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The Getaway (1972 film)
Encyclopedia
The Getaway is a 1972 American action-crime film directed by Sam Peckinpah
and starring Steve McQueen
and Ali MacGraw
.
The film is based on a novel by Jim Thompson
, with the screenplay written by Walter Hill. A box office hit earning US$26 million at the theaters, the film was one of the most financially successful productions of Peckinpah's and McQueen's careers.
It was remade in 1994
starring Alec Baldwin
and Kim Basinger
.
prison where he loses a game of chess (hinting at a general tendency to make bad moves). On being denied parole
from a 10-year sentence, McCoy sends his wife Carol (MacGraw) to make a deal with Jack Benyon (Ben Johnson
), a corrupt businessman, telling her to agree to the terms whatever they may be. Benyon manages to get Doc paroled on the condition that he organizes the robbery of a bank with men Benyon personally selects: Rudy (Al Lettieri
) and Frank (Bo Hopkins
).
McCoy makes meticulous plans, but his preparations meet with disinterest from Frank and menacing derision from Rudy, including the suggestion of bulletproof vests. Doc distrusts all the participants and insists on a system of telephone calls to verify that Benyon's thugs are not at his ranch when the money is handed over. Benyon's brother (uncredited) readily agrees to the demand but his sinister acquiescence leaves Doc feeling even more uneasy.
A guard is killed in the robbery, after which Rudy kills Frank in a double-cross. Rudy also intends to ambush Doc, but is shot by him. However, the injuries are not serious because Rudy has worn the bulletproof vest
after all. Rudy forces a rural veterinarian
named Harold (Jack Dodson
) and his young wife Fran (Sally Struthers
) to treat his wounds, seduces the vet's wife, then takes them along as he sets out to pursue Doc and Carol.
McCoy and his wife deliver the money. Benyon taunts him about Carol, who quietly draws a gun behind Doc's back. Benyon seems to be counting on Carol to kill her husband, but she shoots Benyon instead. Doc angrily gathers up the money, aware now that Carol had a relationship and arrangement with Benyon. Doc strikes her, but Carol insists that she did it for him.
The couple flees for the arranged hideout at Laughlin's, an El Paso
hotel. McCoy reasons that Rudy (who knew of the hotel) might have been working by himself, but seems oblivious to the fact that the hotel is compromised anyway - Benyon's brother having being present when the hotel was discussed - and he is heading into a trap. Benyon's brother orders Cully (Roy Jenson
) to unceremoniously dump Jack's body and find out if McCoy is heading for Laughlin's.
At the train station Carol is left alone and decides to put the bag with the robbery cash in a locker but the seemingly gallant stranger who assists her is in fact a con man
who steals the bag. Doc follows the thief onto a train and forcefully takes it back. However, he fails to search the thief's pockets; money found on the injured con man is linked to the robbery and witnesses from the train identify Doc from mug shot
s, making him a wanted man for bank robbery and murder.
Carol tells Doc he will have to trust someone but he replies that he only believes in money. While in a store Doc sees his mugshot on a TV newsflash and realizes he has been recognized by the clerk. Instead of immediately leaving the small town he robs a gun-shop of a pump action shotgun and 00 buckshot ammunition which he uses to cow two policemen - the first to respond to the clerk's phone tip - and destroy their patrol-vehicle. Carol waits at the wheel of their car and is incredulous when Doc uses vital moments to reload and continue blasting the vehicle; he is seemingly unconcerned at delaying their getaway although police re-enforcements are rushing to the scene. Appalled by his reckless arrogance and grandstanding, she knocks Doc off his feet with the car before driving a chagrined McCoy away at high speed; he has them lose the pursuing police by doubling back through the town on a bus. The police pick up their trail and they eventually resort to hiding in a trash bin, only to end up dumped at the local landfill
. Filthy and frustrated, they debate whether to stay together or split up. They decide to see things through.
Rudy and the veterinarian's wife have a mutual sexual attraction which leads to the two having sex in front of her husband. Humiliated, the vet hangs himself in a motel bathroom. Rudy and Fran move on, barely acknowledging the suicide. They arrive first at an El Paso hotel
used by criminals as a safe house
, threatening the hotel's manager. Doc and Carol are given a room on the same floor and ask for food to be delivered, but the manager says he is working alone and can't leave the desk. Doc eventually realizes that the manager has sent away all of his family. He urges Carol to get dressed fast so they can get away. Fran and an armed Rudy come to their door. Doc, peering from another doorway, is surprised to see Rudy alive. Doc sneaks up from behind, and knocks Rudy out; intending to finish him off Doc levels a pistol at Rudy's head but can't bring himself to shoot and merely takes his gun. McCoy's assumption that Rudy does not have another gun proves to be false.
Benyon's brother and the thugs confront the McCoys as they are descending the stairs into the hotel lobby. Doc reacts first and opens fire. The McCoys then fight a running gun battle up the stairwell and back through the hotel with Doc's shotgun proving more than a match for the heavily armed toughs. Rudy recovers consciousness and follows Doc, who finally kills him. Exiting the hotel McCoy gets the drop on the last of Benyon's toughs but, seemingly sickened by killing, McCoy allows him to live.
With the police en route, the couple hijack a pickup truck
and force its likable cowboy driver (Slim Pickens
), to take them to Mexico
. After crossing the border, Doc and Carol pay the cowboy $30,000 for his truck and silence. Overjoyed, the cowboy walks back toward El Paso while the couple drives on into Mexico.
with McQueen starring alongside Paul Newman
but 20th Century Fox
did not want Foster as part of the deal. The project fell apart and while McQueen was making Le Mans
Foster acquired the rights to Jim Thompson's crime novel The Getaway. Foster sent McQueen a copy of the book and urged him to do it. The actor was looking for a good/bad guy role and saw these qualities in the novel's protagonist.
Foster began to look for a director and Peter Bogdanovich
was brought to his attention. He and McQueen screened Bogdanovich's soon-to-be released The Last Picture Show
and loved it. They met with the director and a deal was made. However, Warner Brothers approached Bogdanovich with an offer to direct What's Up, Doc?
starring Barbra Streisand
but with the stipulation that he would have to start right away. The director wanted to do both but the studio refused. When McQueen found out, he was very upset and told Bogdanovich that he was going to get someone else to direct The Getaway. McQueen had just worked with Peckinpah on Junior Bonner and enjoyed the experience. He recommended the director to Foster who then approached Peckinpah. Like McQueen, Peckinpah was in need of a box office hit and immediately accepted. The filmmaker had read the novel when it was originally published and had even talked to Thompson about making it into a film when he was starting out as a director. At the time, Peckinpah had also wanted to make Emperor of the North Pole
, a story set during the Depression about a brakeman obsessed with keeping hobos off his train. The film's producer made a deal with Paramount Pictures
' production chief Robert Evans
who allowed Peckinpah to do his personal project if he would first direct The Getaway. Soon after, the director was dismissed from Emperor and told that Paramount was not making The Getaway. A conflict arose between Paramount and the film's budget. Foster had 30 days to set up a deal with another studio or Paramount would own the rights. He was inundated with offers and went with First Artists Group because McQueen would receive no upfront salary, just 10% of the gross for the first dollar taken in on the film. This would be very profitable if the film was a box-office hit.
for four months and produced a treatment, with alternate scenes and episodes. Thompson's script included a borderline-surrealistic ending from his novel featuring the kingdom of El Rey
, a Mexican town filled with criminals. McQueen objected to the depressing ending and had Thompson replaced by screenwriter Walter Hill. Peckinpah read Hill's draft and the screenwriter remembered that he did not make many changes: "we made it nonperiod and we added a little more action".
was originally hired to direct, he cast Cybill Shepherd
, his girlfriend at the time, for the role of Carol. When Peckinpah was brought on to direct, he wanted to cast Stella Stevens
, whom he worked with on The Ballad of Cable Hogue
, with Angie Dickinson
or Dyan Cannon
as possible alternatives. Foster suggested Ali MacGraw
, a much in-demand actress after the commercial success of Love Story
. She was married to Robert Evans who wanted her to avoid being typecast in preppy roles and set up a meeting with her, Foster, McQueen, and Peckinpah about the film. According to Foster, she was scared of McQueen and Peckinpah because they had reputations for being "wild, two-fisted, beer guzzlers". When McQueen met MacGraw there was a very strong instant attraction. She was unsure about doing the project because of her attraction to him. She said, "he was recently separated and free, and I was scared of my overwhelming attraction to him".
Peckinpah originally wanted actor Jack Palance
to play the role of Rudy Butler but could not afford his salary. Impressed by his performance in Panic in Needle Park, Hill recommended Richard Bright
. Bright had worked with McQueen 14 years before but he did not have the threatening physique that McQueen pictured for Butler because they were the same height. Peckinpah got along famously with Bright and cast him as the train station con man instead. Al Lettieri
was brought to Peckinpah's attention by producer Albert Ruddy
who was working with the actor on The Godfather
. Like Peckinpah, Lettieri was a heavy drinker which caused problems during filming due to his unpredictable behavior.
, San Marcos
, San Antonio, Fabens and El Paso
. Peckinpah shot the opening prison scenes at the local penitentiary with McQueen surrounded by actual convicts.
McQueen and McGraw began an affair during the film's production. She would eventually leave her husband Robert Evans and become McQueen's second wife. Foster was worried that their relationship would have a negative impact on the production by causing a potential scandal with the media ruining the reputation of the film. MacGraw got her start as a model and her inexperience as an actress was evident on the set where she struggled with the role. According to Foster, Peckinpah and MacGraw got along well but she was not happy with her performance: "I looked at what I had done in it, I hated my own performance. I liked the picture, but I despised my own work".
Peckinpah's intake of alcohol increased dramatically while making The Getaway, and he became fond of saying, "I can't direct when I'm sober". He and McQueen got into the occasional heated arguments during filming. The director recalled one such incident: "Steve and I had been discussing some point on which we disagreed, so he picked up this bottle of champagne and threw it at me. I saw it coming and ducked. And Steve just laughed".
McQueen had a knack with props, especially the guns he used in the film. Hill remembered, "you can see Steve's military training in his films. He was so brisk and confident in the way he handled the guns". It was McQueen's idea to have his character shoot two squad cars in the scene where Doc holds two police officers at gunpoint.
Under his contract with First Artists, McQueen had final cut on The Getaway and when Peckinpah found out, he became very upset. Richard Bright said that McQueen chose takes that "made him look good" and Peckinpah felt that the actor played it safe: "he chose all these Playboy shots of himself. He's playing it safe with these pretty-boy shots".
was originally hired to do the musical score for The Getaway. He had previously worked with the director on Noon Wine
(1967), The Wild Bunch
(1969), Straw Dogs (1971) and Junior Bonner
(1972). After the film's second preview screening, McQueen was unhappy with the music and used his clout to hire Quincy Jones
to rescore the film. Jones' music had a jazzier edge and featured harmonica
solos by Toots Thielemans
, with Don Elliott
credited for "musical voices." Peckinpah was unhappy with the decision and took out a full-page ad in Daily Variety on November 17, 1972 including a letter he had written to Fielding thanking him for his work. Fielding would work with Peckinpah on two additional films, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
(1974) and The Killer Elite
(1975).
. The film was the second highest grossing film of the year, making $18 million domestically and $35 million worldwide.
Sam Peckinpah
David Samuel "Sam" Peckinpah was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who achieved prominence following the release of the Western epic The Wild Bunch...
and starring Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
and Ali MacGraw
Ali MacGraw
Elizabeth Alice "Ali" MacGraw is an American actress. She is known for her role in Love Story, for which she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination.-Early life:...
.
The film is based on a novel by Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson (writer)
James Myers Thompson was an American author and screenwriter, known for his pulp crime fiction....
, with the screenplay written by Walter Hill. A box office hit earning US$26 million at the theaters, the film was one of the most financially successful productions of Peckinpah's and McQueen's careers.
It was remade in 1994
The Getaway (1994 film)
The Getaway is a 1994 crime thriller and a remake of the 1972 film of the same name. The film stars Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, Michael Madsen, James Woods, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jennifer Tilly, and was directed by Roger Donaldson.-Plot:...
starring Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...
and Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...
.
Plot
The opening scenes show Carter "Doc" McCoy (McQueen) in a TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
prison where he loses a game of chess (hinting at a general tendency to make bad moves). On being denied parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
from a 10-year sentence, McCoy sends his wife Carol (MacGraw) to make a deal with Jack Benyon (Ben Johnson
Ben Johnson
Ben Johnson or Benjamin Johnson may refer to:* Ben Johnson , American actor* Ben Johnson , former American football offensive tackle of the National Football League...
), a corrupt businessman, telling her to agree to the terms whatever they may be. Benyon manages to get Doc paroled on the condition that he organizes the robbery of a bank with men Benyon personally selects: Rudy (Al Lettieri
Al Lettieri
Alfred Lettieri was an American actor, known for his portrayal of Virgil Sollozzo, in The Godfather....
) and Frank (Bo Hopkins
Bo Hopkins
Bo Hopkins is an American actor.-Career:Hopkins has appeared in more than one hundred film and television roles in a career of more than forty years, including The Bridge at Remagen, The Wild Bunch, The Getaway, American Graffiti, White Lightning, Radioland Murders, The Killer Elite, Midnight...
).
McCoy makes meticulous plans, but his preparations meet with disinterest from Frank and menacing derision from Rudy, including the suggestion of bulletproof vests. Doc distrusts all the participants and insists on a system of telephone calls to verify that Benyon's thugs are not at his ranch when the money is handed over. Benyon's brother (uncredited) readily agrees to the demand but his sinister acquiescence leaves Doc feeling even more uneasy.
A guard is killed in the robbery, after which Rudy kills Frank in a double-cross. Rudy also intends to ambush Doc, but is shot by him. However, the injuries are not serious because Rudy has worn the bulletproof vest
Bulletproof vest
A ballistic vest, bulletproof vest or bullet-resistant vest is an item of personal armor that helps absorb the impact from firearm-fired projectiles and shrapnel from explosions, and is worn on the torso...
after all. Rudy forces a rural veterinarian
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
named Harold (Jack Dodson
Jack Dodson
Jack Dodson Born John S. Dodson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was an American television actor best remembered for the milquetoast character Howard Sprague in The Andy Griffith Show and its spin-off Mayberry R.F.D. From 1959 until his death in 1994, Dodson was married to television art director...
) and his young wife Fran (Sally Struthers
Sally Struthers
Sally Ann Struthers is an American actress and spokeswoman, best-known for her roles as Gloria Stivic on All in the Family, for which she won two Emmy awards, and as Babette on Gilmore Girls.-Personal life:...
) to treat his wounds, seduces the vet's wife, then takes them along as he sets out to pursue Doc and Carol.
McCoy and his wife deliver the money. Benyon taunts him about Carol, who quietly draws a gun behind Doc's back. Benyon seems to be counting on Carol to kill her husband, but she shoots Benyon instead. Doc angrily gathers up the money, aware now that Carol had a relationship and arrangement with Benyon. Doc strikes her, but Carol insists that she did it for him.
The couple flees for the arranged hideout at Laughlin's, an El Paso
El Paso
El Paso, a city in the U.S. state of Texas, on the border with Mexico.El Paso may also refer to:-Geography:Colombia:* El Paso, CesarSpain:*El Paso, Santa Cruz de TenerifeUnited States:...
hotel. McCoy reasons that Rudy (who knew of the hotel) might have been working by himself, but seems oblivious to the fact that the hotel is compromised anyway - Benyon's brother having being present when the hotel was discussed - and he is heading into a trap. Benyon's brother orders Cully (Roy Jenson
Roy Jenson
Roy Jenson was a Canadian-born actor.Born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he moved to Los Angeles with his family as a child. He joined the U.S. Navy and then graduated from UCLA...
) to unceremoniously dump Jack's body and find out if McCoy is heading for Laughlin's.
At the train station Carol is left alone and decides to put the bag with the robbery cash in a locker but the seemingly gallant stranger who assists her is in fact a con man
Confidence trick
A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group by gaining their confidence. A confidence artist is an individual working alone or in concert with others who exploits characteristics of the human psyche such as dishonesty and honesty, vanity, compassion, credulity, irresponsibility,...
who steals the bag. Doc follows the thief onto a train and forcefully takes it back. However, he fails to search the thief's pockets; money found on the injured con man is linked to the robbery and witnesses from the train identify Doc from mug shot
Mug shot
A mug shot, mugshot or booking photograph, is a photographic portrait taken after one is arrested. The purpose of the mug shot is to allow law enforcement to have a photographic record of the arrested individual to allow for identification by victims and investigators. Most mug shots are two-part,...
s, making him a wanted man for bank robbery and murder.
Carol tells Doc he will have to trust someone but he replies that he only believes in money. While in a store Doc sees his mugshot on a TV newsflash and realizes he has been recognized by the clerk. Instead of immediately leaving the small town he robs a gun-shop of a pump action shotgun and 00 buckshot ammunition which he uses to cow two policemen - the first to respond to the clerk's phone tip - and destroy their patrol-vehicle. Carol waits at the wheel of their car and is incredulous when Doc uses vital moments to reload and continue blasting the vehicle; he is seemingly unconcerned at delaying their getaway although police re-enforcements are rushing to the scene. Appalled by his reckless arrogance and grandstanding, she knocks Doc off his feet with the car before driving a chagrined McCoy away at high speed; he has them lose the pursuing police by doubling back through the town on a bus. The police pick up their trail and they eventually resort to hiding in a trash bin, only to end up dumped at the local landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
. Filthy and frustrated, they debate whether to stay together or split up. They decide to see things through.
Rudy and the veterinarian's wife have a mutual sexual attraction which leads to the two having sex in front of her husband. Humiliated, the vet hangs himself in a motel bathroom. Rudy and Fran move on, barely acknowledging the suicide. They arrive first at an El Paso hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
used by criminals as a safe house
Safe house
In the jargon of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, a safe house is a secure location, suitable for hiding witnesses, agents or other persons perceived as being in danger...
, threatening the hotel's manager. Doc and Carol are given a room on the same floor and ask for food to be delivered, but the manager says he is working alone and can't leave the desk. Doc eventually realizes that the manager has sent away all of his family. He urges Carol to get dressed fast so they can get away. Fran and an armed Rudy come to their door. Doc, peering from another doorway, is surprised to see Rudy alive. Doc sneaks up from behind, and knocks Rudy out; intending to finish him off Doc levels a pistol at Rudy's head but can't bring himself to shoot and merely takes his gun. McCoy's assumption that Rudy does not have another gun proves to be false.
Benyon's brother and the thugs confront the McCoys as they are descending the stairs into the hotel lobby. Doc reacts first and opens fire. The McCoys then fight a running gun battle up the stairwell and back through the hotel with Doc's shotgun proving more than a match for the heavily armed toughs. Rudy recovers consciousness and follows Doc, who finally kills him. Exiting the hotel McCoy gets the drop on the last of Benyon's toughs but, seemingly sickened by killing, McCoy allows him to live.
With the police en route, the couple hijack a pickup truck
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
and force its likable cowboy driver (Slim Pickens
Slim Pickens
Louis Burton Lindley, Jr. , better known by the stage name Slim Pickens, was an American rodeo performer and film and television actor who epitomized the profane, tough, sardonic cowboy, but who is best remembered for his comic roles, notably in Dr...
), to take them to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. After crossing the border, Doc and Carol pay the cowboy $30,000 for his truck and silence. Overjoyed, the cowboy walks back toward El Paso while the couple drives on into Mexico.
Cast
- Steve McQueenSteve McQueenTerrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
as Carter 'Doc' McCoy, an armed robber. - Ali MacGrawAli MacGrawElizabeth Alice "Ali" MacGraw is an American actress. She is known for her role in Love Story, for which she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination.-Early life:...
as Carol Ainsley McCoy, his wife and partner. - Ben JohnsonBen Johnson (actor)Ben "Son" Johnson, Jr. was an American motion picture actor who was mainly cast in Westerns. He was also a rodeo cowboy, stuntman, and rancher.-Personal life:...
as Jack Benyon, a powerful and corrupt businessman. - Sally StruthersSally StruthersSally Ann Struthers is an American actress and spokeswoman, best-known for her roles as Gloria Stivic on All in the Family, for which she won two Emmy awards, and as Babette on Gilmore Girls.-Personal life:...
as Fran Clinton, wife of Harold. - Al LettieriAl LettieriAlfred Lettieri was an American actor, known for his portrayal of Virgil Sollozzo, in The Godfather....
as Rudy Butler, a bank robber. - Roy JensonRoy JensonRoy Jenson was a Canadian-born actor.Born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he moved to Los Angeles with his family as a child. He joined the U.S. Navy and then graduated from UCLA...
as Cully, a henchman of Jack Benyon. - Richard BrightRichard BrightRichard Bright may refer to:*Richard Bright , English physician and early pioneer in the research of kidney disease*Richard Bright , English Member of Parliament, 1868–1878...
as a con man who deceives Carol McCoy. - Jack DodsonJack DodsonJack Dodson Born John S. Dodson in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was an American television actor best remembered for the milquetoast character Howard Sprague in The Andy Griffith Show and its spin-off Mayberry R.F.D. From 1959 until his death in 1994, Dodson was married to television art director...
as Harold Clinton, a veterinarian. - Slim PickensSlim PickensLouis Burton Lindley, Jr. , better known by the stage name Slim Pickens, was an American rodeo performer and film and television actor who epitomized the profane, tough, sardonic cowboy, but who is best remembered for his comic roles, notably in Dr...
as the cowboy who helps the McCoys. - Bo HopkinsBo HopkinsBo Hopkins is an American actor.-Career:Hopkins has appeared in more than one hundred film and television roles in a career of more than forty years, including The Bridge at Remagen, The Wild Bunch, The Getaway, American Graffiti, White Lightning, Radioland Murders, The Killer Elite, Midnight...
as Frank Jackson, an accomplice in the robbery. - Dub TaylorDub TaylorWalter Clarence Taylor, Jr. , better known as Dub Taylor, was an American actor who worked extensively in Westerns, but also in comedy from the 1940s into the 1990s.-Early life:...
as Laughlin, manager of El Paso hotel.
Production
Steve McQueen had been encouraging his publicist David Foster to become a film producer. His first attempt was Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 American Western film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman...
with McQueen starring alongside Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
but 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
did not want Foster as part of the deal. The project fell apart and while McQueen was making Le Mans
Le Mans (film)
Le Mans is a 1971 action film directed by Lee H. Katzin. Starring Steve McQueen, it features footage from the actual 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans auto race....
Foster acquired the rights to Jim Thompson's crime novel The Getaway. Foster sent McQueen a copy of the book and urged him to do it. The actor was looking for a good/bad guy role and saw these qualities in the novel's protagonist.
Foster began to look for a director and Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor, producer, and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors, which included William Friedkin, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola...
was brought to his attention. He and McQueen screened Bogdanovich's soon-to-be released The Last Picture Show
The Last Picture Show
The Last Picture Show is a 1971 American drama film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, adapted from a semi-autobiographical 1966 novel of the same name by Larry McMurtry....
and loved it. They met with the director and a deal was made. However, Warner Brothers approached Bogdanovich with an offer to direct What's Up, Doc?
What's Up, Doc? (1972 film)
What's Up, Doc? is a 1972 screwball comedy film released by Warner Bros., directed by Peter Bogdanovich and starring Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, and Madeline Kahn...
starring Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
but with the stipulation that he would have to start right away. The director wanted to do both but the studio refused. When McQueen found out, he was very upset and told Bogdanovich that he was going to get someone else to direct The Getaway. McQueen had just worked with Peckinpah on Junior Bonner and enjoyed the experience. He recommended the director to Foster who then approached Peckinpah. Like McQueen, Peckinpah was in need of a box office hit and immediately accepted. The filmmaker had read the novel when it was originally published and had even talked to Thompson about making it into a film when he was starting out as a director. At the time, Peckinpah had also wanted to make Emperor of the North Pole
Emperor of the North Pole
Emperor of the North Pole is a 1973 American film starring Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, and Keith Carradine. It was re-released under the shorter title Emperor of the North, and is better known under the latter name....
, a story set during the Depression about a brakeman obsessed with keeping hobos off his train. The film's producer made a deal with Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
' production chief Robert Evans
Robert Evans (film producer)
Robert Evans is an American film producer, best known for his work on Rosemary's Baby, Love Story, The Godfather, and Chinatown.-Early life and acting career:...
who allowed Peckinpah to do his personal project if he would first direct The Getaway. Soon after, the director was dismissed from Emperor and told that Paramount was not making The Getaway. A conflict arose between Paramount and the film's budget. Foster had 30 days to set up a deal with another studio or Paramount would own the rights. He was inundated with offers and went with First Artists Group because McQueen would receive no upfront salary, just 10% of the gross for the first dollar taken in on the film. This would be very profitable if the film was a box-office hit.
Screenplay
Jim Thompson was originally hired by Foster and McQueen to adapt his novel for the film. Thompson worked on the screenplayScreenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
for four months and produced a treatment, with alternate scenes and episodes. Thompson's script included a borderline-surrealistic ending from his novel featuring the kingdom of El Rey
El Rey
-People:*Juan Carlos I of Spain , current King of Spain*Don Omar, Puerto Rican reggaeton singer nicknamed El Rey-Locations:*El Ray, a legendary city in Mexico, a safe haven for criminals from the US*El Rey National Park in Argentina...
, a Mexican town filled with criminals. McQueen objected to the depressing ending and had Thompson replaced by screenwriter Walter Hill. Peckinpah read Hill's draft and the screenwriter remembered that he did not make many changes: "we made it nonperiod and we added a little more action".
Casting
When Peter BogdanovichPeter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor, producer, and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors, which included William Friedkin, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola...
was originally hired to direct, he cast Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Lynne Shepherd is an American actress, singer and former model. Her best known roles include starring as Jacy in The Last Picture Show, as Betsy in Taxi Driver, as Madeleine Spencer in Psych, as Maddie Hayes on Moonlighting, as Cybill Sheridan on Cybill, and as Phyllis Kroll on The L...
, his girlfriend at the time, for the role of Carol. When Peckinpah was brought on to direct, he wanted to cast Stella Stevens
Stella Stevens
Stella Stevens Stella Stevens Stella Stevens (born October 1, 1938 is an American film, television and stage actress, who began her acting career in 1959 and starred in such popular films as The Nutty Professor, The Courtship of Eddie's Father, The Silencers, The Ballad of Cable Hogue and The...
, whom he worked with on The Ballad of Cable Hogue
The Ballad of Cable Hogue
The Ballad of Cable Hogue is a 1970 Western film directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Jason Robards, Stella Stevens and David Warner.Set in the desert of Arizona during the transitional period when the frontier was closing, the movie follows three years in the life of Cable Hogue, a failed...
, with Angie Dickinson
Angie Dickinson
Angie Dickinson is an American actress. She has appeared in more than fifty films, including Rio Bravo, Ocean's Eleven, Dressed to Kill and Pay It Forward, and starred on television as Sergeant Suzanne "Pepper" Anderson on the 1970s crime series Police Woman.-Early life:Dickinson, the second of...
or Dyan Cannon
Dyan Cannon
Dyan Cannon is an American film and television actress, director, screenwriter, editor, and producer.-Early life:...
as possible alternatives. Foster suggested Ali MacGraw
Ali MacGraw
Elizabeth Alice "Ali" MacGraw is an American actress. She is known for her role in Love Story, for which she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination.-Early life:...
, a much in-demand actress after the commercial success of Love Story
Love Story (1970 film)
Love Story is a 1970 romantic drama film written by Erich Segal and based on his novel Love Story. It was directed by Arthur Hiller. The film, well known as a tragedy, is considered one of the most romantic of all time by the American Film Institute , and was followed by a sequel, Oliver's Story...
. She was married to Robert Evans who wanted her to avoid being typecast in preppy roles and set up a meeting with her, Foster, McQueen, and Peckinpah about the film. According to Foster, she was scared of McQueen and Peckinpah because they had reputations for being "wild, two-fisted, beer guzzlers". When McQueen met MacGraw there was a very strong instant attraction. She was unsure about doing the project because of her attraction to him. She said, "he was recently separated and free, and I was scared of my overwhelming attraction to him".
Peckinpah originally wanted actor Jack Palance
Jack Palance
Jack Palance , was an American actor. During half a century of film and television appearances, Palance was nominated for three Academy Awards, all as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, winning in 1991 for his role in City Slickers.-Early life:Palance, one of five children, was born Volodymyr...
to play the role of Rudy Butler but could not afford his salary. Impressed by his performance in Panic in Needle Park, Hill recommended Richard Bright
Richard Bright (actor)
Richard James Bright was an American actor best known for his role as Al Neri in the The Godfather films.-Early life & work:...
. Bright had worked with McQueen 14 years before but he did not have the threatening physique that McQueen pictured for Butler because they were the same height. Peckinpah got along famously with Bright and cast him as the train station con man instead. Al Lettieri
Al Lettieri
Alfred Lettieri was an American actor, known for his portrayal of Virgil Sollozzo, in The Godfather....
was brought to Peckinpah's attention by producer Albert Ruddy
Albert Ruddy
Albert S. Ruddy is a Canadian-born producer. Ruddy was born March 28, 1930 in Montreal and raised in New York City with his mother. Ruddy attended Brooklyn Technical High School before earning a scholarship to allow him to study chemical engineering at City College of New York...
who was working with the actor on The Godfather
The Godfather
The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
. Like Peckinpah, Lettieri was a heavy drinker which caused problems during filming due to his unpredictable behavior.
Principal photography
They began work on February 7, 1972, filming on location in multiple Texas towns including HuntsvilleHuntsville, Texas
Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas, United States. The population was 35,508 at the 2010 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area....
, San Marcos
San Marcos, Texas
San Marcos is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is the seat of Hays County. Located within the metropolitan area, the city is located on the Interstate 35 corridor—between Austin and San Antonio....
, San Antonio, Fabens and El Paso
El Paso
El Paso, a city in the U.S. state of Texas, on the border with Mexico.El Paso may also refer to:-Geography:Colombia:* El Paso, CesarSpain:*El Paso, Santa Cruz de TenerifeUnited States:...
. Peckinpah shot the opening prison scenes at the local penitentiary with McQueen surrounded by actual convicts.
McQueen and McGraw began an affair during the film's production. She would eventually leave her husband Robert Evans and become McQueen's second wife. Foster was worried that their relationship would have a negative impact on the production by causing a potential scandal with the media ruining the reputation of the film. MacGraw got her start as a model and her inexperience as an actress was evident on the set where she struggled with the role. According to Foster, Peckinpah and MacGraw got along well but she was not happy with her performance: "I looked at what I had done in it, I hated my own performance. I liked the picture, but I despised my own work".
Peckinpah's intake of alcohol increased dramatically while making The Getaway, and he became fond of saying, "I can't direct when I'm sober". He and McQueen got into the occasional heated arguments during filming. The director recalled one such incident: "Steve and I had been discussing some point on which we disagreed, so he picked up this bottle of champagne and threw it at me. I saw it coming and ducked. And Steve just laughed".
McQueen had a knack with props, especially the guns he used in the film. Hill remembered, "you can see Steve's military training in his films. He was so brisk and confident in the way he handled the guns". It was McQueen's idea to have his character shoot two squad cars in the scene where Doc holds two police officers at gunpoint.
Under his contract with First Artists, McQueen had final cut on The Getaway and when Peckinpah found out, he became very upset. Richard Bright said that McQueen chose takes that "made him look good" and Peckinpah felt that the actor played it safe: "he chose all these Playboy shots of himself. He's playing it safe with these pretty-boy shots".
Soundtrack
Peckinpah's long-time composer and collaborator Jerry FieldingJerry Fielding
Jerry Fielding was an American radio, record, film and television composer, conductor, and musical director.-Childhood and education:...
was originally hired to do the musical score for The Getaway. He had previously worked with the director on Noon Wine
Noon Wine
Noon Wine is a 1937 short novel written by American author Katherine Anne Porter. It was published in 1939 as part of Pale Horse, Pale Rider , a collection of three short novels by the author, including the title story and "Old Mortality." A dark tragedy about a farmer's futile act of homicide that...
(1967), The Wild Bunch
The Wild Bunch
The Wild Bunch is a 1969 American Western film directed by Sam Peckinpah about an aging outlaw gang on the Texas-Mexico border, trying to exist in the changing "modern" world of 1913...
(1969), Straw Dogs (1971) and Junior Bonner
Junior Bonner
Junior Bonner is a film released in 1972 directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Steve McQueen, Joe Don Baker, Robert Preston and Ida Lupino. The film focuses on a veteran rodeo rider as he returns to his hometown of Prescott, Arizona to participate in an annual rodeo competition and reunite with...
(1972). After the film's second preview screening, McQueen was unhappy with the music and used his clout to hire Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
to rescore the film. Jones' music had a jazzier edge and featured harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
solos by Toots Thielemans
Toots Thielemans
Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans , known as Toots Thielemans, is a Belgian jazz musician well known for his guitar and harmonica playing as well as his whistling. Thielemans is credited as one of the greatest harmonica players of the 20th century...
, with Don Elliott
Don Elliott
Don Elliott was an American jazz trumpeter, vibraphonist, vocalist, and mellophone player. His album Calypso Jazz is considered by some jazz enthusiasts to be one of the definitive calypso jazz albums. Elliott recorded over 60 albums and 5,000 advertising jingles throughout his career...
credited for "musical voices." Peckinpah was unhappy with the decision and took out a full-page ad in Daily Variety on November 17, 1972 including a letter he had written to Fielding thanking him for his work. Fielding would work with Peckinpah on two additional films, Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia is a 1974 American action film directed by Sam Peckinpah and featuring Warren Oates....
(1974) and The Killer Elite
The Killer Elite
The Killer Elite is a 1975 American action thriller film starring James Caan and Robert Duvall and directed by Sam Peckinpah.The screenplay was written by Marc Norman and Stirling Silliphant adapted from the Robert Syd Hopkins novel, Monkey in the Middle. The novel was written under Hopkins'...
(1975).
Release
There were two preview screenings for The Getaway, a lackluster one in San Francisco and a more enthusiastic one held in San Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
. The film was the second highest grossing film of the year, making $18 million domestically and $35 million worldwide.