Also known as Never Give an Inch, this film was based on a novel by Ken Kesey. Paul Newman (who also directed) stars as Hank Stamper, the oldest son of an Oregon logging family headed by Henry (Henry Fonda). Hank's half-brother, Leeland (Michael Sarrazin), embittered over Henry's treatment of his late mother, returns after a ten-year absence to work in the family business. Leeland's presence causes friction with Henry, who resents his prodigal son's hippie mindset, and Hank, who perceives
Leeland as a threat to his own position in the family structure. Hank has good reason to feel resentful: before long, his wife, Viv (Lee Remick), has entered into an affair with Leeland. Meanwhile, Henry wages an ongoing battle with the unionized loggers in the region, who threaten reprisals should Henry attempt to continue his business without union help. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Newman starts tunneling under the material, coming up with all sorts of things we didn't quite expect, and along the way he proves himself as a director of sympathy and a sort of lyrical restraint.
Based on Ken Kesey's book, Newman's second film as helmer is not effective or cohesive as the first (Rachel Rachel), but Oregon locations and good acting by Henry Fonda and others compensate for uneasy fit between melodrama and action
When the film cuts away from the family soap opera dramatics and shows the macho men at work wielding their chainsaws at the logging camp among the giant trees, it has a buzz.
Kesey's 600-plus-page novel would have made a fine six-hour mini-series, and it's a tribute to scenarist Gay that he managed to condense that much material into under two hours.
Okay but overlong logging drama would have benefitted by being a half hour shorter. Has a fine cast, with Lee Remick giving the best performance even though her screen time is limited, but they don't have enough to work with. It just should have been more involving.
February 24, 2011
jay nixon
Super Reviewer
Paul newman Starring With And Directig Henry Fonda And Lee Remeck In A Story Written By Ken (One Flew Over The Cookoo's Nest) Keysey? That Alone Sas it All
June 17, 2009
Jannet Moore
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