SUGARLAND EXPRESS, THE

(April 1974, U.S.)

I recently watched Steven Spielberg's most recent film READY PLAYER ONE and was grossly disappointed. It then occurred to me that I've been grossly disappointed with every Spielberg adventure film since his terrifying remake of WAR OF THE WORLDS in 2005. I have instead preferred his historical dramas, from MUNICH to THE POST. That in mind, it felt necessary, if not therapeutic to return to the beginning of Spielberg's theatrical career (after his 1971 TV movie debut, DUEL) with THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS; a crime film, a road film, and also based on a real incident that took place in Texas.

Had I not been part of the later generation who discovered Goldie Hawn in her films of the '80s and '90s (not to suggest that they were all so great, because they weren't), I would have likely been immediately turned off by her in this film because she is, let's face it, a nagging and whining bitch throughout just about the entire story (perhaps she was the precursor to the nagging and whining bitch that was Kate Capshaw in INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM). Perhaps this was the most effective way to identify the redneck, hillbilly-type of Texan woman back then...who knows. Whatever the reason for her character traits, one can best approach THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS as the first adventure film of Spielberg's screen career.

The year is 1969 and Lou Jean Poplin (Hawn) is visiting her incarcerated husband Clovis Poplin (played by William Atherton) to inform him that they're going to lose their baby boy forever because he's due to be placed in the permanent care of his foster parents. With only four months left of his sentence, his crazed wife convinces him to escape from prison with her help. Actually, escape is hardly the word I'd choose because it's a simple matter of him changing his clothes and walking right out with the other visitors, which should give you a good idea of just how bad the prison security is. Free and on the run, the Poplins are now on a desperate mission to retrieve their child. Hitching a ride with a clueless elderly couple, they're on the brink of getting away with their escape until an unexpected stop by patrolman Maxwell Slide (played by Michael Sacks) provokes them to take his police car and make a break for it. This moment is about as high speed as the chase gets because it's not long until they crash the car and kidnap Maxwell with his gun, Clovis claiming, "I never shot a man!" From this moment, as Lou Jean and Clovis are on the run from what looks like every lawman in Texas, including police captain Harlin Tanner (played by Ben Johnson in a sympathetic role that may remind you of Harvey Keitel seventeen years later in THELMA & LOUISE) the chase has reduced itself to a slow-moving caravan across the state. As the desperate mommy and daddy travel with their hostage through drive-through food stops, drive-in movies and even a trailer dealership, the three form an almost cliché bond of mutual respect for one another. As parents who are fighting for the right to keep their child, Lou Jean and Clovis have become state heroes, winning the admiration (and even assistance) of many of the local yokels of the towns they drive through. On the flipside, though, are the local Texas gun freaks who are looking for any excuse to take their shot at the Poplins and take them down.

As the caravan slowly draws to its final destination at the home of the foster parents, one can't help but feel the impending doom that looms over our two anti-heroes, who like Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, will meet a violent and bloody conclusion. Unlike that 1967 film, however, only Clovis is killed, leaving Lou Jean wounded and in total dismay and bewilderment of how it all ended for her. This is another moment when you can't help but feel something personally negative for Goldie Hawn because you can't believe just how stupid her character was this entire time, as if she really expected to succeed in getting her child back in this manner? Well, I guess the joke is ultimately on us because according the end credits, Lou Jean spends fifteen months of a five-year prison term in a women's correctional facility, and upon getting out, manages to obtain the legal right to live her life with her son. Go figure.

THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS is certainly not the highlight of Spielberg's great career, but it's a good reminder of where we all start out in our careers. As a debut theatrical feature, it continues the traditions of the road movie already popular of its era. For its time, there are many technical aspects of the chase that Spielberg concentrates on, be they car chases, explosions, whatever, and that's highly effective for a thriller as this. Unfortunately, it can deter itself from any potential character development we may want to experience from the Poplins and even their hostage. On the other hand, we're talking about blue collar characters without much sense or logic in their actions, so perhaps it's best not to expect too much from them. Perhaps we just sit back and appreciate THE SUGARLAND EXPRESS for what it really is; an entertaining theatrical debut from the man who would next take us into the water and remind us that "We Are Not Alone" through the remainder of the 1970s.

Favorite line or dialogue:

Maxwell Slide: "He took my gun, but he wasn't gonna use it!"