Electra Glide in Blue
| Electra Glide in Blue | |
|---|---|
 Original 1973 movie poster |
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| Directed by | James William Guercio |
| Produced by | James William Guercio Rupert Hitzig |
| Screenplay by | Robert Boris |
| Story by | Robert Boris Rupert Hitzig |
| Starring | Robert Blake Billy (Green) Bush Mitchell Ryan Jeannine Riley Elisha Cook |
| Music by | James William Guercio |
| Cinematography | Conrad Hall |
| Editing by | Jim Benson Gerald R. Greenberg John F. Link |
| Studio | Guercio-Hitzig |
| Distributed by | United Artists (1973, original) MGM (2005, DVD) |
| Release date(s) | August 19, 1973 |
| Running time | 114 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Electra Glide in Blue is a 1973 film starring Robert Blake as a motorcycle cop in Arizona and Billy Green Bush as his partner. The name stems from the Harley-Davidson Electra Glide motorcycle issued to traffic cops.
The movie was filmed in Monument Valley and Fountain Hills, Arizona, in the area around Shea Boulevard and the Beeline Highway (SR 87), which at the time, was undeveloped desert. It was produced and directed by James William Guercio (who is best known as the producer of rock band Chicago's first eleven albums). The film was entered into the 1973 Cannes Film Festival,[1] but was loathed by critics. However, Robert Blake was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance and it garnered a great deal of critical acclaim upon its nationwide release. Whilst it saw only limited commercial success, it was given cult status for many years.
Several members of the band Chicago appear in minor roles, including Peter Cetera, Terry Kath, Lee Loughnane and Walter Parazaider, as well as David "Hawk" Wolinski from the Guercio-produced band Madura. Chicago also appears on the movie soundtrack.
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[edit] Plot
John Wintergreen (played by Blake) is a motorcycle cop who patrols the rural Arizona highways with his partner "Zipper" (Billy (Green) Bush). Wintergreen is a rookie looking to be transferred to homicide. When he is informed by Crazy Willie (Elisha Cook) of an apparent suicide, Wintergreen believes the case is actually a murder. Detective Harve Poole (Mitchell Ryan) agrees, and arranges for Wintergreen to be transferred to homicide to help with the case.
Wintergreen has gotten his wish, but his joy is short-lived. He begins increasingly to identify with the hippies whom the other officers, including Detective Poole, are endlessly harassing. Workplace politics cause him to be quickly demoted back to Traffic Enforcement. The final straw comes when Poole discovers that Wintergreen has been sleeping with his girlfriend Jolene (Jeannine Riley).
Despite being demoted, Wintergreen is able to solve the murder.[citation needed] Nonetheless, a second tragedy strikes when Wintergreen is forced to shoot Zipper in self-defense. As the film ends, Wintergreen is alone and back on his old beat, when he runs into a hippie that Zipper was needlessly harassing near the beginning of the film. A misunderstanding over a forgotten driver’s license sets up the film’s tragic conclusion.
[edit] Cast
- Robert Blake as John Wintergreen
- Billy (Green) Bush as Zipper
- Mitchell Ryan as Harve Poole
- Jeannine Riley as Jolene
- Elisha Cook as Willie
- Royal Dano as Coroner
- David J. Wolinski as VW Bus Driver
- Peter Cetera as Bob Zemko
- Terry Kath as Killer
- Lee Loughnane as Pig Man
- Walter Parazaider as Loose Lips
- Joe Samsil as Sgt. Ryker
- Jason Clark as L.A. Detective
- Michael Butler as Truck Driver
- Susan Forristal as Ice Cream Girl
[edit] Reception
The film got a negative review in The New York Times, which described the film as 'portentous' but portraying "very ordinary or very embarrassing things: a crudely staged bike chase, or the confessions of a demoralized bar girl in what looks and sounds like a second-year acting exercise in drama school."[2]
[edit] Production
First-time director Guercio took a salary of one dollar in order to have budget available to hire Conrad Hall as the cinematographer. During their discussions, it transpired that Guercio and Hall disagreed on how the film should look; a compromise was reached where Guercio would shoot the exterior scenes in a manner reminiscent of John Ford's films (which was the look Guercio wanted to achieve), while Hall could set up and shoot all the film's interior scenes any way he saw fit. According to the DVD commentary, Guercio claims that a majority of the film was shot without permits, because the Arizona State Police would not cooperate with production.
[edit] DVD
Electra Glide in Blue was released on DVD by MGM on March 22, 2005.
[edit] References
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Electra Glide in Blue". festival-cannes.com. http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/2281/year/1973.html. Retrieved 2009-04-18.
- ^ "Guercio's 'Electra Glide in Blue' Arrives:Director Makes Debut With a Mystery The Cast Police Officer Tracks Recluse's Killer, Roger Greenspun, The New York Times, 20 August 1973
