James Salter Movies
Sid (director Joe Carnahan) and Bob (Dan Leis) are two down-on-their-luck, very fast-talking used car salesmen with a lot full of lemons and a gaping hole in their finances, when, at their most vulnerable, they are offered a deal: Park a cherry Pontiac LeMans convertible for two days...and they get $250,000. The catch is, "don't look, don't touch." The trunk is rigged to explode if they try to open it, and a sniper awaits them if they attempt to run off with it. On top of that is a trail of bodies stretching from South America to the car's delivery. Living in the shadow of Dan Woo (Dan Harlan), the giant car dealer down the street for whom Sid and Bob used to work, the boys have little choice. Hilarity and the FBI ensue. In the '90s it's Quentin Tarantino's world, we just watch the footage. Like a low-rent Faust on too much caffeine, director Joe Carnahan, armed with his car, his friends, and less than $8000, has made an energetic, eager-to-please debut to serve as his calling card to Hollywood. ~ Ron Wells, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dan Leis, Joe Carnahan, (more)
- 1981
- PG
Donald Sutherland plays a brilliant surgeon who becomes a media celebrity after performing an artificial-heart transplant. Jeff Goldblum, inventor of the ersatz heart, likewise basks in the glow of sudden fame. The only person to have reservations about the procedure is heart recipient Mare Winningham, who becomes depressed over the knowledge that she's not altogether human. Several ethical questions are raised and left unresolved; the film assumes that the audience is intelligent and perceptive enough to draw its own conclusions. Released in Canada in 1981, Threshold was not offered an American distribution until after the Barney Clark heart transplant of 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald Sutherland, John Marley, (more)
- 1969
- R
Bert (Robie Porter) and Taylor (Sam Waterston) are two Americans who set out for a tour of France and Italy by auto. They meet a pretty female hitchhiker named Marty (Charlotte Rampling) and agree to allow her to travel with them. They agree not to become romantically involved with Marty to insure there is no conflict. When Bert goes off with a French woman for a night of love and romance, Marty makes a move on Taylor. Keeping in mind the pact with his friend, he refuses to get involved with the woman. Bert eventually returns and forgets his promise to Taylor as he makes a pass at the willing, wanton woman. Soon Taylor is left behind to ponder his fate as the two lovers resume the proposed tour. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlotte Rampling, Robie Porter, (more)
Director Michael Ritchie's ongoing satirical spin on the American Dream is dressed up in quasi-documentary fashion in Downhill Racer. Robert Redford stars as an Olympic-grade skier, whose talent is matched only by his aloof self-involvement. As the cocksure Redford rises to the top of his class, he discards any emotional attachments that might impede his progress, ranging from girlfriends to his own father. When Redford finally attains his goal in life, the thrill of victory is an empty one indeed. The cold-bloodedness of Redford's character may have worked against Downhill Racer at the box office; on the other hand, Ritchie's similarly structured political satire The Candidate offered a "warmer" Redford -- but it, too, was a box-office disappointment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Redford, Gene Hackman, (more)
- 1969
Sidney Lumet directed this romantic melodrama involving deceit and marital secrets. The film takes place in Rome where lawyer Federico Fendi (Omar Sharif) falls in love with his colleague Renzo's (Fausto Tozzi) fiancee Carla (Anouk Aimee). Renzo warns Federico that Carla is actually a high-priced call girl, but Federico refuses to believe it. Instead, Carla and Federico marry. After the wedding however, Federico notices that Carla has been making curious disappearances from her domestic home. Recalling Renzo's warning, Federico begins the secretly follow her to find out the truth. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Omar Sharif, Anouk Aimée, (more)
Directed with crisp efficiency by Dick Powell, The Hunters is a romantic melodrama with an aviation angle. Robert Mitchum plays veteran Air Force pilot Maj. Cleve Saville, in charge of a group of young flyboys in 1952 Korea. Among the men under Saville's command are cocksure Lt. Ed Peil (Robert Wagner) and timorous Lt. Abbott (Lee Phillips). Much against his better judgment, Saville falls in love with Abbott's gorgeous wife Kris (Mai Britt). When Abbott crashes behind enemy lines, Saville and Peil are sent out to rescue the downed pilot-and Peil has an inkling of the Major's feelings towards Mrs. Abbott. During their grueling journey back to their own lines, both Peil and Abbott benefit from the military expertise of the no-nonsense Saville, who knows where and when to separate his private life from his responsibilities. Distinguished by excellent aerial sequences, The Hunters is adapted from the novel by James Salter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Mitchum, Robert Wagner, (more)
