Clint Eastwood Non-Western 1965-1990

 

For my money, no one has a better or more complete career in the history of Hollywood since Charlie Chaplin than Clint Eastwood.
I know that is a debatable statement to say the least, but I’ll stand by it. I am open to contrary suggestions. But remember, I didn’t say Clint was the best actor. I didn’t say Clint was the best director. What I said and what I’ll defend is that over his career there isn’t another figure who has the combination of successes, both critical and financial and in sheer volume, in all phases as an Actor,

Director and Producer and even a composer. There are a few that come real close IMO. Robert Redford makes a more than a compelling case behind and in front of the camera. Mel Brooks could be a fun argument. Mel Gibson, lunacy aside, has a strong resume for my criteria. But when you add everything up you still have Clint. And truth be told…. Clint is not my favorite actor or director by a long shot. But the body, the size and the success of the work are hard to deny.

Probably a year ago I had ranked all of Jimmy Stewart’s Westerns. I enjoyed the process so a few months ago I asked a question on Facebook about what I should do next. The winning suggestion was to revisit and rank all of Clint Eastwood’s Non-Westerns. By the way, Clint has a substantial film catalog and while planning I realized it was probably going to be too many films to work with. So, I made a not so arbitrary cutoff in 1990. I did this for 2 reasons. First, starting with Coogan’s Bluff in ‘68 through 1990’s the Rookie there were 25 films that hit my criteria. That seemed like a good round number. Secondly, and this can’t be overstated, there is a clear demarcation in Clint’s career starting in 1992 with the release of Unforgiven through last year’s Cry Macho. To put it plainly, he got better. At least his movies did, especially his non-westerns. To be fair his westerns have always been held in high esteem. It is hard to get better than The Outlaw Josey Wales in 1976. But his non-western films were much more inconsistent until 1993’s In the Line of Fire.  He hit a creative groove with non-westerns after Unforgiven with Million Dollar Baby, Grand Torino, In the Line of Fire, Bridges of Madison County, A Perfect World etc that deserves to be looked at separately.

So…Here we go.
Clint Eastwood 1968 – 1990 Lead Feature Films, Non-Westerns…..Don’t hate me in the morning!! 

25.       Coogan’s Bluff ’68 – Somewhere, someone decided Clint needed should make a hippie movie. This was his. He wasn’t the hippie, but he tried to have sex with as many hippies as he could. It is horrible. Just a mess of a film.

24.       The Rookie ’90 – Ill-fated, buddy cop movie with Charlie Sheen. Enough said!

23.       White Hunter Black Heart ’90 - Did you ever see the movie where John Wayne played Genghis Kahn…. Well, Clint Eastwood impersonating John Huston isn’t much better. Stay in your lane Clint!

22.       Play Misty for Me ’71 – Clint’s directorial debut. It was a hit and a well-received psychological thriller. Unfortunately, it DOES NOT hold up over time. Sensibilities have just changed.

21.       Pink Cadillac ’89 – Anytime you expect Clint to be the over the top, extravert it may not go well.  A bail bondsman with a heart of gold who will dress up in disguises really feels like a last grasp at a once successful action formula.

20.       The Eiger Sanction ’75- The movie is never sure if it is trying to be an American pseudo-James
Bond spy film or a mountain climbing adventure
. There is a good movie of either one in there but not both. Also having a inter-racial love interest seemed progressive until you realized her name was Jemimah……. even in 1975…. My goodness.

19.       Honkytonk Man ’82 – I remember seeing this at the theater when I was 11. I liked it. None of the adults I knew were as enamored as I was. It has got its problems but I’m personally fond of the film. Sadly, Eastwood’s son can’t act, and his dad can’t sing. Not a big deal but the movie just happens to be about a guy who can sing.….so….  I still find it to be one of Clint’s better acting performances.

18.       Firefox ’82 – Two movies in One. A potentially, exceptional cold war espionage thriller ruined by a deplorably awful plane chase for the last 30 minutes.

17.       City Heat ’84 – Two of the biggest stars of the 70’s and early 80’s were Clint and Burt Reynolds. This should have been a hit. IT WASN’T. Much of the reason may have been the marketing. I remember it being billed as a slapstick comedy. It had funny moments but was much more a period crime piece. Not nearly as slick or sophisticated as The Sting from a decade earlier but along those same lines. 

16.       Sudden Impact ’83 – Dirty Harry Callahan was back after an 8-year hiatus. He hadn’t really learned anything since he left. How in God’s name can he always be shocked that there is a Constitution and a Bill of Rights and Police Procedure. I get that Harry’s appeal is how he’s willing to ignore those things to get the bad guy, but he acts surprised every time he gets in trouble. This is the 4^th movie for God’s sake. When will he learn? This was a huge hit, but the film had most of the same problems as the earlier Dirty Harry films.

15.       Tightrope ’84 -Psychological thriller from different source material. Not Clint’s typical flick. The parallels between Clint’s character and the serial killer he is chasing was deeper and a little out of character for Clint. He plays a much more vulnerable character and really ramps up the tension. I liked it much better than I did in 1984. I was expecting Dirty Harry.

14.       Paint Your Wagon ’69 – This was the first time Clint sang on screen. Sadly…. very sadly it wouldn’t be the last. By all counts Clint is an accomplished musician. Unfortunately, he is a deplorably, awful singer. Regardless his handsome, straight arrow next to a crusty, scene-chewing Lee Marvin proves to be pretty funny even if the premise is pretty outlandish. Not a movie to overthink. Just enjoy for what it is and the time it came out.

13.       Every Which Way but Loose ’78 – It is hard to imagine but adjusted for inflation THIS is Clint Eastwood’s biggest hit and one of the top 250 grossing pictures of all time…WTH?  On the surface it’s just horrible. The plot is non-existent and seems like Clint is trying for a Burt Reynolds level of silliness. The acting is bad. Sondra Locke sings and she may be a worse singer than Clint if that’s possible. Then the level of ridiculousness achieved by the nemesis biker gang, the Black Widows of Pacoima, can’t be overstated. ….BUT and this is important…Philo Beddoe and his strange, colorful family are terribly likable and watchable characters. Plot be damned. Not to mention that everyone loves Clyde the orangutan…and the monkey maketh the movie!

12.       The Enforcer ’76 – Disgruntled Vietnam vets and drugged out hippies are terrorizing San Francisco but they didn’t count on Harry Callahan. This was the 3^rd of 5 Dirty Harry movies. Killer opening and seriously the whole counter-culture gang of hippie bad guys works. All the Dirty Harry films have some head scratching moments but here the good outweighs the confusing.

11.       Heartbreak Ridge ’86 – There is a lot to love about Heartbreak Ridge. Clint is superb as the aging Marine nearing retirement lamenting the mistakes of his life and fearing a future outside of the corp. Every nook and cranny on his face tells a story. He’s believable and sympathetic and really gives a great performance. But the festering boil of this film is the downright absurd way it portrays the Marine Corp unit Gunny Highway is taking over. The dialogue, the scenarios, the acting and the premises are laughably awful. I must fast forward through about 6 scenes and
then I love it.

10.       The Dead Pool ’89 – While not the most popular, Dead Pool is probably the Dirty Harry movie with the least warts. Story is much more coherent, and Harry’s popular antics at least advance the story as opposed to just popping up out of the blue.  Future heavy weights Liam Neeson and Jim Carrey in supporting roles was fun to revisit.

9.         Dirty Harry ’71 – Tip of the hat and props to the original. With Dirty Harry, Clint now has another iconic film character that is the standard bearer for its genre and this one actually talks. Not too shabby. 

8.         Magnum Force ’73 – The second of the Callahan movies and the best story of the bunch. A rogue group of vigilante cops making life hard for Harry. Great early roles for David Soul, Robert Urich and Tim Matheson.  None of them are Jim Carrey but not shabby.

7.         The Gauntlet ’77 – It would be easy to think The Gaunlet was a Dirty Harry movie, but it isn’t. It looks like one. Sounds like one and probably smells like one but…. It isn’t. This is Clint’s 2^nd of 6 films with Sondra Locke and their chemistry is very good. It turns into a bit of a travel/buddy movie with the most marvelously ridiculous final sequence someone could imagine. But…and this is important…. It works…. regardless of how ridiculous it is….it works.

6.         Thunderbolt and Lightfoot ’74 – Really enjoyable buddy/heist movie with a painfully, young Jeff Bridges and a nasty, mean, larger than life George Kennedy who plays a great foil for Clint and Jeff’s lovable losers. A strangely, sweet film when all is said and done.

5.         Any Which Way You Can ’80 – The only reason I put either of these in the top 10 is because as horrible as they are there is a certain charm and likeability for the characters and they both made so much damn money it’s hard not to acknowledge them. This movie was strangely better that the original. No, this is not a Godfather vs Godfather II situation. However, there is a slightly better plot and they made sure to use the orangutan every chance they got. He even has a love scene…but Fellini it ain’t.

4.         Kelly’s Heroes ’70 – Released three years after The Dirty Dozen, Kelly’s Heroes has a similar feel but counter-culture was kicking a little harder. So instead of vile criminals banding together to kill Nazis we get a bunch of goofy burnouts so sick and tired of the war they go on a mission behind enemy lines to steal Nazi treasure. So, nothing like DD and very similar at the same time. You also get Donald Sutherland and Telly Savalas as cross overs between the two.  This was released the same year at M*A*S*H and Tora Tora Tora!  Those are 3 very different looks at war to be sure. Terribly entertaining!! With a cast for the ages Clint, Don Rickles, Carol O’Connor, Gavin McCloud and Harry Dean Stanton join the aforementioned Hawkeye Peirce
and Kojak!            

3.         Escape from Alcatraz ’79 – Clint hasn’t made it a habit of playing real live characters. That’s probably not a bad idea especially if you’ve seen his impersonation of Walter Huston in White Heart Black Hunter. He’s not that kind of actor. But in Escape from Alcatraz, he’s playing someone nobody knows so an imitation isn’t necessary. Whether or not the film is historically accurate is debatable because honestly, we don’t know exactly who it ended. However, as a piece of entertainment the film works. The script is tight, and the performances are earnest. You are rooting for the “bad guys” to make it and the suspense is real.

2.         Where Eagles Dare ’68 – Clint had made a name for himself. The “Man with No Name”

movies were huge hits. His star was on the rise, but he was still getting 2^nd billing especially to Sir Richard Burton. When you think of Alistair MacLean films you think action-packed, large-scale events. Where Eagles Dare is no different. British spies team with an American to break into a mountain-top, Nazi stronghold to save someone that will turn the tide of the war. The suspension of disbelief required of an audience in 1968 is no greater that required in 2022 but it is different. Fight scenes, special effects and action sequences are just different. That doesn’t make the filmmaking worse or less sophisticated. Since Clint wasn’t the main star, it would be easy to drop this on in the list. This is Burton’s movie. Clint is handsome window dressing but that’s OK cause the film is still that good. Anyway, this would be one of the last times Clint Eastwood’s name wasn’t on top of the marquis.

1.         Bronco Billy ’80 – In my experience you either love Bronco Billy or you hate Bronco Billy, and most people hate it.  I get it. It’s not typical Eastwood fare. People came to the theater to see Dirty Harry or Josey Wales and instead they got a quirky, almost whimsical, love story. Instead of John Wayne or Clint Eastwood They got someone who actually believed all the John Wayne, Roy Rogers and dare I say Clint Eastwood movies were real…..or at least their ideas and themes were real.  Bronco Billy has its issues. The love story feels genuine and believable within the context of the film. However, its campy, over-the-top portrayal of Antoinette’s family is at the least distracting. But Bronco Billy is about truth and honor and working hard and obeying your parents and all the lessons Bronco learned from his heroes and now wants to teach the little buckaroos who come to his show. It’s about protecting your friends and being an example of righteousness and doing good. For Bronco it is not silly and its not hokey. Bronco’s amazing level of naivete and optimism is such a contrast to the image Clint cultivated for years. That’s why it is one of Clint’s best performances of his entire career. And not for nothing, when it’s all said and done, you end up pulling for Bronco. Even though he’s frustrating and oblivious and painstakingly loyal despite the consequences you want him to be right. You want this optimism to actually be the truth and doggone it…..maybe it is.
Such a sweet film.

I’m open for rigorous questioning!!