Classic 60s Movie: Lonely Are the Brave
January is Classic 60s Movie month. Today’s guest post comes from Nick Dykal.
Movie Title: Lonely Are the Brave
Year: 1962
Writer: Dalton Trumbo (screenplay), Edward Abbey (novel)
Lead Actors: Kirk Douglas, Gena Rowlands, Walter Matthau
Director: David Miller
IMDB Plot Summary: A fiercely independent cowboy arranges to have himself locked up in jail in order to then escape with an old friend who has been sentenced to the penitentiary.
Why I Think This Is A Classic 60s Movie: Kirk Douglas has named this movie as his favorite among his entire catalogue of work. When that list includes classics like Spartacus and Paths of Glory, you have to take the recommendation seriously. This story explores the timeless conflict of Individualism versus Society.
Kurt Douglas’s Jack Burns is a classic man against the world. A man of principle, he romantically tries to live out a dying lifestyle in modern America. The movie plays out like a western with many of the same tropes, a heartbroken love interest, a bar brawl, a prison break and a last-ditch effort to escape to Mexico. But the difference is the mid-20th century setting. Jack is up against modernity itself, and his tragic fate is predestined by the inevitable progress of society.
My Favorite Moment In The Movie: Jack refusing to leave his horse behind. In this moment Jack is high in the mountains, and he’s thus far bested the police with their modern contrivances: jeeps, radios and even a helicopter. We learn from the Sheriff (Walter Matthau) that Jack could easily get away if he just left his horse. This is a great summation of Jack’s character. It’s not that he’s sentimental about the animal itself, or it would come off as corny. It’s what the horse represents. She is a metaphor for his ideals of freedom and individuality. Leaving her behind would defeat the point of everything he lives for.
My Favorite Dialogue In The Movie: The scene between Jack and Jerry (Gena Rowlands) when he first comes to town. She is his best friend’s wife, and he’s come to break her husband out of jail. This conversation sums up each side so truthfully. Neither of them is stereotyped or vilified. They each have a point to make.
Jerry: The world that you and Paul live in doesn’t exist. Maybe it never did. Out there is the real world, and it’s got real borders and real fences, real laws and real trouble. And either you go by the rules or you lose. You lose everything.
Jack: You always keep something.
Key Things You Should Watch For When Watching This Movie: There are a lot of great moments that crystallize the conflict in the film.
In the opening scene we see a cowboy, clad in denim and leather, lounging in the desert next to a dying campfire. This could be a scene from any western set in the 19th century, but he’s stirred awake by the sound of jet engines and we see the contrails streaking across the sky. Society has invaded even the remotest of locales.
Earlier I also mentioned Jack’s horse, Whiskey. A fiercely independent and stubborn mare, she tosses off her saddle and won’t take Jack’s lead. Her attitude and her fate is akin to Jack himself.
The movie also cuts away several times to a trucker headed out west with a load of toilets. It’s such a great metaphor for the inevitable progress of society. It chugs along, destined for a collision with our hero, totally unaware and unconcerned of his plight.
Thanks, Nick! To show our gratitude for your guest post, here’s a dash of creative juju for you. Whoosh!
We already have a set of classic 70s movies, 80s Movies and 90s Movies. This month, we’re working on 60s Movies.
We have 31 volunteers. I have put in bold those who have already sent their guest post to me.
Ipsita Barik — Rosemary’s Baby
Ipsita Barik — Bonnie and Clyde
Bookman Film — The Sound of Music
Brandnewusedcar — Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Markham Cook — Jules et Jim
Steve Cook — The Blue Max
JasperLamarCrab — 2001: A Space Odyssey
N D — Lonely are the Brave
Drew Dorenfest — Easy Rider
Rick Dyke — Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Rick Dyke — Fail Safe
Felicity Flesher — The Music Man
PaulG — Lawrence of Arabia
D.L. Gill — Zulu
Jeff Guenther — Cool Hand Luke
Kate Hagen — Repulsion
John Henderson — Night of the Living Dead
John Henderson — The Odd Couple
John Hörnschemeyer — The Graduate
Zach Jansen — They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?
Will King — The Pink Panther
William Leitch — If…
Lisaisfunny — Blow Up
Jack McDonald — Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Nick — Lonely are the Brave
Daryl Powell — The Apartment
jprichard — Persona
Ally Shina — The Jungle Book
Mark Twain — The Loved One
Liz Warner — The Manchurian Candidate
Michael Waters — Dr. No
For those who have signed up, but have yet to email me your post, please do so ASAP.
Thanks in advance!
For the original post explaining the series, go here.