mattspringett76

From the opening credits to the climatic ending, the scintillating dialogue and the magnetic performances from both Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis this is Hollywood at its cerebral best. The king of the thinking mans cinema. Has better dialogue ever been written, the meetings between all the different characters that inhabit this world of shadows and intrigue, constantly draw the viewers attention to this masterpiece. When the so called film buffs compile there lists of the "best" films and so on, this should always be talked of in the top five and yet though recognised more as the years go by this is still a highly overlooked film. That Marlon Brando, De niro, Nicholson and the like should be recognised so often in said lists when Burt Lancaster in this film and in so many others has equalled or surpassed there best performances is a real scandal. Perhaps because this film strikes at the very heart of the establishment and shows the media and press up for the unscrupulous scum they are that this is one those fellows would like to forget. It is always difficult to look the truth of oneself in the mirror and this is one mirror the media should look very closely at. A masterpiece from Lancaster, who's courage never failed when making films and was always ready to tackle the kind of film making that lesser men would not have dared to, not to mention casting himself in a "bad guy" role that defied his heroic, handsome leading man status. Let us not forget that this is the same man who through out his life was never afraid to speak out on subjects that were important to him, a life long liberal and contemptuous of anyone who excepted limitation. I love this film and both Lancaster and the picture were far ahead of their time.

This is a very curious entry in the Lancaster cannon. Always an actor striving to improve himself and reach a new emotional level in his acting, particularly to be recognised as more than a star and for his exceptional good looks and atheletic ability. With this film he truly fulfilled that ambition, this of all his films is perhaps the one he deserved the Oscar nod for the most. It seems very difficult to describe this film as it is simply so different from any other film, and to what genre does this belong. I guess I feel that many people would not understand the point of such a film at all, but i think it best reflects the ideas / feelings we might all have of missed opportunities, mistakes made without even realising them, and a sense of longing for innocence or sense of adventure we had once but lost, the notion of just doing something because it makes sense on that day in that moment, because you will be happy and nothing more, you gain nothing more than that. The ending is perfect because it shows you that society is so driven by materialism and money "business", that as an adult there is no room for anything less than cruel realisation that the majority will not understand or accept the individual and will always look for the way to change or manipulate to make them like others rather than cherish the individuality. To remind the person of any error they may have made towards others and how through said others insecurities this must be addressed. With a colossus like Lancaster we see how bit by bit he is chipped away at and undermined by the people he meets on his journey, the exact ending of the film i will not give away but let us say this the exciting , interesting, virile man we see at the beginning is no longer this man anymore. Explore, enjoy and indulge yourself by watching a film which i guarantee is nothing like any film you have seen before or since. A showcase for the talent of one of the greatest, yet still most underrated actor's and star's of all time.

Went to see this film recently, thought it was a reasonable entry in the horror / thriller genre, and had a good twist with the idea of the hero in horror films. A good portion of the film was quite formulaic in terms of what we have seen in this type of film before, but there was enough subtle plot twists to keep you watching and to make it significantly different from others in the genre. One to watch on TV, but perhaps not necessarily worth a rent unless it's a very slow month for horror movies. The pacing was not really quick enough, and the editing could have been a little sharper. Also, some of the other characters needed more fleshing out and a little more exploration of character and motivation.