Tag Archives: Maximilian Schell

1977 Films, Cathleen Nesbitt, Drama, Fred Zinnemann, Hal Holbrook, Jane Fonda, Jason Robards, Lambert Wilson, Maurice Denham, Maximilian Schell, Meryl Streep, Political Drama, Rosemary Murphy, Vanessa Redgrave

Julia-1977

Leave a comment

Julia-1977

Director Fred Zinnemann

Starring Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, Jason Robards

Scott’s Review #1,283

Reviewed July 31, 2022

Grade: A

Jane Fonda leads the charge in a powerful and gorgeously shot drama named Julia (1977), centering around pre-World War II and the impending Holocaust.

The drama is based on the playwriting of Lillian Hellman, a famous playwright, which depicts the relationship between two close friends and the unexpected consequences that arise when one desperately needs help from the other.

When Lillian (Fonda), a renowned playwright, reunites with her childhood friend Julia (Vanessa Redgrave) in Russia, the writer is asked to smuggle funds into Germany to aid the anti-Nazi movement.

In the mix is Lillian’s mentor, Dashiell Hammett (Jason Robards), who is unaware of her dangerous assignment.

I immediately relish the film mainly because the message is extremely female-empowering, and a dynamic friendship between two women is examined. This does not happen enough, successfully, in films even to this day.

Given the World War II theme, one would naturally assume the film would center around men, not women, and plenty of female spies and the like are featured.

Added to the mix is the astounding cinematography of Germany, Poland, and Russia. In truth, the film was shot in England and France for security and restrictive reasons, but it could have fooled me since the countries look authentic and believable.

Julie looks polished, and that’s hardly a gripe. The production design and costumes are perfectly shot and colored. It’s not a dowdy or drab film, and it depicts a little amount of violence or torture, choosing to focus on relationships and intrigue.

The suspenseful train sequence is brilliant in every way, sprinkling in Hitchcockian touches and enough nail-biting to make the long scene a key takeaway. Lillian must keep her intentions secret as she travels toward Russia, and each train scene, whether it’s the peril of being checked at the border or eating in the dining car, is captured perfectly.

A slight suspension of disbelief is the casting of the beautiful Fonda as the plain-looking playwright Lillian Hellman. In some scenes, she is made up to look haggard, tired, and homely, but the trick never works for a minute.

It’s even giggle-worthy, and it’s recommended to sit back and watch Fonda deliver a splendid performance, forgetting altogether that she is portraying the writer.

In other movies, it might have only been about Fonda from an acting perspective, but in Julia, the spoils go round and round. At the very least, Redgrave, Robards, and Maximilian Schell, who plays a pivotal character named Johann, must be mentioned. Each brings professionalism and believability to their characters.

But quieter parts by a woman passenger and a girl passenger are my favorites. They go from cheery to serious, speaking in a sort of code, not stating that they are helping Lillian, but obviously using facial expressions to reveal true alliances.

A delightful point to make is that Julia is Meryl Streep’s first film role, albeit in a tiny part.

Speaking of Redgrave, when she won the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award, she made an infamous speech that marked a great controversy.

In her acceptance speech, she thanked Hollywood for having “refused to be intimidated by the threats of a small bunch of Zionist hoodlums whose behavior is an insult to the stature of Jews all over the world and to their great and heroic record of struggle against fascism and oppression”.

This was preceded by members of the Jewish Defense League picketing the ceremony and followed by some boos and retorts to her comments.

But back to the film, Julia does not end in a happily-ever-after way. A major character is killed, and a baby is lost forever. But that’s part of the truth about creating a film that harkens back to a day when non-conformity led to death.

Julia (1977) is a vital film that still holds up tremendously well, and in a world still filled with chaos and oppression, it’s a powerful reminder of cinema’s power.

Oscar Nominations: 3 wins-Best Picture, Best Director-Fred Zinnemann, Best Actress-Jane Fonda, Best Supporting Actor-Jason Robards (won), Maximilian Schell, Best Supporting Actress-Vanessa Redgrave (won), Best Screenplay-Based on Material from Another Medium (won), Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score

1977 Films, Action, David Warner, James Coburn, James Mason, Maximilian Schell, Sam Peckinpah, Senta Berger, War

Cross of Iron-1977

Leave a comment

Cross of Iron-1977

Director Sam Peckinpah

Starring James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason

Scott’s Review #1,140

Reviewed May 8, 2021

Grade: B+

Cross of Iron (1977) is a film that sticks with you. I appreciate that it’s not a standard, cookie-cutter war film that too often graces the big screen decade after decade, featuring different wars but applying virtually the same message.

The tone is usually pro-United States, with little explanation or defense of the other guys.

This is not one of those films.

That said, I could have used a more straightforward approach because Cross of Iron is all over the place. It’s like a fragmented puzzle that doesn’t add up or come together, but the experience is something both mind-blowing and unforgettable.

Sometimes confusing and unpleasant, Sam Peckinpah directs it, so anyone familiar with some of his other works knows what the experience will be like.

His best films, Straw Dogs (1971) and The Getaway (1972), are famous for their lightning-fast editing sequences galore and sudden still frames. Violence and mistreatment of female characters are also Peckinpah staples, and Cross of Iron sure has those elements.

But it’s not on the level that Straw Dogs and The Getaway are, as far as a solid storyline. Not even close.

The synopsis goes something like this. The time is World War II, and Corporal Rolf Steiner (James Coburn) is a well-respected member of the German military and a recipient of the Iron Cross, Germany’s highest military honor. He leads a group of soldiers to battle somewhere in Russia, presumably.

Envious of Steiner’s Iron Cross award, Captain Hauptmann Stransky (Maximilian Schell), a Prussian officer, clashes with Steiner when he joins the unit near the Russian front.

Desperate to receive his own Iron Cross, Stransky takes the credit for a significant attack and sparks a heated rivalry with Steiner.

Mixed in with all this machismo drama between Stransky and Steiner are several brooding German soldiers, one French soldier, and a rescued Russian boy.

A homosexual relationship between the French soldier and another soldier is discovered by Stransky and used as blackmail, while Stransky himself may also be gay. Yet another soldier kisses a fellow soldier on the mouth.

Sadly, these story points go nowhere. And I didn’t care one iota about the Iron Cross.

To add to the confusion, a few of the German soldiers appear to be German while the others, especially Steiner, seem American. They frequently denounce Hitler, which makes the viewer wonder why they are fighting for him. Are they forced to? Were many German soldiers not pro-Hitler but had to fight to avoid execution?

Again, these points are not explained.

The film’s introduction features children singing German songs amidst real-life footage of Hitler and Nazis, and the conclusion also features children singing and still frames of children suffering during the war.

The sequences, while powerful, have nothing to do with the story since the story has nothing to do with children except the one lone Russian boy.

If you can get past the cloudy storylines, Cross of Iron has some delicious stuff to chew on. Besides the fantastic editing, the film features one of the most intense and interesting scenes I’ve witnessed in a long time.

When the soldiers stumble upon a group of female Russian detachments, things heat up.

A despised Nazi Party member takes one of the women into a barn and rapes her. She bites off his penis, and he kills her. Steiner allows the remaining women to exact revenge on the rapist, and they beat him to death.

A couple of things stand out in this scene. As much as Peckinpah usually reduces his female characters to victims, this scene has a strong feminist angle, which I love.

Were there Russian female soldiers in real life, including a high-ranking major? Steiner allowing the women to kill the Nazis would make his group anti-Nazi?

There is a lot to ponder throughout and after watching Cross of Iron (1977). I’m not sure if I’m a huge fan of the film or ever need to see it again, but maybe I should. So much goes on throughout the film that it either adds to or detracts from the experience, making it a perplexing watch.

I’d add much more to the relationships between the characters, especially the male-male sexual dynamic, to bring more substance.

The dynamic of Steiner taking the Russian boy under his wing had more to offer, and I’d also reduce the number of battle scenes seemingly thrown in every so often to prove or justify that Cross of Iron is a war film.