Worth Reviving – “The Great Race”
Review by Ray Schillaci
Here I am again touting the forgotten films that perhaps have been skipped by nearly three generations. I do this not only for your entertainment, but to also introduce a time when film really meant something to the artist that battled for his vision and was able to hurdle over obstacles provided by studio interference. These films once had a very dedicated audience, but somehow have been overlooked through the years of rental outlets and streaming. Now may I present a film near and dear to my childhood heart that still holds up…
For over 35 years, writer/director Blake Edwards had a helluva run as a man who delivered funny as well as very touching and intimate stories to film. Some of the more illustrious being “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, “Days of Wine and Roses” and “Wild Rovers”. And, if you have not seen any of these, I highly recommend you check them out. At some point in the early ’60s, Edwards found an incredible niche in comedy and went on to deliver some hysterical classics: the “Pink Panther” series starring Peter Sellers, “The Party”, “10”, “S.O.B.” and “Victor, Victoria”. But none mentioned could hold a candle to his most ambitious epic comedy dedicated to “Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy”, “The Great Race”.
Edwards picked the best of the best for his entire production. It was clearly a labor of love, perhaps even an obsession. And when that clicks for a director, we are fortunate enough to witness genius at work as with Coppola and “The Godfather” and Orson Welles with “Citizen Kane”. Whatever extravagances afforded making the film are all worth it in the end. I’m not comparing those films to Edwards’ deliriously enjoyable movie, but one can obviously see the love and care that went into all those movies as well as “The Great Race”.
It also helps that a pitch-perfect cast was picked to play wonderful characters that were all in on the tongue-and-cheek of it all. Tony Curtis (“Some Like it Hot”, “Sweet Smell of Success”) as “The Great Leslie” is our perfect hero of the early 1900s who dares the most daring feats. Decked out all in white and never a hair out of place, his perfection only accentuated by the exaggerated glimmer from his eyes and teeth. Then there is his counter-part garbed in black, “Professor Fate” played to hilarity by Jack Lemmon (“The Odd Couple”, “Some like it Hot”). He almost comes across like a live-action version of the cartoon dastardly villains of yore. He is on a constant one-upmanship with Leslie and the contests prove inventive with big laughs.
Then there is the supporting cast that only adds to all the fun and adventure. Natalie Wood (“Gypsy”, “West Side Story”) as Maggie Dubois, an absolutely adorable suffragette determined to be the first woman reporter and willing to go to any length for her cause. The wonderful character actor Keenan Wynn (“Dr. Strangelove”, “Once Upon a Time in the West”) plays Hezekiah Sturdy, a curmudgeon of a sidekick to The Great Leslie. And, Peter Falk (of TV’s “Columbo” fame) delivers a dimwitted assistant to Professor Fate that gives us a comedy team worthy of the beloved Laurel & Hardy or Abbott and Costello.
Edwards centers his story around the two men and their sidekicks in 1908 and their daunting exhibitions of stunts for public recognition. A race is suggested by automobile, but not any ordinary race, a “great race” from New York to Paris. That alone sounds ridiculous, but Edwards with all his inventiveness makes it work and our characters begin globetrotting with high adventurous/comedic results. Edwards is able to make old sight gags fresh and fun from a massive brawl in a western saloon to a delirious pie fight in a royal bakery.
Subplots are a-plenty, from the battle of the sexes between Curtis and Wood, a conspiracy in a small European kingdom, the fight for women’s rights at a belabored big city newspaper, and much, much more. One would think that the film would be too cluttered with it all, but Edwards makes everything work and he keeps us laughing nearly the whole two hours plus.
“The Great Race” looks stunning on Blu-ray. The Technicolor pops out and the sound roars with excitement along with the rousing score provided by the great Henry Mancini. I recommend seeing this only on Blu, and with the uninitiated. Family and friends will find it a wonderful treat to enjoy for years to come.
Directed by: Blake Edwards
Release Date: July 1, 1965
Run Time: 160 Minutes
Rated: NR
Country: USA
Distributor: Warner Brothers
