1973 - CHARLEY VARRICK. a well made crime caper

Walter Matthau is Charley Varrick a crop duster in New Mexico who has taken up bank robbing when his business fails.  After robbing a bank in a small town.  Varrick realizes that the money from the robbery is being laundered by the Mafia. Now with the police after him he has to contend with a Mafia hitman also on his trail.

The film has an interesting cast.  Walter Matthau is generally remembered for playing comedy. Actually he was in a number of serious roles particularly at the beginning of his career.  Joe Don Baker is the "good old boy" hit man on his trail.  One time 20th Century Fox Studios starlet Sheree North is a forger who Varrick hires to create a new passport in order to get out of the country. Perennial bad guy John Vernon is a member of the Mafia.

 

The film was very well directed by Don Siegel.  Siegel was one of those Hollywood directors who essentially shot medium to low budget films and was elevated to auteur status over the years by the critics.  However  for every Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Dirty Harry and Riot in Cell Block 11 there was crap like Duel at Silver Creek and The Black Windmill.  Siegel also directed John Wayne's last film The Shootist and had to deal with a very cantankerous Duke Wayne throughout the filming.

 Charley Varrick was a story that played to Siegel's skills as a good director of action films.  This film zips along at a good pace without losing sight of the characters at the expense of the action aspects of the film something current filmmakers could learn.

As good a job as Siegel did as the director, this film is blessed with a very good script from Dean Reisner and Howard Rodman.  In fact a major asset to this film's success is their contribution.

The running time on this film is 111 minutes.