Pros: Solid acting leads a great film, with a groundbreaking screenplay. Noah (Sidney Poitier) and Joker (Tony Curtis) are strapped together as they escape a work detail after a devastating car accident. They hate each other, don't understand each other but are forced to work together and rely on each other's strengths to survive, though thanks to the Hayes Code, it is all for naught. Still, the acting is great and the screenplay is solid enough to carry the film.
Cons: This film hasn't really aged well given the language used and the only female role in the film, the farmer's wife (Cara Williams) while well-acted, she's horny and falls in love with the first man she sees in months, Joker. She's cruel to Noah and only cares about escape, forgetting even about her own son. So her entire character is a giant problem.
Recommend: Yes
Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Both Curtis and Poitier were Oscar-nominated for this film and likely canceled each other out, failing to win.
-The little boy ends up shooting Joker, I suppose he gets away with it in the long run.
-Both men have their opportunity to escape, Joker in a car, Noah on a train, but they give up that up to stay with the other.
-I believe the film takes place in Kentucky where racism was still very much present.
-Despite all the rain and puddles the men jump into, somehow they still have dry, usable matches and cigarettes. I just don't understand.
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