Cinema
Point Blank
John Boorman · 1967
Synopsis
On the disused island of Alcatraz, Walker and his friend Reese steal the money of an Organization courier. During the split, Reese shoots Walker at point-blank range in a cell, leaves him for dead and goes off with the money and Lynne, Walker's wife. Walker makes his way back to the city; in Los Angeles, he claims only his share, ninety-three thousand dollars. Reese has handed the money over to the Organization, a crime syndicate sheltered behind a respectable corporate front, and a certain Yost helps Walker by giving him information.
Context
The script was sent to the director by the producers, then Lee Marvin, who had secured approval of the script and the cast, handed it over to him after their meeting in London. Filming took place on Alcatraz, in San Francisco and in Los Angeles, and a dominant colour was assigned to each scene, from grey to green and then to yellows. The swim in the bay is shown, then only suggested by the editing.
Who it is for
A ninety-two-minute film, in colour, whose editing is fragmented by flashbacks; several readings of the story remain possible.
Prizes and reception
Mixed critical reception and middling box office on release, then a reputation as a cult film, and inscribed in 2016 in the National Film Registry.
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