Der Mörder meines Bruders

Continuing my plan to watch every Burt Reynolds movie in his filmography in order, I come to "Run Simon Run"

Playing an Indian (Again) Burt Reynolds (Without a hair on his chest) plays the lead character, and is the only reason to watch this.

Plot In A Paragraph: Simon Zuniga (Burt Reynolds) returns home from a sentence in prison (for a crime he didn't commit) to find his brothers killer.

I think the quality of the DVD I was watching this on seriously hampered my enjoyment of it, as I never really got on to it, despite a good performance from Reynolds, Inger Stevens final performance and Solid support from James Best.

I also saw it only the one time when it was broadcast and have remembered ever since, especially whenever I hear Buffy St. Marie sing "Until It's Time For You To Go".

The Reynolds and Stevens characters each have strong principles, that initially bring them into conflict, then eventually allow them to learn from each other. In fact, I think it is strength of character that pervades the film, and makes it so memorable.

It would be great to find that someone has a print available. I'd like to get a more detailed understanding of the Reynolds character. It's hard to analyze at this distance, since on first viewing I was watching for story and performances. Does Simon qualify as a tragic hero - that is, does a flaw in his character bring him to his fate?

Stevens has one of my all-time favorite final lines - and as I recall, it's not even spoken, just an action.

And my crush continued for long after.

The story was rather typical of the era in which it was shot, and Reynolds' dark hair, intense brown eyes, and lithe frame all lent themselves to his ideal casting as the wrongfully accused "redskin."

It was rather a formula movie-he's on a mission to avenge his brother's murder- and the production values were quite obviously small screen. Reynolds' performance was a preview of what he was capable of as his career progressed.

Many others among the cast went on to healthy careers as well, and even the casual movie fan will appreciate the familiar faces.

I think Leonard Cohen said it best: "

I've seen the nations rise and fall, I've heard their stories, heard them all, but love's the only engine of survival"

A movie that has a love story for a baseline, along with a side story (revenge in this case, same in John Woo's "The killer"), is the best representation of movie making.

While looking like what it is, a 70's movie (without a cheesy soundtrack), "Run, Simon, Run" is driven by great script, subtle acting, and on-the-money editing.

Still, by far, my most favorite film of all times.

(Closely followed by "The Killer" :D)

On its own terms, in its context, Run Simon Run is meant to tell the story of an unrepentently angry loner seeking dignity for himself and his tribe. But, he has so alienated is fellow tribesmen, the white authorities, and well-meaning social workers, small victories exact terribly high consequences.

The dialogue is rather Spartan, so Reynolds's performance must carry the film for it to work. he stretches his acting muscles to deliver a brooding portrait of a committed, volatile, and tortured soul. Inger Stevens, on the other hand, for the most part, is just brooding -- a rather one-note performance that doesn't qualify high in her gallery -- a more hopeful counterpoint to Reynolds' virtuoso angst would have served this TV movie better. I'm not saying her performance is bad, but it leaves Run Simon Run as a very good made-for-TV movie in lieu of a great one.

This is also slow at spots, but the overall running time is so short, it's not that problematic. Certainly worth seeing once.