Straight Time (1978)

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1. 

   Chris Goodwin

   could be Hoffman's best performance and that's saying something 9 years 3 months ago
2. 

   MMDan

   https://ok.ru/video/83399936671 11 months 3 weeks ago
3. 

   Siskoid

   It's its procedural feel that ties Straight Time together, whether it's showing how parole works, or the ins and outs of pulling off simple robberies. It all feels very real, in no small part thanks to the naturalistic acting, but generally things happen the way they might, without movie formula barging in (like, where's the big police chase you'd expect after the Hoffman's character goes on the run?). It is, after all, based on a real ex-con's experiences (Edward Bunker's), so it's bound to reality more than most crime pictures. Of course, it also means the structure is as two-toned as an old car. In the first half, when Dembo is trying to legitimately follow the rules of his parole, is more engaging, I felt, than the crime wave that followed when he gave up out of sheer frustration. There, the film painted a sympathetic picture of the man, and without over-egging the pudding, showed how the system was sort of cheering for him to fail. The second half has naturalism trump all, and say the jaded parole officer (M. Emmet Walsh) was right about Dembo all along (is that said, or is that correct?). It features various crimes, so has less direction, though the last act is pretty terrific, and though Theresa Russell plays a love interest that's difficult to read, she's also part of this realistic world and feels like a real person. Of the great cast (which also includes Kathy Bates' first screen role), she most caught my eye. Speaking of cinema history, former burglar Edward Bunker is in this too, and will become a recognizable if infrequently-used character actor in movies like Runaway Train, Tango & Cash, and not coincidentally Reservoir Dogs (as Mr. Blue), which was apparently influenced by Straight Time. 4 years 7 months ago

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