Sugarland Express

Based on a true story, a woman (Goldie Hawn) helps her husband (William Atherton) escape from prison so they can kidnap their child from the foster family he's been placed with. Along the way the duo takes a state trooper hostage and are pursued by police while their story gains media attention. Steven Spielberg's first theatrical film (Duel was made for TV but released in theaters later). Also his first collaboration with John Williams. It's a fun dramedy with some great performances from Goldie Hawn, William Atherton, and the rest of the cast. Especially good are the colorful supporting characters, many of which have an authenticity about them that gives the film some nice flavor. An under-appreciated gem in Spielberg's oeuvre.

Although The Sugarland Express has been compared to Thelma And Louise most often, there was a film that came out the following year from Stephen Spielberg's first big screen classic that it most resembles in my mind.

Goldie Hawn's Lou Jean might not have all that much in common with Al Pacino's Eugene in Dog Day Afternoon except for two things. Neither are the sharpest knife in the drawer and both concoct a really whacked out scheme that gets them in way over their heads.

Unlike Pacino who put a little thought into his bank robbery plan, on a visit to a minimum security prison to her husband William Atherton who has only weeks to go on his sentence, she persuades him to bust out to kidnap their baby who foster parents are looking to adopt. The parents are in Sugarland which is West Texas near the Rio Grande.

They actually bust out quite easily. But then during a routine traffic stop they misread signals and take rookie state policeman Michael Sacks a hostage.

Just like Dog Day Afternoon anyone with a working brain knows that this crazy thing is doomed, but the adrenaline rush for Hawn and Atherton is out of control. The two become popular cult figures one way or another.

Hawn, Atherton, and Sack are fine in their roles. Kudos also go to Ben Johnson for his role as the man in charge of the hunt, the chase, and the hostage negotiation.

Stephen Spielberg started his big screen career with a winner.

Critics at the time were impressed by this new director, Steven Spielberg, who had previously directed Dennis Weaver in that spooky TV movie "Duel", but they were really impressed with Goldie Hawn, still mainly known as the blonde nitwit from "Laugh-In". She had been quite respectable in "Butterflies Are Free" in 1972, but she turned in a beautifully nuanced performance in this one.

I would certainly argue with any notion that this film is "underrated". It's always been well regarded, even back in the days when Spielberg was known as the clever kid who made "Jaws". That doesn't mean it has ever been easy to see.

Now, with the passage of time, "Sugarland Express" looks even better than it did in the 1970's. One still has no trouble at all getting caught up in the quixotic mission of these characters.

Steven Spielberg's theatrical feature film debut is a smartly crafted, expertly composed & skilfully executed adventure drama that clearly exhibits the legendary director's penchant for turning an on-screen moment into a larger-than-life event without ever going over the top and is also significant for marking the commencement of one of cinema's greatest collaborations.

Based on a true story, The Sugarland Express tells the story of a young woman who successfully breaks her husband out of prison to help her assist retrieving her child, about to be placed in the care of foster parents. Things soon take a turn for the unexpected when they're left with no choice but to take a patrolman hostage & are pursued by the police throughout their journey.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film wonderfully introduces many of his trademarks & themes that would continue to recur in his later works and is a solid work that has enough style & substance to keep the viewers engaged for the most part. Camera-work is dynamic, makes excellent angle choices & remains consistent throughout while editing steadily paces its narrative.

Coming to the acting department, the cast comprises of Goldie Hawn, Ben Johnson, William Atherton & Michael Sacks amongst which it's Hawn who chips in with the most impressive performance. Marking his first collaboration with Spielberg, John William provides a score that beautifully reflects the film's tone with tracks that are adventurous, light-hearted & at the same moment, slightly poignant.

On an overall scale, The Sugarland Express is one of Spielberg's highly underrated flicks & although far from a masterpiece, it's still a quality work of passionate filmmaking that's admirable for a number of things. Full of crowd-pleasing elements, presenting the then-young filmmaker refining his craft & an indication of greater things to come, The Sugarland Express is a must for Spielberg's fans as well as critics.

After the success of Duel (which was really a TV movie) Sugarland Express (Spielberg's first feature film) flopped at the box office, though it received a reasonably warm critical response. In fact this is a great little movie for all kinds of reasons.

If you're interested in Spielberg as a director this is fascinating as it begins to lay out most of the themes that have driven his work ever since - family (especially divided and dysfunctional families), childhood, parenthood, outsiders, America and Americana etc. It's also a really interesting piece in terms of his developing style. This is the first Hollywood film in which panaflex cameras were used allowing Spielberg to produce fantastically elaborate and fluid shots even in the confines of a car (see the superb 360 pan fixed on Ben Johnson's car when he first talks to the Poplins)- a kind of cinematography that has become a hall mark of Spielberg's, as have the rising crane shots and extended tracking shots that pepper the film. Spielberg skies and "God Light" (his term for shafts of light in mist/at night) also feature heavily.

It's also a really interesting if somewhat unrecognised influence on films like Thelma and Louise which seems to lift its basic structure and characters right out of this film. The way Ben Johnson's Captain Tanner equates to Harvey Keitel's police officer in Ridley Scott's film seems particularly close.

Fantastic performances all round too. Johnson, Horne and Atherton (a much under-used actor who has been largely wasted since, playing roles like the self serving journalist in the Die Hard films)particularly shine.

It's also very funny, sad and engaging from beginning to end. Can't recommend this one enough - especially if you're a Spielberg fan.