I have now viewed 35 films that were released in 1973. A list can be found here. I saw a lot of good to great movies and am satisfied to move on to 1974. From the 1001 Movies List, I did not revisit The Exorcist and did not watch Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, Turkish Delight, and The Mother and the Whore. I had previously reviewed Enter the Dragon. My Favorites List is in no particular order. I had 13 movies rated at 9/10 so I’m just going to list all of them.
Sleeper Directed by Woody Allen Written by Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman 1973/US IMDb page
Repeat viewing/My DVD collection
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
Miles Monroe: My brain? It’s my second favorite organ!
One of the last of Woody Allen’s silly movies, this combines slapstick humor, random gags, and satire. It’s pretty funny and we find out that Mid-20th Century Modern architecture still convinces as futuristic in 2173.
Miles Munroe (Allen) was a clarinetist and health food store owner way back in 1973. Complications of a minor surgery cause his body to be cryogenically frozen. He is illegally thawed out in 2173 by scientists who want to use him to help revolutionaries in the Underground infiltrate the secret Aires project. The above ground society is ruled by a Great Leader and questions nothing. The conformists are also frigid and have sex with the help of an orgasmatron machine.
Miles undergoes many obstacles on his way to Aries project disguised as a robot. First he shows up at the door of Luna Schlosser (Diane Keaton), a conformist and very bad poet. She is terrified but eventually helps him.
En route Luna becomes a member of the underground and convinces a very reluctant Miles to become involved in revolution.
This movie is one gag after another – if one doesn’t make you laugh, the next probably will. We see Allen taking on increasingly sophisticated projects from a production point of view and this looks pretty fabulous. Recommended for those looking for a good time. Allen wrote the Dixieland jazz score.
This concludes my viewing for 1973. I finally got my hands on a Sleeper DVD I could play on my player the very last day!
The Three Musketeers Directed by Richard Lester Written by George McDonald Frasier from the novel by Alexandre Dumas 1973/US/UK IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime (free to members)
Lady de Winter: Your Eminence is a great player. Great enough to lose. I do not like to lose.
Cardinal Richelieu: You must suit yourself, Milady. But, if in the end you should, do it with a becoming grace.
Richard Lester’s version of the old story is a mixture of derring do with slapstick comedy and simply sumptuous production values.
The story takes place during the reign of Louis XIII. Young D’Artagnon (Michael York) lives in the country with his father, an ex-Musketeer to the King. He is sent off with his father’s old sword as an introduction to the current Musketeers Athos (Oliver Reed), Porthos (Frank Finlay) and Aramis (Richard Chamberlin). He challenges each man to a duel. This is interrupted by guards enforcing the law against dueling. At any rate, D’Artagnon is rejected as a Musketeer until he has proved himself in combat. But they do allow him to hang out with them.
D’Artagnan takes lodging with an old man who is married to Constance (Raquel Welch) dressmaker to the Queen (Geraldine Chaplin). Constance is fiercely loyal to the Queen and helps facilitate her assignations with the Duke of Buckingham. Buckingham asks for a memento to take back to England and the Queen gives him an exquisite set of 12 diamond studs that had been a gift from the king.
Cardinal Richelieu (Charlton Heston) and his spies Rochefort (Christopher Lee) and Milady De Winter (Faye Dunaway) have been waiting for just such an opportunity. A word to the King and the Queen is required to wear them at the next ball. D’Artagnan is on the next ship to England to retrieve the jewels. I’ll stop there.
I saw this on original release and it was as fun now as it was then. My plot summary does not reflect the huge amount of swordplay throughout the film. Lester always keeps the fights interesting. Then there is a healthy dose of slapstick mostly provided by Raquel Welch who does prat falls like a trooper. The locations and costumes are incredible.
The cast thought it was making one movie but the studio carved it into two – this and The Four Musketeers (1974). The cast thought in that case they should receive two salaries. One reason may be that Lester’s shooting method (multiple cameras) meant stunt work had to be kept to a minimum. Virtually every member of the cast that fought was injured and Oliver Reed was nearly killed when he was accidentally stabbed in the neck.
O Lucky Man! Directed by Lindsay Anderson Written by David Sherwin from an original idea by Malcolm McDowell 1973/UK IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
Prison Governor: I’ve sensed the spark of idealism in you and I can move mountains, you know that, hmm. Oh, for a man like you, Travis. Michael, for a boy like you, you’re still young! Everything is possible. The world is your oyster. I can see you stripped, building motorways. You have eyes like Steve McQueen. Did anyone ever tell you that?
Lindsay Anderson produces a truly unique film that will leave me scratching my head until I see it again.
The story follows the life of young Mick Travis (Malcolm McDowell) from his first job through his being cast as an actor. The story is interspersed with Alan Price and his band playing appropriate songs in front of a neutral background for a kind of “Greek Chorus” effect. The story is told in episodes and the same actors reappear, some many times, in various episodes. The story gets more incredible and fantastical as it proceeds.
The movie is three hours long and I will give only the briefest outline of the plot. Eager, naive young Mick Travis gets his first job as an apprentice coffee salesman. The regional salesman for the Northeast has flown the coop. The training manager (Rachel Roberts) has taken a liking to him and suggests that he be promoted into that job.
Mick proceeds North. He takes up lodgings and is friendly with his next-door neighbor, a tailor (Ralph Richardson). He makes one big sale and suddenly is given the entire territory of Scotland in addition. At parting, the tailor gives him a golden suit and this advice: “Try not to die like a dog.”
En route to Scotland Mick has numerous adventures, many of them life threatening. He hitch-hikes away from the latest in a van where he finds Patricia (Helen Mirren) hiding under a blanket. They immediately fall in love.
Patricia’s father (Ralph Richardson) is a ruthless copper tycoon. Mick decides to see if he can insinuate himself into the company. He is immediately hired as the tycoon’s assistant and gets involved in an unsavory deal to sell a chemical weapon to an African country. The father frames Mick for a crime and he goes to jail.
After being released from prison, Mick feels strangely happy though he has hit rock bottom as far as his financial situation is concerned. He tries to talk a despondent housewife (Rachel Roberts) out of killing herself.
The next morning, he meets a man who is handing out flyers for an open audition for a part in a film. The film director (played by Lindsay Anderson) thinks Mick has something special. He takes several head shots but Mick doesn’t find anything to smile about. The director smacks him in the head with a script. Mick slowly breaks into a smile and finds himself in ecstasy.
This movie is three hours long and the time flew by, so that itself is something. Consider that I left many, many incidents out of the plot summary. The acting is excellent and the production is excellent. The social satire is sharp. I think I need another viewing to really wrap my head around it though. And I just might do it.
I can’t believe black face was still being used in 1973. But maybe that just went with the same actor being used in different parts. It’s only in one segment.
Soylent Green Directed by Richard Fleischer Written by Stanley R. Greenberg from a novel by Harry Harrison 1973/US IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
Det. Thorn: I know, Sol, you’ve told me a hundred times before. People were better, the world was better…
Sol: Ah, people were always lousy… But there was a world, once.
Golden-age director Richard Fleischer delivers a solid dystopian sci-fi classic.
The year is 2022. The place is New York City, pop. 40 million. Most people appear to be homeless and sleep crammed together like sardines anywhere they can. Pollution and overpopulation have destroyed Mother Nature. Fresh food of any kind is a scarce, super expensive luxury. The masses survive on synthetic food – namely, Soylents Red, Yellow, and Green.
Detective Thorn (Charlton Heston) and his “book” Sol (Edward G. Robinson) investigate the murder of William R. Samuelson (Joseph Cotten), a very rich man who lives with gorgeous “furniture” Leigh Taylor-Young. “Furniture” describes an attractive young woman who comes with an apartment and is there to fulfill every desire of the occupant.
Once Sol’s research finds that Samuelson was a Member of the Board of Soylent, Inc., the game is on. Thorn’s investigations take us out to the dystopian world of the masses. I’m sure all my readers know the big reveal but I’m not going to be the one to spoil it. With Chuck Connors as Samuelsons’s body guard.
I’m not a big fan of Charlton Heston but he did OK. Some of the special effects and crowd scenes are fantastic. But the real joy of the movie for me was seeing Edward G. Robinson in his final performance in a career that had started in 1916. He brought class and passion to all his parts. If the subject matter sounds intriguing, I would go for it.
Mean Streets Directed by Martin Scorsese Written by Martin Scorsese and Matdik Martin 1973/US IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
Charlie: Don’t be smart, Johnny.
Johnny Boy: What do you mean? I ain’t smart. I’m stupid. Remember? I’m so stupid you gotta look out for me. Right? Right?
Martin Scorsese comes into his own by going back to his roots.
The story is set in New York City in the mid-1960’s. Charlie (Harvey Keitel) is a debt collector for his uncle. He knows how to survive on the mean streets of Little Italy yet is haunted by his Catholic indocrination. He gets along well with the uncle who wants to set him up in his own restaurant.
His best friend is the unhinged, possibly psychopathic, Johnny Boy (Robert De Niro). He owes money to everybody dumb enough to give him a loan. He owes $1800 plus interest to tough guy Michael Longo. Michael begins to feel like he is being played for a chump and is counting on Charlie to get his money for him.
Charlie gets mixed up in this mess partly out of friendship for Johnny Boy and partly because of his his intimate relationship with Teresa (Amy Richardson), Johnny Boy’s cousin. As the story goes on Johnny Boy becomes more and more erratic and starts fooling around with guns. But Charlie can’t seem to abandon him. Let’s just say none of this is going to end well.
There are some amazing complex shots and sequences in this movie that show Scorsese’s assured mastery over filmmaking. Add to some fine acting – this was De Niro’s first collaboration with the director – and fabulous production values. The movie contains Scorsese’s signature oldies score, and his themes around Catholicism and machismo. Not Scorsese’s best film by any means but nevertheless recommended.
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This may be the last 1001 List film I watch for 1973. One time with The Exorcist was enough for me. I am really sad I can’t find Sleeper anywhere except for purchase in DVD Region 2 editions. Based on descriptions, I’m skipping The Mother and the Whore, Turkish Delight and Pat Garret and Billy the Kid unless I get some reader recommendations to change my mind. I’m on the last lap of 1973 which will “end” on January 15.
Don’t Look Now Directed by Nicolas Roeg Written by Allan Scott and Chris Bryant from a story by Daphne Du Maurier 1973/US IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
One of 1000 Great Horror Movies on theyshootzombies.com
Laura Baxter: This one who’s blind. She’s the one that can see.
Roeg uses his cinematographer’s eye to stun us with variations on the color red and the gritty side of Venice, Italy. All this beauty accompanies the well-acted, horrifying and tragic story of a couple trying to come to terms with the drowning death of their daughter.
John (Donald Sutherland) and Laura (Julie Christie) Baxter are a happily married couple living in England. John is a renowned church restorer. They have two children, Christine and Johnny. One day, Christine drowns in a pond on their property. John had a premonition and was running to his daughter before his son called out to him.
After an unspecified period of time, John and Laura put their son in boarding school and move to Venice, Italy where John is friendly with the local bishop and working hard on restoring a church dear to him. John is deeply immersed in his work so has that outlet but Laura is sad all the time.
One day, they are eating in a restaurant where two ladies are staring at them. One of the them has something in her eye and Laura offers to help. It is then that she discovers the two are sisters and the blind one is a psychic. The blind one tells Laura she saw her little girl sitting beside her and the girl was laughing and happy. This makes Laura like a new woman.
John believes the psychic is a fraud and discourages Laura from seeing the sisters. But Laura sneaks off anyway. The psychic tells Laura John is in great danger and should leave Venice immediately. John thinks this is hogwash. Then he starts having some very disturbing visions. I’ll stop here. The film has an unforgettable ending.
Everything about this movie is so well done. Roeg creates some fabulous montage sequences, including a notorious one in which we watch the Baxters make love intercut with their dressing for dinner. The Venice of this movie is not the tourist Venice but a city that is decaying with age, creating a really creepy mysterious atmosphere. The acting is perfect and the score is beautiful. Be prepared to endure some real tragedy along with your scares. Highly recommended.
High Plains Drifter Directed by Clint Eastwood Written by Ernest Tidyman 1973/US IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
Sarah Belding: I knew you were cruel, but I didn’t know how far you could go.
The Stranger: Well, you still don’t.
This movie lost me after the violent rape at the beginning. It proceeds to get more violent, bloody and cruel.
Clint Eastwood known only as “The Stranger” rides into the little Western town of Lago. He first kills the three gunmen who have been protecting the town. Then pretty young Callie Travers (Marianna Hill) deliberately runs into him. She complains he tore her dress. Then she gives him some lip so he takes her to a barn and violently rapes her. Later she voluntarily sleeps with her rapist, though with ill intent.
The Stranger has nightmares about the town’s former Marshall who was horrifically whipped to death in Lago by multiple men (we see this in excruciating detail) because he threatened to reveal the town’s secret.
After the killing of their gunmen, the town’s leaders decide that The Stranger is the man to take care of three outlaws who have been released from prison and have threatened to burn down the town. The Stranger is initially reluctant but an offer of anything/anything he wants convinces him to take on the job. What he wants especially is to destroy the town along with the outlaws. He forces the people to do many incomprehensible things. The movie builds to an elaborate violent climax in which the the Stranger’s plan comes together.
I really didn’t want to watch this after the rape. But I persevered and saw the entire thing, which was also too violent and cruel for me. Obviously this is on The List and seems to have many fans on IMDb. So I am in the minority here. Actually, there is nothing really wrong with the movie and those with thicker skin than mine might love it.
The Wicker Man Directed by Robin Hardy Written by Anthony Shaffer from a novel by David Pinner 1973/UK IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
Lord Summerisle [quoting Walt Whitman): I think I could turn and live with animals. They are so placid and self-contained. They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins. They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God. Not one of them kneels to another or to his own kind that lived thousands of years ago. Not one of them is respectable or unhappy, all over the earth.
What an unusual and fantastic movie!
Police Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) visits Summerisle in search of a missing girl. The residents are very reluctant to provide information absent the authorization of Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee). In any event, all deny ever knowing such a girl.
Howie, a devout Christian, is appalled to find that the islanders have adopted a pagan religion, which features a fertility cult and celebrates the gods of nature. Many of the songs they sing strike Howie as obscene. He will gradually find out more about the religion and more about the fate of the missing girl.
Howie’s investigations will get him deeper and deeper into a place he does not want to be. It would be wrong to reveal any additional details of the plot. With Diane Cliento and Britt Ekland as islanders.
I knew next to nothing about this movie and just loved it Goes straight on the Favorite New-to-Me Movie list. I cannot think of a single thing that could be improved. It is powerful, creepy, and scary without being overly gory. Highly Recommended.
Godspell Directed by David Greene Written by David Greene and John-Michael Telebak from Telebak’s book for the Off-Broadway musical 1973/US IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime rental
When your faith is all but shattered
When your faith is all but killed
You can give up bitter and battered
or you can start to slowly build …
A beautiful city Yes, we can; yes we can We can build a beautiful city Not a city of angels but finally a city of man – lyrics and music by Stephen Schwartz, updated post 9/11
It’s hard to write a review today as the U.S. Capitol is under siege. I’m not thrilled with the direction or concept of this movie but the music is so inspirational and uplifting that I might watch it again today.
The film is set on the streets of New York City and you almost get a travelogue along with your musical. It was filmed when the World Trade Center had almost completed construction so the towers keep showing up everywhere.
The story is based on the Gospel According to Matthew. It covers Jesus’s life from his baptism by John the Baptist through the Passion and a symbolic resurrection. The performers are clad to look like a combo of hippies and clowns. Everything is done fairly simply and broadly.
The message of the Gospel is conveyed through vignettes including several amusing enactments of the Parables.
I’ve been listening to Steven Schwartz’s score since before the movie was made. I still listen to the Broadway and off-Broadway cast recordings once in awhile when I need to cheer up.
The cast performs “All for the Best” throughout New York ending the song atop the World Trade Center, which was then under construction.
I’m not a big fan of Charlton Heston but he did OK. Some of the special effects and crowd scenes are fantastic. But the real joy of the movie for me was seeing Edward G. Robinson in his final performance in a career that had started in 1916. He brought class and passion to all his parts. If the subject matter sounds intriguing, I would go for it.
