Category: 1970s

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Hester Street (1975)

Jewish immigrant Steven Keats’s assimilated life is greatly upended when his less-adaptable wife Carol Kane and son arrive from Russia. A decidedly low-budget film, Kane’s performance as a woman finding her way in a new country despite her philandering husband’s unsympathetic ways is understated and tender. With its sepia toned cinematography, the film feels like an authentic view into New York immigrant life, particularly of the Jewish population.

Oscar Nomination: Best Actress in a Leading Role

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Daisy Miller (1974)

Cybill Shepherd is the titular character, a nouveau riche American travelling through Europe with her family who doesn’t understand and ignores the expected behaviors of high society. Her tale is told, and held in comparison, through the experiences of another upper class American visiting the continent, Barry Brown, who keeps himself restrained and unemotional despite his obvious attraction to Daisy. Shepherd acts like she’s in an entirely different film than everyone else. She’s flighty and flirty and her actions and reactions don’t track with those of the people around her. This is even more pronounced as the story takes an abrupt dark turn in its latter part.

Oscar Nomination: Best Costume Design

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Scream Blacula Scream (1973)

This sequel to Blacula begins with the leader of a voodoo cult choosing apprentice Pam Grier as her successor instead of her son Richard Lawson. In retaliation, Richard resurrects the vampire Blacula to do his bidding, only to discover Blacula is not so easily controlled. With a greater focus on William Marshall’s Blacula character, this is possibly better than its prequel. The addition of the voodoo cult nicely parallels Blacula’s own coven and Pam Grier is always a great bonus.   Horror

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Sheba, Baby (1975)

Chicago private investigator Pam Grier returns to her hometown of Louisville to help her father who is being terrorized by gangsters. I do enjoy Pam Grier-led blaxploitation and she brings the sass as always, but this isn’t one of my favorites. It follows the general formula of Grier having to work her way to the top of a criminal conspiracy, but it does so in such a plodding way that the stakes never feel very high or exciting. The only things it has going for it beyond Pam are a chase in an amusement park, which always offers clever bits, and a climax involving jet skis and speedboats.   Crime  Action

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Thomasine and Bushrod (1974)

When bounty hunter Vonetta McGee runs across her ex-boyfriend Max Julien’s wanted poster, she hunts him down and the pair begin a crime spree robbing banks across the west and sharing their spoils with the poor and underprivileged. At its core, it could easily be described as a Bonnie and Clyde Blaxploitation Western. The two main character’s relationship is a beautiful one to behold with playfulness, love, and mutual respect. Aside from the expected ending, there is a bit of unfortunateness in seeing McGee’s agency dwindling somewhat when she rekindles the relationship even if it is in pursuit of her dreams of settling down.  Western  Crime  Romance

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An American Family: Anniversary Edition (1973/2011)

Being a fan of early reality television, I have long wanted to watch the full An American Family series, which is often considered the first reality series. This provides highlights of all twelve episodes, edited into one film, and it was almost as good as checking out the entire series. The Louds may not have been representative of all or most families in the 1970s, but they do provide a window into an upper class American experience and the changing attitudes between the generations at the time. The DVD came with a bevy of extras that include interviews that explore the crews’ experiences working on the show and the impact it had then and now.

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Elvis (1979)

Made only two years after his death, this biopic follows the life of Elvis Presley from his early days in Tupelo, Mississippi to his comeback in the late 1960s. Kurt Russell plays the title character and he along with Shelly Winters as his doting mother work really well together in portraying that significant relationship. The film glosses over or ignores some of the seedier aspects of his life, but in general is a pretty good introduction to the life of the King. I was initially annoyed at how the setting for Graceland was simultaneously similar to the real place and yet got so much wrong, but then I reminded myself that there probably weren’t thousands of pictures of the house available to anyone at the drop of a hat when the film was made.  Music

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King (1978)

This television miniseries chronicles the adult life of Martin Luther King Jr. as portrayed by Paul Winfield. Not unexpectedly, Winfield is joined by an incredibly talented cast, including Cicely Tyson, Ossie Davis, and Roscoe Lee Browne. The presentation of King here is a very human one but also doesn’t touch on any fallibilities he may have had. Winfield as an actor doesn’t make me immediately think of King, but he does give a committed performance here. One of the most glaring oddities is seeing Tyson give such a meek performance as Coretta Scott King, though perhaps unsurprisingly since the treatment of women in the film isn’t particularly glowing.

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Last Tango in Paris (1972)

For some reason, young and engaged Maria Schneider agrees to an anonymous affair with middle-aged Marlon Brando, whose wife has recently died by suicide. The escapism that these two characters find in their clandestine relationship is overwhelmed by two of the film’s explicit sex scenes: one that made me laugh in its silly ridiculousness and the other exploitive to the point of being an assault on the actress involved.

Oscar Nominations: Best Actor in a Leading Role; Best Director

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Midnight Express (1978)

Brad Davis is sent to a Turkish prison after attempting to smuggle 2kg of hashish out of the country. He’s initially given a sentence of four years for possession and he must decide whether or not to join fellow English-speaking prisoners John Hurt and Randy Quaid in taking the Midnight Express, slang in the prison for an escape attempt. Differentiating from the non-fiction book it was adapted from, it strangely includes a girlfriend character which adds some explicit sex scenes, while purposefully suppressing the homosexual sexual activity that actually happened. The depiction of the prison is a surprising oddity as the prisoners are allowed a bit of freedom of movement within its walls but are also subjected to a great amount of violence from guards and other prisoners. It’s a bleak reminder to not screw around when visiting other countries.   Best Picture Nomination  Crime

Oscar Win: Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium; Best Music, Original Score

Oscar Nominations: Best Picture; Best Actor in a Supporting Role; Best Director; Best Film Editing

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