Prime Cut

Prime Cut (1972)

*** (out of 4)

Fun crime picture has a Chicago enforcer (Lee Marvin) heading to Kansas City where an evil cattle baron (Gene Hackman) owes the big boys some money but he doesn't plan on cutting them in on his business. PRIME CUT is a film that not too many people know, which is pretty surprising when you consider how popular these type of crime films are. Not to mention the film is probably the only one in history to feature three Oscar winners as well as a man who appeared in PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE. Overall director Michael Ritchie does a very good job at keeping the picture running very smoothly and while the picture certainly has some flaws, it's still a highly entertaining and at times sleazy picture. One of the highlights come early on when Marvin and his men show up at a "cattle" auction only to discover that Hackman has a major business of selling off women. The women, all in cages like cattle, serve up quite the image. The film also manages to have some great violence, although none of it really goes over-the-top or gets too graphic. There's a terrific sequence during a fair as well as another in a sunflower field. I'm not going to ruin either sequences but they contain some nice suspense. Of course, one of the greatest aspects is the terrific cast. While each cast member has been better in other movies, there's no doubt that it's still very fun to see them all together. Marvin and Hackman really appear to be having fun in their roles and we also get Angel Tompkins in a brief role as the woman who was with both of them. Sissy Spacek appears in a pretty thankless role but it's still fun seeing her. Gregory Walcott, a veteran of Edward D. Wood, Jr., appears as one of the major bad guys. As I said, there are certainly some flaws including the entire relationship between Marvin and Spacek but fans of 70's crime pictures will still want to check this out.

An interesting item on the resume of Michael Ritchie, the late director whose other credits include "Downhill Racer", "The Candidate", and "Fletch", the fast-paced and tongue-in-cheek crime drama "Prime Cut" succeeds at being an amusing piece of work. It's just sleazy and off kilter enough to make it a good if not memorable entertainment. It's well worth viewing for fans of the cast, establishing its tone early on when the mob in Chicago learn of the fate of one of their hired guns. Ritchie mines the rural settings for lots of atmosphere and uses the 2.35:1 aspect ratio to his advantage. There are also some real highlights in terms of action: a chase and a climactic shootout, both of which happen in fields. Enhancing all of it is a wonderful score by Lalo Schifrin.

Star Lee Marvin doesn't exactly have to stretch himself here, exuding that trademark cool as Nick Devlin, a mob enforcer assigned the task of collecting a debt from a Kansas rancher, played by Gene Hackman. (Another indication of this movie's tone is the fact that Hackman's character has a female name, Mary Ann!) Mary Ann doesn't want to pay his debt because he has no respect for the Chicago mafia. So Nick and a few others travel to Kansas City to pay Mary Ann a visit. Naturally, Mary Ann makes full use of his slaughterhouse, turning all of his enemies into cuts of meat! Nick also learns that his quarry is depraved enough to sell young girls as sex slaves, and rescues one of these girls, Poppy, played by the endearing Sissy Spacek.

Hackman's performance is great fun, and also appearing on screen are the delectable Angel Tompkins as Nick's former flame Clarabelle, Gregory Walcott as Mary Ann's thuggish brother "Weenie", Janit Baldwin as Poppy's friend Violet, and legendary police officer Eddie Egan as mob boss Jake. They all make this movie a pleasing diversion, one that, as previously mentioned, injects some trashy elements but never dwells too much on the darkness in the story. The big confrontation at the end is very moody and well done overall, and there's a satisfying wrap-up at the end.

Seven out of 10.

I saw this for the first time recently. Got pulled into seeing this only cos of Marvin n Hackman. The film is not ur regular gangster or hitman film. It has a different vibe to it. Both the actors gave memorable performances. Hackman's character is despicable wheras Marvin's character is a case study in professionalism. The field chase sequence is noteworthy n the film has a western style showdown.

Mr. Marvin is his usual cut-to-the-chase, laconic bad guy in a so-so film with a minimal plot line and lots of action sequences. The fact that most of this melodrama is set somewhere in a Kansas farm region automatically makes this movie a bit different from others of this genre, rather than being filmed in the usual urban settings. Although this is a nice touch and the villains are also a bit different from what we are normally accustomed to, the movie tends to drag a little due in large part to the over emphasis on the visceral and under emphasis on plot and character development. Of course, this movie may have been intended to be shown in this manner, but I (a no-name part-time movie critic!) prefer more plot involvement, a la "Point Blank".

Great acting by the principals (Lee, Gene H., Sissy) helps redeem the film, especially a very young Sissy S. as one of Gene H.'s abducted sex slaves. But it's bad guy Lee doing a heroic turnabout by going on a rescue mission to save the "girls" from the really bad guy, Gene H., who already is in "Dutch" with Lee because of past transgressions.

At any rate, check it out and see for yourself: it's still fun!

It helps if you are a big Lee Marvin fan to enjoy this movie - but even if you're not especially, there's still enough in here to raise it above run-of-the-mill.

The cinematography is first-rate; lots of use of natural light and dingy locations of the city contrasted with the golden Kansas sunshine. Both Marvin and Gene Hackman are terrific and each exude good screen presence as gangsters at odds with each other, culminating in the shoot-out in the sunflower field and cattle house.

The film is slightly let down by the sentimental and unnecessary last scene at the orphanage, which feels grafted on, although the very final shot of the children running into the countryside hints at some kind of hope for the future (post Vietnam), not least between Nick Devlin (Marvin) and his new girl Sissy Spacek.

Worth watching