of Texas might like this picture of their state. It seems to be one very violent place and a very corrupt one as well.

But I like The Getaway very much, it's my favorite Sam Peckinpah film next to Ride the High Country.

Steve McQueen & Sam Peckinpah GETAWAY

[TheFearmakers · 7/10 · 16 November 2020]

The machine-pounding prologue/montage of Sam Peckinpah's THE GETAWAY embodies caged hopelessness of prison life better than most entirely-set-in-prison prison flicks... plus it's the only sequence centered solely on Steve McQueen as career criminal Doc McCoy sans the uninspired acting of ingenue/partner Ali MacGraw...

During a pivotal meeting -- what seems like her being tempted by Texas millionaire Ben Johnson after having sex to get Doc paroled and then tortured with envy -- she has a vacant expression as opposed to McQueen's sharpened countenance throughout...

Meanwhile, GODFATHER villain Al Letteri (initially partnered with Bo Hopkins) would have perfectly contrasted against McQueen, only he too gets burdened by an annoying actress role as a screeching Sally Struthers plays Letteri's traveling gun moll...

All the characters on a post bank-heist GETAWAY (including a posse of crooked Texas businessman) in a road movie that, despite the aforementioned flaws, is loaded with classic Peckinpah slow-motion gunfights, fistfights, slap-fights, car chases, cars exploding and a gritty aesthetic best described as classic 1950's Film Noir B&W soaked into 1970's brick-red, cash-green, burnt-brown, pallid-blue, dusk-yellow, faded-gray exploitation.

Far Worse Than You Would Expect

[HardSteelMill · 2/10 · 18 June 2015]

Before watching "The Getaway," I thought it would be a decent, entertaining, 70s-style action film - not a classic, but a solid, enjoyable movie. Steve McQueen was known as one of the first "cool" movie stars, and rightly so. Sam Peckinpah was known for directing movies that were violent, stylish, and fast-paced. With "The Getaway" he scored one out of three. What little violence there is isn't even entertaining, since it's not "action," per se, but rather criminals murdering other criminals.

For a story about bank robbers on the run from the police and other criminals, "The Getaway" is surprisingly lifeless and anemic. The plot has no drive or momentum. There are a couple of head-scratching segments that seem completely out of place, as if the screenwriter ran out of ideas and had to stop and think for fifteen minutes before writing the next scene. On top of all that, Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw both play unsympathetic characters, and the numerous scenes with Al Lettieri and the woman who becomes his hostage/lover just hurt your eyes.

"The Getaway" has no redeeming qualities: it's boring, it's unpleasant, it's sleazy, it's too long, and the plot makes little sense. In fact, if this movie had been made with an unknown director and unknown cast, it's unlikely that it would be known today at all. That's how bad "The Getaway" is.

Have a RIB, Harold!

[SnacksForAll · 5 September 2003]

The Getaway has the very important "Three S's" which are so crucial to any film: Style, Substance, and Steve McQueen.

This film, right behind PAPILLON, is definitely my favorite McQueen vehicle -- it's a big, BIG film (which makes sense, it takes place in Texas), has an epic feel, yet at the same time is very gritty and very honest in its approach to storytelling. The simplistic yet larger-than-life style of THE GETAWAY makes this flick a great watch on a Saturday Night.

Oh, and you can't go wrong with Steve McQueen. At his side is *THE* girl-next-door type, the ultra-likable Ali MacGraw. Their chemistry is very obvious (which would make a lot of sense, the two had an on-set affair which was followed by a five year marriage), and it carries the film. The score, composed by Quincy Jones, hits all the right notes in all the right spots, and is definitely pivotal in giving THE GETAWAY its "feel." The supporting cast couldn't be better-suited to their roles. The bad guys are really bad, and quite despicable. Despite the sinister villains, this early 70s gem has a sense of humor. At times the more "innocent" characters are mocked by the situations they find themselves in, much to your amusement or disgust (I, for one, found laugh-out-loud moments all the way through). By the very nature of a McQueen film, the characters are all "approachable," and down to earth in their own strange way. In a nutshell, a simplistically epic film that finds the time to not take itself so seriously.

While THE GETAWAY may not be the best to bring out at a movie get-together due to its slightly slow pacing and early 70s narrative (which, unfortunately, due to the breakneck music-video pacing of most "modern" films, tends to turn off anyone with a less-than-sufficient attention span), it is definitely worth a purchase, and something that you will be proud to say that you've seen.

Long Live McQueen, and Have a RIB, Harold!

Pretty good heist flick

[Mr-Fusion · 7/10 · 23 January 2013]

My first Peckinpah movie, and it's easy to understand how he became such a name filmmaker. Dude's a hard-nosed bastard. "The Getaway" has a sinister undercurrent from top to bottom. McQueen's a bank robber of the mean son-of-a-bitch variety, often berating and slapping around wife Ali McGraw (whose dubious acting ability is hard to miss). and then there's Sally Struthers, and if you've only known her from those '90s correspondence school commercials (as I do), you're in for a shock. Here, she's a chesty nympho. See what I mean? Stuff was crazy in the '70s. And then Slim Pickens shows up in a getaway ride (with an unexpectedly nice ending).

It's not the greatest heist movie out there, but there's plenty of McQueen cool to keep one interested. And both the train chase and the ballsy shootout ending are quite memorable.

7/10

Absolutely great heist-gone-wrong classic.

[Hey_Sweden · 10/10 · 11 March 2013]

King of cool Steve McQueen teams with "Bloody Sam" Peckinpah for this thoroughly engaging story of a couple on the lam following a botched robbery.

Walter Hill adapts the novel by Jim Thompson in this story of Carter "Doc" McCoy (McQueen), a criminal currently doing time. His wife Carol (Ali MacGraw) manages to secure his release by playing up to crooked parole board chief Jack Beynon (Ben Johnson); Doc and Carol are then made to participate in a bank robbery which goes as wrong as movie lovers everywhere could expect it to. Doc and Carol have to make their way across Texas to Mexico and safety while being trailed by Rudy Butler (Al Lettieri), a vengeance minded member of the gang.

The cast simply couldn't be better in this sexy, slick, violent production; even MacGraw isn't bad as the wife with a loyalty to her man through thick and thin. McQueen once again has an undeniable presence on screen and the viewer can believe that he's going to keep going despite the odds. Johnson is enjoyably slimy, Lettieri scores as a truly rotten creep, and Richard Bright, Jack Dodson, Dub Taylor, Bo Hopkins, and Roy Jenson all do well in assorted memorable bits. The ever affable Slim Pickens doesn't appear until near the end of the picture, but he helps to close it on a very ingratiating final note.

Peckinpah is in very fine form here, creating a milieu where moral considerations often go out the window. Doc isn't necessarily a "good guy", yet we still can't help but root for him, especially when characters like Beynon and Butler are even worse. Just to give people an idea of how sleazy Butler is, he thinks nothing of dallying with vapid, sexpot blonde Fran (Sally Struthers) in front of her weakling husband Harold (Dodson). The many vignettes along the way keep you eagerly watching - Doc is forced to pursue another thief (Bright) to get his own ill gotten money back, for one - but the highlight is undeniably the incredibly tense sequence aboard the garbage truck. Peckinpah once again demonstrates a real flair for the kind of stylized violence he perfected in "The Wild Bunch", with blood spurting and many squibs exploding.

People can hardly fail to notice that again the director is not about to go the politically correct route, as a resentful Doc, still not happy about what Carol did with Beynon, slaps her around. Yet, when Doc punches Frans' lights out later, it actually provokes a reaction of relief from the audience because it puts an end to her shrill whining.

Overall the film makes for fine entertainment. Even at two hours and three minutes, it's remarkably well paced and tension filled, and it never falters, kicking into gear for a rousing final act. Highly recommended.

10 out of 10.

Trashy fun

[krisrox · 7/10 · 30 September 2007]

I have to admit, "The Getaway" caught me off guard. I was expecting something along the lines of "Bullitt" and "The Thomas Crown Affair", both super-stylish crime flicks that ooze with McQueen's trademark coolness. However, "The Getaway" ïs not stylish at all; it is trashy entertainment, with more than a hint of the Blaxpoitation movies of the same era. There's porn star moustaches, girls getting slapped, waves of tomato blood and McQueen getting nearly killed in the dumpster. And then we have beautiful Ali MacGraw, incomparable to any contemporary actress, stealing a page from Pam Grier and playing McQueen to a draw.

Far from classic or brilliant, yet thoroughly entertaining and a blueprint for many films to follow.

One of Sam Peckinpah's Best Films

[zardoz-13 · 10/10 · 29 May 2010]

Director Sam Peckinpah struck pay dirt with this adaptation of author Jim Thompson's novel about an inside bank job in contemporary Texas. Not only did "The Getaway" prove to be a hit for Peckinpah but it also bolstered Steve McQueen's career. Previously, Peckinpah and McQueen had collaborated on "Junior Bonner," but "Bonner" did nothing for them at the box office. The film is an amazingly mellow movie for a Peckinpah film and is comparable to "The Ballad of Cable Hogue." Conversely, "The Getaway" contained virtually everything that a Peckinpah movie needed, primarily action, intrigue, and violence. Mind you, "The Getaway" wasn't as intense as "The Wild Bunch" and not as heavy-handed philosophically as "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid." Despite its somewhat kinky subplot, "The Getaway" is the kind of Peckinpah movie where things go right for the hero and the heroine with an amenable ending.

Texas millionaire Jack Benyon (Ben Johnson of "The Wild Bunch") needs a top gun to rob one of his banks, and Carter 'Doc' McCoy (Steve McQueen of "Bullitt") is going to pieces slowly in Huntsville Prison. Every time that he applies for parole, he gets shot down. Doc gets his wife Carol (Ali MacGraw of "Love Story") to get to Johnson. Doc wins his parole, but he thinks that Carol sold him out. Nevertheless, he meets once with Benyon in San Antonio and greets his team of men for the bank heist. They have their conference aboard the little party barges on the Riverwalk tourist attraction. During the planning stages of the robbery, tempers flare between Doc and Rudy Butler (Al Letteri of "McQ") about the use of bullet-proof vests. Anyway, Doc cases the bank and they check out its alarm system. Meanwhile, Doc has Rudy and Frank Jackson (Bo Hopkins of "The Killer Elite") to plant explosive charges at different ends of town to distract the authorities when the robbery goes down. During the robbery, Frank loses his cool. Our heroes get away with the loot, but Rudy murders Frank and tries to double-cross Doc. Doc is just a little too fast for him. Ironically, despite his boasts of not wearing a bullet-proof vest, Rudy is wearing a vest when Doc nails him and leaves him for dead. Rudy takes an animal doctor (Jack Dodson) and his wife (Sally Struthers of TV's "All in the Family") hostage and has the husband dress his wounds. Rudy and company follow Doc and Carol. At Jack Benyon's house, Carol guns Jack down, but Doc doesn't trust her. They head for El Paso with Rudy hot on their trail. "The Getaway" represented a personal high for Peckinpah and the film made a killing at the box office. The opening scenes that depict Doc's mental breakdown behind bars are masterful. Lettieri makes a nefarious villain and Ben Johnson is simply dastardly. The final shoot-out in a motel in El Paso is great. When our heroes get to the border, they have to deal with an old cowboy (Slim Pickins) and sells them his truck. A memorable Peckinpah epic.

Better than Bullet

[valleyjohn · 7/10 · 17 January 2011]

There is something about The Getaway that makes me like it more than more famous Steve Mcqueen films such as Bullet and The Great Escape ' which is strange because this film is far from perfect.

The story is an age old one, A robbery goes wrong and the instigators go on the run from the police and other criminals who are after a cut.

This film was not spliced together very well , it jumps all over the place and the dialogue is not too good .There are plenty of moments where nothing is said and to be honest they are the best scenes. Sam Peckinpah does not seem to be the most accomplished director but really , when you have Mcqueen and MacGraw on show , most people wont notice. Their on screen chemistry is superb which is not surprising as they fell in love on set and later married. There does seem to be a constant air of sexism bordering on Masogonism in this film , something you don't see to often in older films. Another thing that you realise when watching the car chases is how difficult the American cars were to handle. Nevertheless , Steve Mcqueen looks like he's in his element.

Well-Crafted Heist Flick!

[shepardjessica · 8/10 · 10 August 2004]

Not one of S. Peckinpah's masterworks but one hell of a crime thriller. Steve McQueen is perfect as the cool, professional Doc and although Ali MacGraw (Steve's next wife) is breezily gorgeous she doesn't have the chops to make her character (Carol) too believable. Al Lettieri is creepier than he was in THE GODFATHER and Richard Bright (THE GODFATHER as well) has a nice bit as a small-timer. Ben Johnson has credibility as does Dub Taylor later. Throw in authentic Western icon Slim Pickens and you have a nice Southwest crime drama.

A 7 out of 10. Best performance = Steve McQueen. He's very good with weapons and cars as he earlier proved. THE WILD BUNCH and STRAW DOGS are Peckinpah's masterpieces, but this is well worth a trip to the movies! Junior Bonner (a totally different type of sensibility) is also a fine film.

Unapologetic Peckinpah

[evanston_dad · 7/10 · 8 August 2019]

Sam Peckinpah does his own version of "Bonnie and Clyde," and the result is a cynical, unapologetic heist movie with repellent characters and not an ounce of humor.

I didn't enjoy "The Getaway" exactly; it's far too nihilistic to enjoy. But I did find it very interesting to compare it to "Bonnie and Clyde," one of the seminal films of the American counter culture. "Bonnie and Clyde" was bleak too, and crafted a building sense of impending doom, but it was also tragic. The characters created by Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty were victims of circumstance. They were young kids who got themselves in over their heads and couldn't see their way out. We liked them, even if we didn't like the things they did, and though we maybe wanted to see them brought to justice, we didn't want to see them destroyed.

At the other end of the spectrum is "The Getaway," a film in which everyone's a bad guy and we don't like anyone. The brutality toward women and the casual violence inflicted on everyone else is hard to stomach, especially in the absence of a hero to root for. This movie came out after the attitudes of the American counter culture had curdled into the stuff of nightmares (the Manson gang, anyone?) and it's like that disillusionment found its way into Peckinpah's vision and manifests itself on screen. The characters in this movie are who Bonnie and Clyde would have turned into if they had lived.

Steve McQueen brings his usual tough-guy coolness to his role, but he plays a vile character. Ali McGraw is simply terrible, wooden as a tree stump. And poor Sally Struthers exists for the sole purpose of being treated horribly.

"The Wild Bunch" and "Straw Dogs," two other Peckinpah movies that I like a lot, are hard to watch as well, but they both feel like they have something to say about the violence they traffic in, which makes them worth sticking with. I'm not sure "The Getaway" has much of anything to say, and the whole thing feels uncomfortably exploitative, even as Peckinpah's irresistible style keeps it entertaining.

Grade: B

A gritty action flick!

[jv-5 · 10/10 · 5 February 1999]

What more can be said of a movie directed by Sam Peckinpah? Blood...guts...guns...bad guys...pretty dames...a love story...piles and piles of cash. Yes sir, "The Getaway" is a fantastic action movie. And it's got the best film star of them all -- Steve McQueen. Don't get me wrong. This film isn't just a lot of shooting and killing. It's got a story. And it's got characters. (Two things you don't get much of these days.) So don't bother renting that tepid remake they did a few years ago...see the original and the best!

They Went Getaway

[Lejink · 7/10 · 19 January 2009]

Latter-day "Bonnie & Clyde" fable with Steve McQueen and Ali McGraw taking the leads in Sam Peckinpah's typically brutal, uncompromising heist / road movie.

A meandering but nonetheless action-packed story of moral redemption, the conclusion here differs from Arthur Penn's earlier classic by granting the McQueen/McGraw characters survival at the end, their personal differences apparently resolved, as they head on into Mexico to start presumably a new life on the proceeds of the botched "thieves-fall-out" bank job they pulled at the start of the movie. If that upbeat conclusion jars a little, that's probably because Penn got the better ending first in his movie, but also because, by the end of their tortuous journey, both physical and spiritual, you still don't feel that either of them, for all their star-playing, are admirable or likeable people. Some villains you actually don't want to get away and I'd have been quite happy, based on the preceding evidence in the movie, if the two of them had got some sort of come-uppance at the end.

For a heist film to work requires a premium of cool which of course is second nature to McQueen who is fine in his usual laconic way, even if his "method" delivery highlights the one-dimensionality of his character. I actually quite liked McGraw's performance as the doe-eyed beauty who doesn't shirk from sleeping with Mr Big, to ensure McQueen gets his early parole release and then shooting him in cold blood, just as McQueen learns this, to prefigure the killing spree which later follows. Her part must have been physically demanding and she holds up well, even if she does seem a little young for the part (but then of course life imitated art, as the screen couple became real-life lovers, so what do I know about compatibility?!).

There are many effective sequences, the opening, almost silent scene-setting at the prison as McQueen's frustrated "Doc" concludes he'll pay any price to get out (thus setting up McGraw for her fall), the episode where McQueen retrieves the case with the money on board the train, after McGraw's been conned by a shyster, (very crisply done, with hardly any graphic violence), the scene in the compactor where the on-the-run couple are literally up to their necks in it and finally their fortunate encounter with a frankly wacky Slim Pickens who drives them across the border like a Duke of Hazzard five years too soon.

Less savoury are the scenes where the treacherous gang-member Rudy, hot on Doc & his missus' trail, kidnaps a young doctor and his slatternly wife and then proceeds to tie up the poor guy and make him watch their love-making. Perhaps this is the old "Straw Dog" Peckinpah returning to its own vomit, but I found it completely distasteful and gratuitous, never mind demeaning to women, even in context. A fine performance by the way, perhaps the best on show, delivered almost mute in fact, by Jack Dodson as the hapless husband.

The much-parodied "slow-motion ballet" which characteristically accompanies the extreme violence in most of Peckinpah's films is either effective or played out depending on your perception of Peckinpah's art (I think I tend to the former on this occasion, it's pretty well rendered here) and there's no arguing with his depiction of little-town America, including for example, its corrupt police force and also shopkeepers who'll unblinkingly sell you a shotgun for spot cash.

In conclusion then, a tough, very adult movie with no soft underbelly, not easy to watch, but not easy to stop watching either...

Don't waste your time and money!

[Lenbrazl · 1/10 · 23 January 1999]

A Sam Peckinpah movie based on one Jim Thompson's best books starring Steve McQueen would seem like a surefire winner, a classic. Unfortunately the result was an abomination.

The film was hijacked by McQueen who controlled the final cut and watered down a screenplay already watered down from the book. The film was disavowed by both Thompson and Peckinpah and various other involved in its making. The director upon seeing the final cut peed on the screen and shouted, "This is not my film!" Thompson could have (and did) complained, "This is not my story!"

One of the great noir classics with a highly original and ironic ending was transformed into an all too typical Hollywood product with an all too typical ending. A book who's tone was dark and dismal was transformed into a cutesy love story/chase film. The end of the movie had nothing to do with the end in the book which is largely the point of the whole story (I'd like to go on

here but can't without violating the no spoiler rule)

Steve McQueen who mucked things up off camera even disappoints on camera. He puts on a weak performance as does Ali MacGraw (perhaps they were distracted by there spudding love affair)

Other than that Sally Struthers (who I usually don't like) put on an excellent performance the best thing I can say about this flick is that it was not as bad as the remake!

Don't waste your time and money on this, read the book. If your really in the mood for a movie see something by Quentin Tarantino or the Coen Brothers or something else by Peckinpah (especially The Wild Bunch) or (if you want to see a movie adaptation of a Thompson book) The Grifters.