tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post1132349503022656794..comments2024-03-24T13:26:57.317-07:00Comments on Sergio Leone and the Infield Fly Rule: NO THOUGHTS OF LOVE: THE PROFESSIONALS Dennis Cozzaliohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-3748068231029989262015-09-25T12:02:57.908-07:002015-09-25T12:02:57.908-07:00I'm not sure that it is unfair to compare the ...I'm not sure that it <i>is</i> unfair to compare the movie to other westerns of roughly the same period like <i>The Wild Bunch</i> or <i>Once Upon a Time in the West</i>-- after all, I doubt Peckinpah or Leone went into their movies shooting for masterpiece status (Well, maybe Leone did :) ), and of them all Brooks was the one who ended up with the industry seal of approval in the form of an Oscar nomination for best director. I mentioned them, as well as <i>The Dirty Dozen</i> and <i>The Train</i>, as good examples of showcases for their actors as much as examples of how directorial attitude and style can inform and elevate a movie to another level.<br /><br />And I agree with you, Gonzalo, that there are a lot of good one-liners, but the dialogue that surrounds them doesn't strike me as all that interesting or illuminating of the characters.<br /><br />And as for that desert, it may be more beautiful than the one I grew up in up in southeastern Oregon, but I still don't think Brooks uses it particularly expressively. Frankly, were it not for the presence of Lancaster and Cardinale and Marvin and Gomez, the movie would have very little staying power for me. I'm much more at home in the world of Universal-International's unpretentious, cheaply produced westerns of the '50s than I am with Brooks' super-sized version of the same.Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-53755963264883456832015-09-25T09:44:26.484-07:002015-09-25T09:44:26.484-07:00The best thing about 'The Professionals' i...The best thing about 'The Professionals' is its dialogue. It has some of the best one-liners I've seen in any movie. And the movie makes great use of the desert. It's unfair to compare it with four masterpieces. On its own, it's a remarkable western.pop-sesivohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05577274619037437328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-72022581570069096172015-09-22T22:20:55.673-07:002015-09-22T22:20:55.673-07:00It's a western. They're in the desert. It&...It's a western. They're in the desert. It's not <i>supposed</i> to be beautiful. But it is, anyway. Kael totally missed the boat on this one.mike schlesingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15824197221204862706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-25777295027320498782015-09-21T06:04:20.203-07:002015-09-21T06:04:20.203-07:00I have no real beef with the movie, but Richard Br...I have no real beef with the movie, but Richard Brooks' Best Director Oscar nomination for this is utterly bizarre. Jeff Geehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02556922556611887235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-18812671653314686882015-09-17T18:19:50.279-07:002015-09-17T18:19:50.279-07:00I agree with you that The Professionals is a cold ...I agree with you that The Professionals is a cold movie, but one worth watching for the images and action. Brooks did the same with Bite The Bullet, more of a mess, but worthy for many small reasons. I had the benefit of seeing BtB in a movie theater originally so was caught up in that experience and for a long while liked it more, but as you say TP is a much tighter piece, more efficient/less sprawling than Brooks' other work. Each cold but workable, could have been so much more.Ronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00452222696907771602noreply@blogger.com