A corrupt prison guard becomes involved in a plot to murder a black revolutionary serving time in his prison.A corrupt prison guard becomes involved in a plot to murder a black revolutionary serving time in his prison.A corrupt prison guard becomes involved in a plot to murder a black revolutionary serving time in his prison.
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As soon as the title sequence starts there's an element of the mis en scene is entirely different from what the premise demands and that is the look and the feel of the movie is something similar to a made for television movie. The rather twee musical score doesn't help either. As soon as Woods character enters the cellblock the unconvincing nature of the film continues. Considering it's a maximum security prison the average library is more noisy. In fact this is the most annoying thing about FAST-WALKING and that is considering there's supposed to be dozens of hard desperate men caged up like animals there's never anything involving background noise and you're aware you're watching a movie
The story itself isn't told well with long segments revolving around Woods corrupt but ultimately stand up prison guard life outside of prison hours. Add to this a cast who never give the impression they're anything more than actors appearing in a film and you can understand why a few of the reviews here from people who have read the source novel were as disappointed as I was
Although leisurely paced, "Fast-Walking" is a frequently riveting look at corruption in a prison system. It gets a fair amount of juice from a typically electrifying performance by Woods, but even he is outshone by the late Tim McIntire, who's magnetic as an ambitious and crafty convict named Wasco. Woods also has fine scenes with the tantalizingly sexy Kay Lenz, as Wascos' girl "Moke". Moke makes it clear from the moment of her first encounter with Fast-Walking that she's not somebody to be messed with. Lenz does have one extremely memorable sequence where she turns on almost every male present in the visiting room. The rest of the supporting cast is stocked with some excellent actors and actresses: M. Emmet Walsh as Fast-Walkings' superior, Charles Weldon as his co-worker, Susan Tyrrell (looking more glamorous than usual) as Evie, Lance LeGault as Lieutenant Barnes, Sandy Ward as the warden, and Sydney Lassick as an inmate. The great screen psycho Timothy Carey has an amusing role as eccentric kingpin "Bullet".
"Fast-Walking" was adapted from the novel by Ernest Brawley by producer & director James B. Harris, who produced some of Kubricks' films when he was younger and who would again work with Woods on the police drama "Cop". The story is entertaining and on location shooting at a real prison aids in the authenticity. Some viewers will be pleased with the amount of full frontal female nudity. (Be warned, however, that we also get full frontal from Mr. Walsh!)
Nicely scored by Lalo Schifrin, this is a fairly interesting film worth a look for fans of prison-based cinema and actor Woods.
Eight out of 10.
Did you know
- TriviaThe book the film was based on was showcased many different characters - none of which were the "focus" of the story. Writer/director James B. Harris originally wrote his first draft of the screenplay around the book, but soon discovered that the character of Frank "Fast-Walking" Minniver was the most interesting and unique and decided to make him the central role.
- Quotes
Wasco: I'm buying you out.
Bullet: You're what?
Wasco: I'm going to make you a very honorable proposal of a business nature that you're not going to be able to refuse.
Bullet: Oh yeah?
Wasco: God damn, you smell bad, man. Whew. Ahh... Let me run this down to you, Bullet, old baby. Number one, you're a junkie, which means you can't maintain the kind of objectivity that's necessary in an operation like this. Number two, you don't have my organization, my supply, you don't have my connections, frankly see, you're action's weak, small time, small profit, nickel-dime bag operation at best. Your supply's erratic, your goods are inferior, you deal nothing but trash and garbage.
Bullet: Hey, wait a minute...
Wasco: Shut up, and listen. Now, you see, I can offer this market dynamite smack, man, I mean the best money can buy, it's so good you can get off just snorting it. Save everybody the trouble of carrying a fit around with them all the time, you know? They can just chip like that till they get out. And I got a guaranteed supply daily, coming in six days a week. Any kind of thrill, any kind of quality, any kind of quantity that any customer can desire. I can sell by the cap, the bag, the bindle, the bundle, the half load, nickel, dime, quarter, trey bag, piece of the pill, you just call it and I've got it. Got ludes, crank, Bombitas coke, bam, black beauties, cartwheels, yellow jackets, reds, long greens, rainbows, beans. And STP and PCP and DMT and LSD, and psilocybin and mescaline, and THC, amphetamine meth, biphetamine, phenobarbital, benzedrine, dexedrine, librium, miltown, dilaudid, morphine, seconol, demerol, goofballs, truck drivers, yellow stripes, tuinal, disosix, carbon tetrachroride, strychnine, arsenic, anything, I can deal anything except marijuana and hashish, because I can't stand the smell of that shit. And for the ultimate thrill of your lifetime, I'll personally drill a little hole right in your head and you can see the light of the lord shine in there. Can even offer dollies, I got the best doll for you money can buy, for anybody wants to just sit back sweet and easy, and kick their habit one day at a time. Now I ain't jealous, see, cause I ain't a junkie. I don't really approve of the use of any kind of dope, but if there's a market, if somebody's gonna buy it they may as well but it from me as buy it from the next guy. Cause you know there's a lot of dudes who brought their habit in here with them, man, and they got to have that wake up. They gotta have the nooner, and the matinee, and the sleepy time every day, seven days a week, just like clockwork. And I'm prepared to offer this jam, which is the best fucking hard-ass poison on the market today. And I can offer you something else, you want to know what that is?
Bullet: What's that?
Wasco: Protection. Top to bottom.
Bullet: Yeah? Who's made?
Wasco: Who's ma...
[smirks]
Wasco: ... You're already pissing your pants, man, you're getting in on one of the biggest deals ever made in any joint anywhere, ever, and you're asking me 'Who's made'? That's why you never got anywhere, cause you think small, that's small thinking, see? I'm thinking about diversification. You know what that word means, diversification? It means cigarettes, and prostitution, and banking services, and loan facilities, organized gambling, and liquor, and clothing sales, and uncensored postal service, and underground courier service direct to the street, and stud service, and telephone service direct to the outside. I'm even thinking about selling processed hair accoutrements to the raghead nigger conks. I'm gonna smuggle in contraband hot sauce for the spic cell block lunch time, direct from the Tiopico chili factory in Tijuana, what do you think about that?
Bullet: I think you're crazy. Out of your fucking mind.
Wasco: Lets say I offered you a deal you can't refuse.
Bullet: What's that?
Wasco: You just turn your whole operation over to me, intact, just like it is right now. Then when my supply starts coming in, which might even be today, you just sit back. We got a silent partnership, you got no jeopardy, no risk, you get ten percent of the whole operation, you make more money than you ever did before.
Bullet: What if I say no?
Wasco: You can't.
Bullet: Yeah, but what if I do?
Wasco: I'll kill ya. I'd love to kill ya, I'll throw you off the fucking tier right now, you'll wish you hadn't said that all the way down.
Bullet: You'll never get away with it.
Wasco: What do you care if I get away with it, you'll be dead.
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Box office
- Budget
- $4,000,000 (estimated)