The Chase (1966)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Arthur Penn

Writers:

Horton Foote (play)
Lillian Hellman (writer)

Release Date:

17 February 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A breathless, explosive story

Plot:

The escape of Bubber Reeves from prison affects the inhabitants of a small Southern town.

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | On The Run | Party | Decadence | Southerner

Cast

Marlon Brando	...	Sheriff Calder
Jane Fonda	...	Anna Reeves
Robert Redford	...	Charlie 'Bubber' Reeves
E.G. Marshall	...	Val Rogers
Angie Dickinson	...	Ruby Calder
Janice Rule	...	Emily Stewart
Miriam Hopkins	...	Mrs. Reeves
Martha Hyer	...	Mary Fuller
Richard Bradford	...	Damon Fuller
Robert Duvall	...	Edwin Stewart
James Fox	...	Jason 'Jake' Rogers
Diana Hyland	...	Elizabeth Rogers
Henry Hull	...	Briggs
Jocelyn Brando	...	Mrs. Briggs
Katherine Walsh	...	Verna Dee

Runtime:

135 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | UK:15 (1996) | UK:X (1966) | Australia:M | South Korea:15 | West Germany:16 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Ranch, Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA

Company:

Horizon Pictures

Trivia:

Producer 'Sam Spiegel (I) had acquired the property that became _The Chase (1966)_ in the 1950s and wanted Marlon Brando originally to play the role of Jason 'Jake' Rogers and Marilyn Monroe to play his lover, Anna Reeves. By the time production began in 1965, Brando was too old to play the role of the son, and took the part of Sheriff Calder instead. Brando was paid $750,000 and his production company Pennebaker was paid a fee of $130,000. (Brando's sister Jocelyn Brando also was cast in the small role of Mrs. Briggs).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Bubber is climbing along the roof of the train, it is coming towards the viewer. He then swings down into an open door of a freight car on the right hand side of the screen. The next shots show Bubber with the open door in the background on the right hand of the screen but now the train is going away from the viewer. There is now a road running beside the train and there are orchards of trees that were not there before.

Quotes:

Damon: Well now, Sheriff, it's nice to know that you're out here on patrol.
Sheriff Calder: No, no, I'm not on patrol. Just lookin' for an ice cream cone, that's all.

Movie Connections:

References Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)

better than I expected

The lukewarm reviews and comments led me to expect less than what I found in this decent movie of small-town corruption. Most of it is probably due to a pretty good cast - Brando is excellent, and Duvall, Dickinson, and E.G.Marshall put in good work. Redford's part is too small to do much with. I too was astounded at James Fox's pretty darn good Southern accent; it was so good that at first I couldn't place him, and then all those British roles came back to me in surprise. The script is ok too, and one would like to know more about the backstage fighting that went on over it between Hellman & company. The Panavision color is excellent; far better than what we have today. The portrayal of small-town bigotry, duplicity, jealousy, betrayal, and infidelity is well-done, and the spectacular junkyard Gotterdamerung is a chilling finale. The flick is definitely worth seeing.