The Florida Corruption

Mar 27, 2019 16:57

Today's review: Cool Hand Luke

I’d heard about Cool Hand Luke before, but didn’t actually know that much about it except for the semi-famous line “What we have here is a failure to communicate”. Still, it appears to be a generally well regarded movie, so I was more than willing to check it out. After watching it, I can at least kind of see why people like it, though there are elements that don’t fully make sense to me.


As our story begins, a man named Luke (Paul Newman) is caught drunkenly taking apart parking meters (though not trying to rob the change out of them, which seems odd; that would be my only motivation for doing so) and sentenced to two years on a chain gang. He and the other new arrivals are briefed on the rules, in particular the one that says that any infraction will get them sent to “The Box”, a small shed with some pots to do your business, for a day or so. Luke adjusts relatively quickly, developing a rivalry and then a friendship with one of the other prisoners, Dragline (George Kennedy). But then word comes that Luke’s mother (briefly seen and played by Jo Van Fleet) has died, and that spurs Luke to attempt to escape. From there, it becomes a test of will and determination between Luke and the guards, and while the guards have the resources to win the battles, Luke has the spirit to win the war.

While I do mostly like the movie, there are aspects that left me scratching my head. One, Luke’s decision to escape is simultaneously understandable and inexplicable. Up until his mother’s death, he’s actually doing pretty well. The guards aren’t sadistic, the inmates are allowed to keep some personal items (Luke pretty much gets to keep a bottle opener around his neck from day one), and once he and Dragline fight it out, he doesn’t have any enemies among the inmates. It’s honestly probably one of the nicer prisons I’ve seen in movies. Then his mother dies, and the guards make the reasonable if misguided decision that he needs to stay in The Box during the day to keep him from trying to escape and attend the funeral. And from that point on, Luke’s sole reason for living appears to be to escape, or at least to thumb his nose at the guards. It’s obvious that his mother’s death is responsible for the flipping of the switch, but I don’t fully understand why. Is it because he doesn’t appreciate being locked up when he’s grieving and didn’t do anything wrong? I don’t know, and it doesn’t help that we don’t get much of a sense of what Luke was like in normal life, except that he was a bit of a layabout for unexplained reasons. I get the impression from both the movie poster and a montage at the end of the movie that we’re supposed to have seen Luke as rebelling against the system from the beginning, but I didn’t get that impression, and thus the movie feels like two different plots smashed into one. They have aspects in common, but they don’t quite cohere.

Second, there’s some obvious symbolism and/or themes in this movie, but I don’t fully get what’s trying to be said. God and religion comes up a fair few times, most notably at the end of the movie and a scene where Luke is stretched out in a pose that’s very reminiscent of the crucifixion. Clearly, a message is trying to be sent, but I’m at a loss as to what it could be. Similarly, we’re repeatedly shown an image of one of the guards wearing sunglasses that reflect what’s in front of him. It’s a very striking image, and it’s shown often enough that I’m guessing he’s supposed to be a symbol of “The Man”, even though he actually never does anything that terrible or oppressive. It’s possible that I might appreciate the movie more if I could decode these elements, instead of being confused yet entertained by it.

Up until the escape attempts begin, this is a pretty enjoyable movie. There’s a laid-back vibe to the movie-probably due to a combination of the slower pace, music, and Newman’s performance-that makes it pleasant to watch despite the fact that it’s a prison movie. George Kennedy also is fun to watch, though I can’t help but wonder if some of my goodwill towards him is due to him being one of the best parts of the Airport movies. Once the escapes start, the movie still has its moments, but it loses some of the charm that made it engaging in the first place. Again, I feel like there’s some aspect to this movie that I’m missing that might make it all cohere if I could figure it out. As it is, I feel like I’m in the awkward position where I almost get the hype, but just obtuse enough that I’m likely to be called an idiot instead.

Even with my confusion, I would recommend this movie. The first half is worth seeing, as are the performances. As for the second half, well, maybe you’ll have better luck with it than I did. And if you do, please come back and explain it to me.

Note: The line “What we have here is a failure to communicate” is actually said twice, but neither one made much of an impact on me. It’s a good line, but I don’t quite see how it managed to kind of become part of pop culture.

what just happened?, adjust your expectations

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