The Getaway (1972)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Sam Peckinpah

Writers:

Walter Hill (screenplay)
Jim Thompson (novel)

Release Date:

13 December 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

They're Hot - McQueen/MacGraw

Plot:

A recently released ex-con and his loyal wife go on the run after a heist goes awry.

Plot Keywords:

Heist | On The Run | Cuckold | Mask | Veterinarian

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win

Cast

Steve McQueen	...	Doc McCoy
Ali MacGraw	...	Carol McCoy
Ben Johnson	...	Jack Beynon
Sally Struthers	...	Fran Clinton
Al Lettieri	...	Rudy Butler
Slim Pickens	...	Cowboy
Richard Bright	...	The Thief
Jack Dodson	...	Harold Clinton
Dub Taylor	...	Laughlin
Bo Hopkins	...	Frank Jackson
Roy Jenson	...	Cully
John Bryson	...	The Accountant
Bill Hart	...	Swain
Tom Runyon	...	Hayhoe
Whitney Jones	...	The Soldier
Raymond King	...	Boy on the train
Ivan Thomas	...	Boy on the train
C.W. White	...	Boy's Mother
Brenda W. King	...	Boy's Mother
W. Dee Kutach	...	Parole Board Chairman
Brick Lowry	...	Parole Board Commissioner
Martin Colley	...	McCoy's Lawyer
O.S. Savage	...	Field Captain
Dick Crockett	...	Bank Guard
A.L. Camp	...	Hardware Store Owner
Bob Veal	...	TV Shop Proprietor
Bruce Bissonette	...	Sporting Goods Salesman
Maggie Gonzalez	...	Carhop
Jim Kannon	...	Cannon
Doug Dudley	...	Max
Stacy Newton	...	Stacy
Tommy Bush	...	Cowboy's Helper (as Tom Bush)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Margaret Mazzola	...	Car Hop #1 (uncredited)
Hal Smith	...	Various radio announcers (uncredited)
Tommy Splittgerber	...	Train Station Ticket Agent (uncredited)

Directed by
Sam Peckinpah

Writing credits
Walter Hill		(screenplay)
Jim Thompson		(novel)

Produced by
Mitchell Brower	....	producer
Gordon T. Dawson	....	associate producer
David Foster	....	producer

Original Music by
Quincy Jones

Cinematography by
Lucien Ballard

Film Editing by
Robert L. Wolfe		(as Robert Wolfe)

Casting by
Patricia Mock

Art Direction by
Angelo P. Graham		(as Angelo Graham)
Ted Haworth

Set Decoration by
George R. Nelson

Makeup Department
Kathryn Blondell	....	hair stylist (as Kathy Blondell)
Al Fleming	....	makeup artist
Jack Petty	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Don Guest	....	production manager (as Donald Guest)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Newt Arnold	....	assistant director
Gordon T. Dawson	....	second unit director
Ron Wright	....	assistant director

Art Department
Chalo González	....	assistant property master (as Chalo Gonzalez)
Les Hallett	....	assistant property master
Robert J. Visciglia Sr.	....	property master (as Robert J. Visciglia)
Jarrell Jay Knowles	....	props (uncredited)
Wes Webb	....	carpenter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Michael Colgan	....	sound editor (as Mike Colgan)
Garth Craven	....	sound consultant
Michael J. Kohut	....	boom operator (as Michael Kohut)
Richard Portman	....	sound re-recording mixer
Josef von Stroheim	....	sound editor (as Joe von Stroheim)
Charles M. Wilborn	....	sound mixer
Walter A. Gest	....	sound re-recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Bud Hulburd	....	special effects

Stunts
Gary Combs	....	stunts (uncredited)
Dick Crockett	....	stunts (uncredited)
Donna Garrett	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bill Hart	....	stunts (uncredited)
Whitey Hughes	....	stunts (uncredited)
Carey Loftin	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Gaylin P. Schultz	....	key grip
Mel Traxel	....	still photographer

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Kent James	....	costumer: men
Barbara Siebert	....	costumer: women
Ray Summers	....	costume supervisor
James M. George	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Mike Klein	....	assistant editor
Bill Lindemann	....	assistant editor (as William G. Lindemann)
Roger Spottiswoode	....	editorial consultant

Music Department
Dan Carlin Sr.	....	music editor (as Dan Carlin)
Don Elliott	....	musical voices
Toots Thielemans	....	musician: harmonica solos

Other crew
Joan Arnold	....	production secretary
Joie Gould	....	assistant to producer
Katherine Haber	....	dialogue director (as Katy Haber)
Michael Preece	....	script supervisor

Thanks
Warren Skaaren	....	thanks: executive director, Texas Film Commission

Production Companies

• First Artists (presentation)
• Solar Productions (as Solar)
• Foster-Brower Productions
• David Foster Productions
• Tatiana Films
• National General Pictures (as National General Pictures Corporation)

Distributors

• National General Pictures (1972) (USA) (theatrical)
• Gloria (1973) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1976) (USA) (TV)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (1998) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (1999) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)
• Warner Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Latigo Productions  title design
• Pacific Title  titles
• Texas Film Commission  thanks

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 (re-rating, uncut) | USA:PG (cut) | UK:X (original rating) | Iceland:16 | France:-12 | Norway:16 (cut) (1973) | Norway:18 (uncut) | Portugal:M/16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-18 | Germany:16 (re-rating) | Italy:VM14 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:18 (nf) | Canada:13+ (Québec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

El Paso, Texas, USA

Company:

First Artists

Trivia:

While Ali MacGraw appeared in this film, her husband Robert Evans was producing The Godfather (1972). Cast members Richard Bright and Al Lettieri appeared in both films.

Goofs:

Continuity: Doc and Carol are stuck in the garbage truck at night. However, some shots of the vehicle's pneumatics show clear blue sky in the background.

Quotes:

Carter 'Doc' McCoy: If you're trying to get me back in Huntsville, you're going about it the right way.
Carol Ainsley McCoy: Well I just wouldn't worry about that Doc, becasue I can always get you out, you know I can screw every prison official in Texas if I have to!
Carter 'Doc' McCoy: Texas is a big state.
Carol Ainsley McCoy: I can handle it.
Carter 'Doc' McCoy: Yeah, I bet you can.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Ally McBeal: The Getaway (#4.16)" (2001)

Have a RIB, Harold!

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!