SEVEN DAYS IN MAY (1964, John Frankenheimer) Enjoy paranoid political thrillers? This is a defi

SEVEN DAYS IN MAY (1964, John Frankenheimer) Enjoy paranoid political thrillers? This is a definitive classic.Weird stuff going on with the boys over at the Pentagon. Something to do with a huge-scale, joint armed forces exercise that will take place next weekend when the POTUS is isolated at his lake house. Probably not a big deal, but it is odd how the executive branch was left out the loop, wouldn’t you say, Mr. President?John Frankenheimer directs Rod Serling’s tight-as-a-drum screenplay about what happens when the institution that ostensibly protects you chooses to protect you from yourself. If you get ten minutes in to this story, you won’t leave till it’s over.Burt Lancaster—as agile, grim, and intimidating as he was in Sweet Smell of Success—brings an eerie mix of icy arrogance and over-heated zeal to his role as head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He seems at home in the gleaming, sterile corridors of the Pentagon, apparently leading the top military brass—and a few senators— down a primrose path straight into the heart of the Deep State.But this is Kirk Douglas’ picture, largely speaking. As an Army subordinate to Lancaster, he’s wondering why a U.S. Army division that is not even supposed to exist is doing exercises in an area no one has ever heard of. Or so it would appear.To the tense, martial roll of Jerry Goldsmith’s score, Douglas quietly but crisply gathers clues before alerting the White House. It all looks amazing too, thanks to depth-of-focus lensing and varied location shooting. The warm interiors of the White House rest in stark contrast to the Pentagon. Frederic March (offering a convincing presidential hybrid of Eisenhower and Johnson), is the relaxed, moderate foil to the zealous Right Wing as he lounges in a cardigan and shares Scotch on the rocks with his earnest staff of Washington pros. There’s a wee bit more lounging than seems appropriate at first, but when his old-boy network ditches the dignified, calm demeanor and begins investigating a possible coup, clear the decks for man-sized action.Well, sort of. Their “proper channels” approach is downright alarming, considering the stakes. Can make you crazy.You’ll get over it. Because Serling wrote this script, and Frankenheimer has at his disposal the most able group of serious-business players you will find in 1964. Martin Balsam, Charles McCready, Edmond O’Brien, Frederic March, Lancaster, and Douglas all look each other straight in the eye and say the things that need to be said. You may believe a lot of it. -- source link
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