I had seen this movie when I was twenty, and it had lingered somewhere in my mind in a most favorable way. In later years I recalled a good movie and strong acting by two favorites, Gregory Peck and Frank Silvera. Then I saw it again this year at fifty two, and after watching it a second time, I confess that only two of my three favorable impressions remained: Peck and Silvera. The movie is utterly hollow.
The premise of the movie is outstanding. An unseen, deadly presence is out there and most definitely coming. It's only a matter of time before the showdown occurs. Armed with the likes of Gregory Peck, Eva Marie Saint, and Frank Silvera, the director had an A team assembled for what could have been a thriller with a ton of suspense. But Eva Marie Saint was relegated to the role of a mute statue, Frank Silvera was used almost grudgingly, and Gregory Peck was left to tote this slow moving, preposterous dud on his back from promising beginning to dismal end. The other characters in the movie are entirely too wooden to even mention.
As I have grown older, I have come to believe that the first impression of a movie is the only one that counts. For some reason, the movie impressed me when I was twenty. Then, perhaps, it really was original. I have seen it again after seeing much better creations in the same genre. Second impressions are badly colored.
After this disappointing viewing of "Stalking Moon", I have decided not to see another of my favorable lasting impressions of the era, "Vanishing Point" again. The same thing might happen.
The premise of the movie is outstanding. An unseen, deadly presence is out there and most definitely coming. It's only a matter of time before the showdown occurs. Armed with the likes of Gregory Peck, Eva Marie Saint, and Frank Silvera, the director had an A team assembled for what could have been a thriller with a ton of suspense. But Eva Marie Saint was relegated to the role of a mute statue, Frank Silvera was used almost grudgingly, and Gregory Peck was left to tote this slow moving, preposterous dud on his back from promising beginning to dismal end. The other characters in the movie are entirely too wooden to even mention.
As I have grown older, I have come to believe that the first impression of a movie is the only one that counts. For some reason, the movie impressed me when I was twenty. Then, perhaps, it really was original. I have seen it again after seeing much better creations in the same genre. Second impressions are badly colored.
After this disappointing viewing of "Stalking Moon", I have decided not to see another of my favorable lasting impressions of the era, "Vanishing Point" again. The same thing might happen.
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