The Sugarland Express (1974)
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The Sugarland Express Movie Review
The Sugarland Express is a 1974 crime action film directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Goldie Hawn. It’s a surprisingly weak Spielberg feature.
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“Why don’t you sit on your fist
and lean back on your thumb“
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Married small-time crooks Lou-Jean and Clovis Poplin lose their baby to the state of Texas and resolve to do whatever it takes to get him back. Lou-Jean gets Clovis out of jail, and the two steal their son from his foster home, in addition to taking a highway patrolman hostage. As a massive dragnet starts to pursue them across Texas, the couple become unlikely folk heroes and even start to bond with the captive policeman.
This film is based on a real life story. However, that doesn’t make it any more interesting as a viewing experience. There are a couple of connections to be had here with two other movies. One is ‘Bonnie and Clyde’. Yes, this is obviously very similar to that movie in subject matter, but ultimately it felt as a pale copy of it without ever being as fun or as memorable.
The comparison can also be made to Spielberg’s very own ‘Duel’. That was his first movie, but it was a TV flick. This one is his first full theatrical picture, but it is so inferior to that first film as it lacks the sort of high-octane, hugely entertaining action that that flick clearly possessed. The action here is more overwhelming than anything else really.
The only good part of this entire project is clearly Goldie Hawn. She is fantastic here, very memorable and a lot of fun. Her acting is good, and the character is very interesting. She stole every scene she was in, and ever so easily as all of the other actors and characters are so forgettable.
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The Sugarland Express features overly abundant, but very boring action. The direction from Spielberg is also nothing to write home about. The pacing is overly hectic and thus the movie was very boring to me. The script is also very mediocre, and although some scenes are certainly quite strong, most are repetitive and dull.
The Sugarland Express is a surprisingly mediocre, early Spielberg outing. Yes, it has some interesting scenes and Goldie Hawn herself stole the show, playing quite a fun, memorable character, but others are forgettable, the action is overwhelming and the entire film has a weak script and an overly hectic pace. Thus, it was a very tedious viewing experience to me.
