VIEWER'S GUIDE: Strictly adults only.
COMMENT: Lancaster has always stated that he wanted to direct but The Kentuckian (1955) and The Midnight Man are in fact his only ventures behind the cameras. Although he did an excellent job with Midnight, the film failed dismally at the boxoffice, despite my opinion that it had all the elements I would have thought necessary for success in 1974. Sex, violence, corruption and a strong antipathy towards authority and the establishment whose officials are depicted as either hopelessly incompetent or ruthlessly on the take.
Amidst all this prejudice, brutality and malfeasance, the Right has only one tainted champion. And although the odds are impossibly stacked against him, he does - through sheer grit and physical stamina on the one hand, tireless self-honesty and mental acuity on the other - eventually win through. It's a noble theme and Lancaster does it proud.
In addition to Lancaster's persuasive performance, his incisive direction and his intriguing script, what I like about The Midnight Man is its atmosphere. Not only its realistically observed small university town, all sunny community on the outside, but the more personal atmosphere of loss and disillusionment, of bitter but ruthlessly pursued truth-seeking that Lancaster brings to every scene.
Director Lancaster has made vibrant use of his support players and utilized his many brilliantly-chosen natural locations to bring his story to throbbing life. Other technical credits are likewise highly commendable, especially Jack Priestley's mood-evocative cinematography and Dave Grusin's cleverly atmospheric score which often lightens and transforms the violence into softer, autumnal shades of nostalgia and regret.
OTHER VIEWS: I'm not surprised JHR likes this one as it has many of the qualities of a JHR novel, including a dominant yet disillusioned central character, seemingly servile but actually strong and self-willed, prepared to sacrifice anything and everything for unfashionable ideals of truth and honesty. Although basically a loner, the hero is presented in a sympathetic and involving manner. It's all summed up by the sad, wistful air of regret in Lancaster's face as the camera pans in for its final end-of-the-Mitchell-story close-up.
COMMENT: Lancaster has always stated that he wanted to direct but The Kentuckian (1955) and The Midnight Man are in fact his only ventures behind the cameras. Although he did an excellent job with Midnight, the film failed dismally at the boxoffice, despite my opinion that it had all the elements I would have thought necessary for success in 1974. Sex, violence, corruption and a strong antipathy towards authority and the establishment whose officials are depicted as either hopelessly incompetent or ruthlessly on the take.
Amidst all this prejudice, brutality and malfeasance, the Right has only one tainted champion. And although the odds are impossibly stacked against him, he does - through sheer grit and physical stamina on the one hand, tireless self-honesty and mental acuity on the other - eventually win through. It's a noble theme and Lancaster does it proud.
In addition to Lancaster's persuasive performance, his incisive direction and his intriguing script, what I like about The Midnight Man is its atmosphere. Not only its realistically observed small university town, all sunny community on the outside, but the more personal atmosphere of loss and disillusionment, of bitter but ruthlessly pursued truth-seeking that Lancaster brings to every scene.
Director Lancaster has made vibrant use of his support players and utilized his many brilliantly-chosen natural locations to bring his story to throbbing life. Other technical credits are likewise highly commendable, especially Jack Priestley's mood-evocative cinematography and Dave Grusin's cleverly atmospheric score which often lightens and transforms the violence into softer, autumnal shades of nostalgia and regret.
OTHER VIEWS: I'm not surprised JHR likes this one as it has many of the qualities of a JHR novel, including a dominant yet disillusioned central character, seemingly servile but actually strong and self-willed, prepared to sacrifice anything and everything for unfashionable ideals of truth and honesty. Although basically a loner, the hero is presented in a sympathetic and involving manner. It's all summed up by the sad, wistful air of regret in Lancaster's face as the camera pans in for its final end-of-the-Mitchell-story close-up.