Macon County Line

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It shouldn't have happened.
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She's bleedin' like crazy...
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It couldn't have happened.
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What are you trying to kill us for?
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But it did.
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It happened on the Macon County Line.
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Macon County Line.
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A true story.
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You won't be able to forget.
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We're not talking about actors.
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We mean a real monster.
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I brought her back.
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She'll live and I'll get her another body.
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I know they're gonna catch me,
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but don't let anyone see me like that!
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Please Doctor!
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Help me!
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Biologically speaking,
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it's of primary importance that man should want to mate.
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Hey, that's right!
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You don't get all your kicks from surfing, do you?
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We wanna be free to ride our machines without being hassled by the man.
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And we wanna get loaded.
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You think you're gonna make a slave of the world?
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I'll see you in Hell first!
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The American International Podcast.
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Are you ready?
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Hi there, this is Jeff Markin.
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And I'm Cheryl Lightfoot.
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And you're listening to the American International Podcast.
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On this episode, we will be discussing
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"Macon County Line" from 1974.
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"Macon County Line" was directed by Richard Compton,
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written by Max Baer, Jr. and Richard Compton,
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and produced by Max Baer, Jr. and Roger Camras.
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"Macon County Line" stars Alan Vint as Chris Dixon.
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Jesse Vint as Wayne Dixon.
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Cheryl Waters as Jenny Scott.
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Max Baer, Jr. as Deputy Reed Morgan.
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Geoffrey Lewis as Hamp.
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Joan Blackman as Carol Morgan.
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Leif Garrett as Luke Morgan.
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James Gammon as Elisha Gibbons.
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Timothy Scott as Lon Hawkins.
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Sam Gilman as Deputy Bill.
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Doodles Weaver as Augie and Emile Meyer as Gurney.
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The film opens to the chords of the Chords, singin Sh-Boom.
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We see a man and a woman exit a bar, and it sounds like the start of a joke.
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But it's the start of a movie.
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A title graphic appears saying, "This story is true.
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Only the names and places have been changed."
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Another caption comes up that says Louisiana in 1954.
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The camera pans around, and we end up in what appears to be a small apartment.
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If it's a room above the street, and in that room, some sex is being had.
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Some sex is being had.
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Music plays as the male of a couple.
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Demand's his partner move in a certain way.
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Let me see another man.
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He's shirtless.
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He goes into a bathroom to wash up.
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And then the man having sex demands that his female partner bark like a dog.
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The shirtless man in the other room yells out, "Hey, Chris, better hurry up before her old man gets here."
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And then Chris, the man having sex yells, "Come in!"
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And the woman is barking very loudly at this point.
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The shirtless man looks out the window, and he sees three men gathering outside.
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So he rees in finishing getting dressed.
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He yells out, "You better get your ex-os pipe dressed. They're coming."
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The three men that were outside come inside, and they stealthily climb the stairs.
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The formerly shirtless man tells Chris that there's three men out there.
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And Chris finally starts to pay attention.
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He gets angry, he climbs off the woman, and tries to grab all his clothes, which are strewn about.
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The woman lazily asks him to come back to bed.
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But the formerly shirtless man who will find out his name Wayne grabs the woman's purse and climbs out the window.
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The other man, Chris, is stumbling around the room looking for his clothes.
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Buck naked still.
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He climbs what he's looking for, grabs his clothes, and hops out the window.
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Still buck naked.
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He walks out into the balcony, leaps over it, and then the film freezes on his bare butt.
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And the title of the movie comes up, "Macon County Line."
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And the song has now changed to Jim Dandy to the Rescue.
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Right, because now they're running away.
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One of the men coming up the stairs pokes his head out the window and yells, "You bastard."
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So Chris and Wayne are on the run.
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They're running down an alley, and they stop, so Chris can finish getting dressed.
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And this is when Wayne checks out the take from the prostitute's purse, and he says that they manage to get $6.
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He thought he was worth more than that, but I guess not.
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They walked to the place where they left their car, but it's not there.
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One of the two wonders what happened to the car, and the other one explains that it probably got towed pointing to the no parking sign.
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So the duo has no choice but to walk to the impound yard, and they do this as the sun rises.
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Well, we get to hear the song "Keep On, Keep On" by Vermettya.
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A lovely shot here.
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As the boys stroll down the street, they attempt to get a ride, but they fail at that.
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This gives the full opening quite a sense to roll during the sequence.
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And the sun, a chance to rise. They get to the impound lot and negotiate with the lot owner, get their car back.
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And poor Chris can't believe that in addition to paying the fee, he also has to pay a tax.
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Yeah, the total is $21 including tax to get their car back, and this is pretty much going to wipe them out.
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Yeah, it's 1954 money, so that's a lot.
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But they get their car, get the keys back, and then they drive off with Wayne almost falling out of the passenger side as they pull out of the impound lot.
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And Vermettya's song continues. They drive through scenic roadways and through the night.
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And then the next day we see them eating at a diner.
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The music playing is “Corrina, Corrina."
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It's a good music in this movie.
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And Wayne, in sunglasses, asks for directions to the restroom.
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He then asks for more coffee and another order of toast as he leads.
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As Wayne is walking to the restroom, a couple of cops walk in.
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Chris, who is sitting somewhere not with Wayne, ducks his head as they walk in.
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In the restroom, Wayne notices a man sitting in an open toilet, but this isn't going to stop him from the work he has to do.
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Wayne works on opening the window.
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There's these metal blinds covering it, and he removes those one by one and then jumps out the window.
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To the amusement of the guy sitting on the toilet seat, reading his paper, he actually gets up and looks out the window.
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He waddles over and looks out the window and the waddles back to his seat to finish what he came in there to do.
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Back in the restaurant, the cops are bantering with the customers.
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Chris decides it's time to leave. He goes to pay for his coffee.
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Once out the door, Wayne backs into view through the window.
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And we see Chris hopping into the car.
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The waitress also sees it and realizes she just got stiffed for Wayne's check and demands that the cops chase them.
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The song Jim Dandy to the Rescue starts playing again.
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That must be their theme song for when they're up to no good.
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The police rush out to their vehicles as Wayne and Chris speed off and the police try to pursue.
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But it appears that Wayne has tied one of those police cars to a pole and the other police car to that police car.
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So when they leave, one car doesn't go anywhere and the other drags part of the first car behind it.
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It pulls off the whole front end of the car.
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Chris and Wayne are celebrating their escape. Wayne says that he's almost tip the deterner around to go back just so he can see their faces.
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Chris who only had coffee because that's how much money they had complains about being hungry and Wayne offers Chris some toast from his pocket.
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Young now we're at an abandoned service station where a young woman dressed in her Sunday best waits with some luggage.
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A man pulls up to her opens the door and tells her that he's going all the way to Dallas.
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She kicks his door closed from her seated position and says, well, you're going alone because her a bitch and he drives off.
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It's not too long before a Chris and Wayne drive up to the same point.
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They passed the girl, but reversed the car back to her. One of them says, hi, sweet potato.
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Hi, Sweet Potato! Name's Jenny Scott. Okay. I'm 20 years old. Good.
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And then Jenny apparently has decided that these two are better for a ride than the other guy was.
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So she starts throwing her luggage in their back seat.
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Yesterday I got picked up by this old Southern boy said I remind him of his daughter screwed her when she was 14.
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Today this Cuban immigrant and his fat wife picked me up. He kept putting his hand on my leg.
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And all she could do was laugh about it. So what are you two gotten like?
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Oh, we just want to put our hand on your leg. This all.
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So as the trio drives off, Chris is telling Jenny their life story.
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He says he was facing a judge who sentenced him to three years and he could choose whether that be jail or military service.
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So he picked the service and then Wayne re-unlisted so they could go in together.
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And now they have two weeks to kill before they have to go into the military.
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So they're going to spend those two weeks cutting around and having fun.
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Jenny asked what Chris might have done to get those three years and Chris says it was assault with a friendly weapon with the intent of doing bodily harm.
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Yeah, he really said friendly. We checked. Wayne says that Chris is the troublemaker of the two but Chris denies it.
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And I don't know that they ever say so but they're brothers. They're not just friends.
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We haven't mentioned it yet, but I think we figured that out because they start talking about how it all started with their mom.
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And as they're going on, Jenny keeps asking what Chris might have done to get those three years but they're too involved with their own story telling to answer that question.
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Yeah, apparently they got enough fight with their mother who wanted a cut of their fevery money.
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Mom attacked Chris with a spike heel and then the boys hit her.
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I don't think this is a real story because Chris says every time we tell this story it gets better and better.
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Jenny just laughs at that. So now we cut to a gunshot deputy Jethro.
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I mean, do you read Morgan is checking out a shotgun?
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It's Jethro from the Beverly Hillbillies, Max Bayer Jr.
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But obviously he's not playing Jethro.
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Yes, Gurney's the owner. How much this particular shotgun is and he says that it's $60 but with his discount it will be only 50.
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He also asked why do you need another gun and deputy read says that it's for Luke, his son.
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Gurney thinks that this might be too much gun for a 10 year old boy but Reed says that Luke can handle it.
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Gurney can remember when Reed's Daddy bought him his first gun and Gurney could swear that Reed was older than Luke is now.
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It's almost like saying that Reed is lying to him without actually saying it.
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They bargain a little over the payment. Reed wants to pay $10 now in the rest later.
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But Gurney insists that he give him $20 now.
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However, when Reed leaves he predicts that he will be late paying the rest of it.
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As he leaves, we do get a good look at the Confederate flag on the shoulder of his uniform.
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If this is the south and it is 1954.
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We're back with Chris, Jenny and Wayne.
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Their car is having some issues.
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They pull over by the side of the road.
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There's not really any word to pull over but they just stop.
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Chris is driving but Wayne wants to take over.
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And he also wants to peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
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And here we see a man and his son walking along the road.
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Looks like they're going fishing because they're holding poles.
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Yeah, they're walking Andy Griffith style.
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And this is kind of important. We'll see why later.
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So their car sputters pass this couple going in the other direction.
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And the trio pulls into a place called Douglas Lubricant.
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They finally made it to a service station.
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The mechanic who works there, his name is Hamp.
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Is arguing with another customer who is named Augie.
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They're bartering for the payment and trying to figure out how best to.
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I guess do this without cash.
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They've been talking about trading factor tires for a mayor.
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And this negotiation has apparently been going on for several months.
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Because now the mayor is with full.
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So Augie tells Hamp that he's going to have to sweeten the pot.
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Chris looks around and tells Jenny that if God was going to give the world an enema,
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right here is where he'd stick the hose.
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Augie and Hamp pause in negotiations for now and Augie leaves.
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And then Hamp's wife Ida yells out the window giving him grief for losing that deal with the mayor.
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Hamp tells her that Augie's going to think about it and let them know on Sunday.
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And Hamp is played by Geoffrey Lewis.
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He just doesn't absolutely awesome job with this role.
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He walks over to the boys and asks if they want to fill up and they say no, it's the fuel pump.
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Hamp looks under the hood and says they need to fix the catch on the fuel pump before driving it again.
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Next we see Deputy Reed pulling in front of his house.
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Inside his wife, Carol, is in the kitchen humming a tune while doing dishes.
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Reed comes inside and says he just came home to change his shirt and drop off the gun he had just purchased for his son.
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He asked Carol for a beer while he's on duty and driving, but she doesn't get it for him.
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She just lays on the bed trying to look as seductive as you possibly can with a kerchief on her head.
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Reed looks at her and shudders a little.
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He's very tempted, but he kisses her and leaves.
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Back at the service station.
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Chris and Wayne discover that Hamp won't take a credit card.
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He only takes cash or credit, but he can't get the credit because he doesn't know them.
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And they don't have enough cash.
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Hamp told them that they really should get a new fuel pump, not repair the old one, but they don't have the money for it.
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Because it's going to be $27 with tax and the boys only have $7 between them.
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Jenny has $3 that she offers them, but they tell her no.
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Then Chris tells Wayne to get the gun and Jenny says, what gun?
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Wayne goes over to the trunk and pulls on a 22 caliber rifle.
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Wayne takes this gun and walks very slowly and deliberately towards Hamp.
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Hamp looks extremely nervous at this, but he shouldn't.
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This was just a fake out.
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They want to trade the gun and their $7 for the new fuel pump, but that Hamp's not having it.
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He doesn't need a gun.
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Well, he doesn't need that kind of gun.
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If they had a shotgun, it would be different.
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So this is a no-go for Hamp.
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But then Chris says that Hamp mentioned that there was that other fix.
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And Hamp says you can do a temporary fix that will take them about 20 miles of cost them about $5.
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They're headed west and the arrestation is 40 to 45 miles away.
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They ask them to do the repair and say that they would like them to hurry so they can get that service station before they get started.
222
00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:14,000
Hamp says it'll take a little while and Chris asks for the restroom.
223
00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:17,000
And this is a really funny scene while they're doing these negotiations.
224
00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:19,000
This is a real service station. It's not a set.
225
00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:21,000
And Geoffrey Lewis just plays this like such a pro.
226
00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:25,000
There's a main door to the building and then there's the garage door.
227
00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:28,000
And a door in between the two.
228
00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:32,000
And he's just wandering around kind of in and out of the frame.
229
00:13:32,000 --> 00:13:34,000
And finally he stops and talks.
230
00:13:34,000 --> 00:13:38,000
And then one of the boys comes up through that extra door behind him and startles him.
231
00:13:38,000 --> 00:13:40,000
And it's really funny just the way they play it.
232
00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:42,000
Yeah, the blocking for this sequence is incredible.
233
00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:46,000
And from what we heard, it was kind of improvised basically by Lewis.
234
00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:48,000
And it's hilarious.
235
00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:51,000
So now everyone's going to the bathroom separated by genders, of course.
236
00:13:51,000 --> 00:13:55,000
Jenny's in the ladies room changing, freshening up.
237
00:13:55,000 --> 00:13:58,000
And the brothers do a little light comedy routine as they take a pee.
238
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Pretty cute scene.
239
00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:02,000
Man, I sure hope he can fix that catch.
240
00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:05,000
I'd hate to get hung up in this place.
241
00:14:05,000 --> 00:14:08,000
Boy, you said that again.
242
00:14:08,000 --> 00:14:11,000
Man, I sure hope he can fix that catch.
243
00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:14,000
I hate to get hung up in this place.
244
00:14:14,000 --> 00:14:16,000
He says boo.
245
00:14:16,000 --> 00:14:17,000
He said boo?
246
00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:19,000
He said boo.
247
00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:22,000
Then Chris asked Wayne what he thinks of Jenny.
248
00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:25,000
What do you think that girl?
249
00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,000
She's all right.
250
00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:31,000
Yes, she is all right.
251
00:14:31,000 --> 00:14:35,000
You see how fast she came up with that money?
252
00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:38,000
She could have just left, you know.
253
00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:45,000
Why do you think we're going to score with that, bro?
254
00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:48,000
And Chris says, what's this we?
255
00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:50,000
She told me you have bad breath.
256
00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:54,000
He briefly cut away outside to see deputy read driving up.
257
00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:56,000
And Chris goes to the ladies room, knocks on the door.
258
00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:58,000
When Jenny comes out, he asks if she has an extra toothbrush.
259
00:14:58,000 --> 00:15:00,000
And of course, she doesn't.
260
00:15:00,000 --> 00:15:02,000
But she does offer him her toothbrush.
261
00:15:02,000 --> 00:15:04,000
He says, well, that's okay.
262
00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:05,000
There's no food in it.
263
00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:08,000
He takes it and then she remembers to give him her toothpaste as well.
264
00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:10,000
It's a very flirty scene.
265
00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:13,000
Deputy Reed goes in the gas station cafe.
266
00:15:13,000 --> 00:15:16,000
Startles idle a little by sneaking up on her.
267
00:15:16,000 --> 00:15:18,000
At the white's only restrooms.
268
00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:20,000
Yes, that was the sign on the door.
269
00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:23,000
Chris and Wayne knock on the ladies room door, asking if Jenny's ready.
270
00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:24,000
And she is.
271
00:15:24,000 --> 00:15:25,000
She comes out.
272
00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:27,000
Now she's dressed in a pencil skirt.
273
00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:31,000
She's walking to the car in front of them, swaying her hips seductively.
274
00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:33,000
As the boys look on in appreciation.
275
00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:37,000
And Wayne says, must be jelly because jam don't shake like that.
276
00:15:37,000 --> 00:15:39,000
Now we're back with Reed and Ida in that cafe.
277
00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:43,000
A cafe worker serves Wayne about a love beer.
278
00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:46,000
And Reed gives Ida some grief about her weight loss journey.
279
00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:50,000
Reed takes a look out the window as the characters of Lon and Elisha pull up.
280
00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:53,000
We haven't met them yet, but they are a couple of seedy looking characters.
281
00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:57,000
But Reed seems to be more interested in the punk kids he sees sitting outside.
282
00:15:57,000 --> 00:15:58,000
But Lon and Elisha
283
00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:00,000
don't know this and they look very nervous.
284
00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:04,000
Hamp is filling up their tank and they yell at him to hurry up.
285
00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:06,000
Reed asks Ida how long those kids have been sitting out there.
286
00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:08,000
And she says about 15 minutes.
287
00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:10,000
That's not very long.
288
00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:11,000
It's hardly loitering.
289
00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:15,000
Hamp finishes filling up Lon and Elisha's tank and they speed off.
290
00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:17,000
Yeah, Elisha says we don't need no cops.
291
00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:20,000
He tells Lon that he should relax and what he really needs is a beer.
292
00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:22,000
They could have gone inside if it weren't for Reed.
293
00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:26,000
Back at the station, Reed goes outside, he's eyeing the boys car,
294
00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:28,000
noting the Illinois license plate.
295
00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:31,000
He goes in the garage and chants with Hamp a bit.
296
00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:34,000
They talk about things like tomorrow being the first day of hunting season.
297
00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:39,000
And Reed says that he's going over to Hood to pick up his son Luke from military school.
298
00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:42,000
Luke just was made a lieutenant.
299
00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:46,000
And now he outranks his dad because his dad only made it to Sergeant.
300
00:16:46,000 --> 00:16:48,000
Hamp mentions that the kids outside need a new pump,
301
00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:50,000
but they don't have the money to pay for it.
302
00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:54,000
Hearing this, Reed does what he sees as his sworn duty as an officer of the law
303
00:16:54,000 --> 00:16:56,000
and goes out to harass Wayne and Chris and Jenny.
304
00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:58,000
Yeah, that really lit something up in him.
305
00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:02,000
He asks for their story and finds out that they're from Chicago.
306
00:17:02,000 --> 00:17:06,000
Chris says they're just passing through and have to stay there till their car is fixed.
307
00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:08,000
But after that, they'll be moving on.
308
00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:11,000
Then he asks Reed if he has any power to hurry hemp up.
309
00:17:11,000 --> 00:17:14,000
Then Reed asks for their identification, which they provide.
310
00:17:14,000 --> 00:17:17,000
And he wonders where they've been.
311
00:17:17,000 --> 00:17:20,000
Chris says New Orleans where he was getting his physical.
312
00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:23,000
And Reed wants to know what he needed a physical for.
313
00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:25,000
And Chris says it's for the Army.
314
00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:29,000
He looks at Jenny's ID and asks her if she's from Dallas and she says yes.
315
00:17:29,000 --> 00:17:32,000
Then Reed asks if they have any money on them.
316
00:17:32,000 --> 00:17:35,000
He says they have to have $10 a piece or they'd be considered vagrants.
317
00:17:35,000 --> 00:17:39,000
He asks the trio if they each have $10 and they'll say yeah.
318
00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:41,000
And then he asks if they will show it to him.
319
00:17:41,000 --> 00:17:43,000
And Chris says he'd rather not.
320
00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:48,000
Then Reid yells to hemp to hurry with that catch so that these kids can get out of town.
321
00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:52,000
He says if they stay too long, they might go to like it here and Reid wouldn't like that at all.
322
00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:56,000
And then he leaves with a nervous Chris, Wayne and Jenny in his wake.
323
00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:58,000
Once in the car he gets on the radio,
324
00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:00,000
gives their plate number to his dispatcher.
325
00:18:00,000 --> 00:18:02,000
See what they can find out.
326
00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:10,000
[Music]
327
00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:13,000
The sun is setting and the street lights are coming on.
328
00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:18,000
We see Wayne kind of straring around outside still at the service station.
329
00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:19,000
I said he was kicking rocks.
330
00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:23,000
And we see Chris and Jenny are closing together in the backseat of a car.
331
00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:27,000
Jenny asks if Wayne's going to be okay and Chris says that he thinks so.
332
00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:30,000
But it's just that we've been together for a long, long time.
333
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:33,000
Now we cut away to seeing Lon and Elisha driving around.
334
00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:37,000
Elisha points out a place nearby and says hey, how about that place there?
335
00:18:37,000 --> 00:18:40,000
And Lon says it says good places any and they pull over.
336
00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:43,000
As they get out of the car, Lon says let's get it.
337
00:18:43,000 --> 00:18:44,000
That's a little scary.
338
00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:46,000
We got back to Chris and Jenny.
339
00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:48,000
They're now kissing in the backseat of that car.
340
00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:52,000
And then we cut to the military school where Reid has arrived to pick up his sun Luke.
341
00:18:52,000 --> 00:18:58,000
He walks down to school hallway and goes into a classroom where a bunch of little soldiers are studying at a table.
342
00:18:58,000 --> 00:19:03,000
He's standing at attention and Reid says who he is and asks for his son, Lieutenant Luke Morgan.
343
00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:04,000
Luke is dismissed.
344
00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:06,000
He walks over to his dad and salutes him.
345
00:19:06,000 --> 00:19:11,000
As the two of them walk down the hall toward the exit, Reed asks if Luke would like to go hunting with him tomorrow.
346
00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:15,000
But Luke promised some of the kids from Jeff Davis that he'd play baseball with him tomorrow.
347
00:19:15,000 --> 00:19:19,000
Reed tries to get Luke into going hunting instead, but eventually he relents.
348
00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:22,000
And let's Luke keep his promise to play the game with his friends.
349
00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:25,000
Luke invites his dad mom to come watch and play.
350
00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:28,000
Reed says that Luke's mom worries about him too much.
351
00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:30,000
She didn't even want him to go hunting.
352
00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:35,000
As they head to the car, Luke yells goodbye to a few friends who are playing basketball outside the school.
353
00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:37,000
And Reed doesn't like what he sees.
354
00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:42,000
Yeah, they're all black kids and obviously Reed is wearing a Confederate patch on his arm.
355
00:19:42,000 --> 00:19:45,000
So we can see in his face that he doesn't approve of this.
356
00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:47,000
So back yet, Reed Morgan's home.
357
00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:51,000
His wife Carol has fallen asleep watching a news program on the McCarthy hearings.
358
00:19:51,000 --> 00:19:54,000
Yes, those McCarthy anti-American hearings.
359
00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:57,000
So we really have a sense of time and place now, don't we?
360
00:19:57,000 --> 00:19:58,000
Or at least time.
361
00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:04,000
And Lon and Elisha have broken into the house and awakened her.
362
00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:07,000
Lon sneaks up to Carol, puts his hand on her mouth and stresses her.
363
00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:11,000
He tells her, be quiet. They're just going to take a few things.
364
00:20:11,000 --> 00:20:14,000
Lon points out Elisha who's going through stuff in the kitchen.
365
00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:19,000
Lon says he's going to take Carol to the back and tie her up just so she doesn't make any noise.
366
00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:21,000
And he takes her to the bedroom and sits her on the bed.
367
00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:28,000
And we see Elisha in the kitchen. He pours himself a glass of milk and goes and sits in front of the television in the bedroom.
368
00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:31,000
Lon opens the closet presumably to find something to tie up Carol with.
369
00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:35,000
He notices Reid's uniform shirt hanging on the door and has a flashback.
370
00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:37,000
That shirt really triggers something in him.
371
00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:44,000
The flashback is of him kneeling on the ground in front of a headlight or spotlight and two cops approach him on either side.
372
00:20:44,000 --> 00:20:47,000
He looks at Carol and looks around the room.
373
00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:51,000
He sees a family portrait of the three of them with Reid in his uniform.
374
00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:54,000
He asks Carol if her old man's a cop.
375
00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:56,000
She acknowledges that.
376
00:20:56,000 --> 00:20:59,000
Then he asks her how many times a week does her old man give it to her?
377
00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:01,000
Does he ask her does he take it?
378
00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:04,000
And then he approaches her with obvious ill intent.
379
00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:08,000
And we're not really sure what happens because thankfully it doesn't happen on camera.
380
00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:13,000
But while he's reliving this horrible flashback of being brutalized by the police,
381
00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:20,000
he is also doing something sexual rape to Carol or she's helping him.
382
00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:21,000
I don't know.
383
00:21:21,000 --> 00:21:22,000
I don't want to know.
384
00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:25,000
And then he finishes on or near Carol.
385
00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:26,000
It's really disgusting.
386
00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:29,000
It's very graphic without being graphic at all.
387
00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:32,000
Right. So we know it's terrible, but we don't have to witness it.
388
00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:35,000
Nearby we see the Chrysler puttering out again.
389
00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:39,000
So apparently, Hamp had successfully fixed it temporarily.
390
00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:44,000
Chris complains that Hamp promised them 20 miles with the repaired fuel pump.
391
00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:46,000
But they've only gotten 10 miles of that.
392
00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:49,000
Jenny wakes up to the dying car and they pull off.
393
00:21:49,000 --> 00:21:51,000
They have no other choice.
394
00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:53,000
They continue to argue about their situation.
395
00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:56,000
Wayne says he might be able to fix it if he has the right tools.
396
00:21:56,000 --> 00:21:59,000
And Chris tells him that if he doesn't fix it, they're stuck.
397
00:21:59,000 --> 00:22:03,000
But they do agree to sleep on it and figure out in the morning what they're going to do.
398
00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:06,000
Wayne calls dibs on the car and Chris says, yeah, right.
399
00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:10,000
And Wayne says he's just kidding. They need to go look for a place to sleep.
400
00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:14,000
They get out of the car and they find what looks like a barn.
401
00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:17,000
Wayne rolls out his blanket and lays down on the floor.
402
00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:21,000
Then we cut to Lon and Elisha's car starting up and leaving.
403
00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:25,000
And as they pull out, we see it is very near where the Chrysler broke down.
404
00:22:25,000 --> 00:22:28,000
Yes, just at the end of Deputy Morgan's driveway.
405
00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:33,000
In the barn, Wayne is smoking as Chris makes a nest for himself and Jenny.
406
00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:37,000
They suggest putting a note on the car in case the sheriff drives past.
407
00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:42,000
They have no idea that they're so near to his house, but they're still afraid of him.
408
00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:47,000
Wayne says he'll do it. He gathers his bed roll and tells them that he's just going to go sleep in the car.
409
00:22:47,000 --> 00:22:54,000
Jenny wonders why he's so grumpy and Chris says probably because there's only one girl in Jenny frowns.
410
00:22:54,000 --> 00:22:59,000
And Wayne climbs into the car and prepares for his night of restful bliss.
411
00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:03,000
And Chris and Jenny also snuggle in and their little love nest.
412
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:07,000
Chris asks Jenny why she's going to Dallas and well, Jenny doesn't tell him,
413
00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:10,000
but she does tell him a story about how she was working in a barn.
414
00:23:10,000 --> 00:23:14,000
She was under age. Her roommate was the manager's girlfriend and the manager made a pass at her.
415
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:20,000
And the roommate found out and Chris interrupts her and says, you never did tell us why you were going to Dallas.
416
00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:25,000
And she frowns and pouts and says, does it matter? He says no.
417
00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:32,000
Deputy Reed is driving Luke home and he's still thinking about the boys that he saw playing basketball outside the school.
418
00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:36,000
And he asked Luke about them. Luke explains that he had some free time after study hall one day.
419
00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:39,000
And he went out to use the basketball court and there they were.
420
00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:41,000
They picked teams and his team has the best record.
421
00:23:41,000 --> 00:23:45,000
He also said the school doesn't seem to want them there and drives them off sometimes.
422
00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:51,000
Reed's still looking ahead at the road says, you know how in school you have rules and laws that you have to follow?
423
00:23:51,000 --> 00:24:02,000
And Luke says, like you have rules to follow? Reed says right. He hesitates a little bit and then Reed says that at Sutter, the name of the school, they don't take blacks.
424
00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:05,000
Not because they don't have the money. They just don't take them.
425
00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:07,000
Luke doesn't think that's right.
426
00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:13,000
The school feels that blacks should go to school with other blacks and whites should go with other whites.
427
00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:17,000
It just seems to make things a whole lot easier.
428
00:24:17,000 --> 00:24:20,000
Your mom and I feel the same way.
429
00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:23,000
So I mean, I can't play basketball anymore.
430
00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:27,000
I wish you wouldn't.
431
00:24:27,000 --> 00:24:29,000
Okay.
432
00:24:29,000 --> 00:24:30,000
Okay.
433
00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:32,000
And they exchange a hug.
434
00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:39,000
Now back in some romantically lit part of the barn, Jenny has found a trough of water and she addresses to get into it.
435
00:24:39,000 --> 00:24:44,000
Chris notices this and joins her and then they sex their way through a montage.
436
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:48,000
They spin around in the trough while piano music with strings plays on the soundtrack.
437
00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:57,000
Yes, this goes on for some time and it seems to jump back and forth between them and the trough and them having sex on the hay and.
438
00:24:57,000 --> 00:25:01,000
At one point, it appears they dry off and then get back in.
439
00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:08,000
I think it's just some creative editing or else they were at for a really long time and they had to watch off.
440
00:25:08,000 --> 00:25:13,000
But eventually we see them falling asleep in each other's arms tucked in the same sleeping bag on the straw.
441
00:25:13,000 --> 00:25:21,000
Now we go back to Elisha and Lon are still driving around and to deputies see their car without tail lights and pull them over.
442
00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:25,000
If their intent is just to tell them about the tail light, perfectly innocent, right?
443
00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:28,000
Lon says that they won't be able to outrun them and tells Elisha to pull over.
444
00:25:28,000 --> 00:25:33,000
Elisha, who's driving sees Lawn go for something and Elisha tells Lon don't you do it.
445
00:25:33,000 --> 00:25:35,000
Don't fall apart and keep your mouth shut.
446
00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:40,000
The deputy comes up to the car knocks on the window and tells them that he knows their tail light was out.
447
00:25:40,000 --> 00:25:46,000
He said there's a service station about six miles down the highway and then the other deputy notices a rifle and radio in the back seat.
448
00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:51,000
And when he mentions this, Lon reveals the handgun he'd been hiding in the shadows and shoots the deputy twice.
449
00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:57,000
Deputy falls forward and slams his head into the side of the car as Elishia puts the pedal to the metal and speeds off.
450
00:25:57,000 --> 00:26:01,000
The first cup, this is deputy bill opens fire on the cars.
451
00:26:01,000 --> 00:26:02,000
It speeds away.
452
00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:05,000
He then runs to his car and calls into the station.
453
00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:11,000
It's a code 10. He's in pursuit of a late model student baker headed north on turner road near junction 109.
454
00:26:11,000 --> 00:26:19,000
The dispatcher hears that and sends all available units in that direction and the chase begins with deputy bill chasing line and Alicia.
455
00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:29,000
Their student baker crashes somehow it appears to miss a truck, but it stops deputy bill crashes into them and unfortunately no explosions happen.
456
00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:39,000
Note because we're out of the sea now and we're back with Luke and read Luke is asleep on reads shoulder and he's having a dream in this dream he and his dad are feset hunting.
457
00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:49,000
They both have rifles when they spotted bird read motions for Luke to take the shot, but Luke can't or won't so read has to and he literally kills that bird.
458
00:26:49,000 --> 00:26:55,000
And then still in the dream read looks at Luke a little disgusted as Luke hangs his head and shame.
459
00:26:55,000 --> 00:27:00,000
Yep Luke is a big disappointment to his father and then back in the car read awakens Luke.
460
00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:06,000
Apparently Luke had been making some noise and read welcome up just to make sure he was okay.
461
00:27:06,000 --> 00:27:13,000
Now at the police station and Elisha and Lon's attorney has arrived to speak with them, but deputy bill isn't ready for that.
462
00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:17,000
He says that they killed his partner and he wants some alone time with them first.
463
00:27:17,000 --> 00:27:31,000
His partner had a wife and kids, but the public defender says that the suspects are entitled to a lawyer, but deputy bill gets into their holding room first shuts the door on the public defender and has the officer inside uncuff the two.
464
00:27:31,000 --> 00:27:36,000
He slams the papers on the table and says sign these papers and Lon and Elisha just look at him.
465
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:44,000
Elisha says what for and deputy bill says that they're confessions and Lon says he's not going to sign that Elisha says he wants to talk to the public defender.
466
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:55,000
He knows what his rights are bill says that he doesn't have any rights as far as he's concerned and then Alicia starts to cry and Lawn repeats that he's not going to sign deputy bill demands that they put their hands on the table.
467
00:27:55,000 --> 00:28:05,000
Palms down and then bill asked Lon if he's right or left handed Lon says he's right handed and deputy bill says you sign it or you're going to be left handed immediately.
468
00:28:05,000 --> 00:28:13,000
Elisha is sobbing this entire time and Lon's trying to stall, but then the scene cuts to outside of the interrogation room where the public defender is waiting.
469
00:28:13,000 --> 00:28:18,000
There's silence and then a gun goes off as a man screams.
470
00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:27,000
And we cut so Wayne's sleeping in the car has read and Luke return home they passed the car as they pull into their driveway, but deputy read doesn't take much notice of it.
471
00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:32,000
He tells Luke to get his suitcase and hurry inside because he's got a surprise for him.
472
00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:33,000
Does he ever?
473
00:28:33,000 --> 00:28:46,000
Boy does he little Luke brings his suitcase up the walk but before he can get in the house read her he's out he tells Luke to wait right there and to don't go anywhere and then he rushes back outside.
474
00:28:46,000 --> 00:28:52,000
Luke doesn't listen he goes inside and says mom as read is walking toward the car parts in the street.
475
00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:57,000
He hears Luke screaming from inside the house the screams awaken Wayne and he jumps out of the car.
476
00:28:57,000 --> 00:29:02,000
Reed sees him and takes a shot at him before running back inside to take care of his son Chris wakes up in the barn.
477
00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:10,000
He's also heard the shot and he yells at Jenny to get up and get dressed inside the house read finds Luke hugging his mother's dead bloodied body.
478
00:29:10,000 --> 00:29:14,000
We grab him takes him outside and slap some silly telling him to shut up.
479
00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:23,000
Well Luke's hysterical and and he tries to get him to be quiet and he slaps him two times and he drags Luke with him as he runs to his car.
480
00:29:23,000 --> 00:29:25,000
Wayne goes back to the barn to get Chris and Jenny.
481
00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:28,000
He tells him that the sheriff's gone crazy and shot at him.
482
00:29:28,000 --> 00:29:35,000
Now read is in his car with Luke they speed off read speeds off and calls for an ambulance to come to his house.
483
00:29:35,000 --> 00:29:40,000
Back at the police station deputy bill asks what all this junk is in the office.
484
00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:43,000
The dispatcher says it's evidence taken from the suspects car.
485
00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:49,000
But the audience knows is that this is the emergency is taken from Deputy Reed Morgan's house.
486
00:29:49,000 --> 00:29:54,000
Bill says to check the registration on the television and to get back with them with any information that turns up.
487
00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:57,000
And then the dispatcher says what she's been wanting to say all this time.
488
00:29:57,000 --> 00:30:03,000
She tells him that read called in asked for an ambulance to be sent to his house and then he turned off the radio.
489
00:30:03,000 --> 00:30:07,000
She can't get him back and no one answers when she calls his home.
490
00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:14,000
Bill asked when this happened and the dispatcher says five minutes ago and that something is very wrong and that someone ought to go.
491
00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:20,000
Bill tells the dispatcher to keep trying the radio and tells police woman Annie to start calling on the phone.
492
00:30:20,000 --> 00:30:25,000
Bill can go check out read's house because he may or may not have just shot a guy.
493
00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:28,000
But either way the police station is probably not the best place for him to be hanging out.
494
00:30:28,000 --> 00:30:29,000
Not right now.
495
00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:36,000
Wayne and Chris and Jenny are on foot now running down towards looks like marshland and they're pursued by read.
496
00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:41,000
They hide behind a crane and read takes a shot at them with a shotgun.
497
00:30:41,000 --> 00:30:42,000
He misses.
498
00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:45,000
We start running after them again with Luke trailing behind.
499
00:30:45,000 --> 00:30:52,000
They have to cross this large pipe that serves as a makeshift bridge and it's very delicate stepping.
500
00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:54,000
Deputy Bill arrives at the read house.
501
00:30:54,000 --> 00:30:56,000
The ambulance is there.
502
00:30:56,000 --> 00:31:00,000
He goes in and makes the two white clad attendance stop the gurney they're pushing.
503
00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:04,000
He looks at the body under the sheet and says, oh my god.
504
00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:07,000
Now Chris, Wayne and Jenny are running through the brush.
505
00:31:07,000 --> 00:31:08,000
Jenny falls.
506
00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:12,000
Chris and Wayne help her up and weed and Luke are still in pursuit.
507
00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:15,000
Yet with Luke following read.
508
00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:17,000
Back at the house bill is on the porch.
509
00:31:17,000 --> 00:31:18,000
He finds Luke's hat.
510
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:22,000
So now he knows read and Luke have been there and they saw that Carol had been killed.
511
00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:30,000
He goes to his car and calls the dispatcher whose name is Terry asked that a car be sent right out there right away because reads wife was murdered.
512
00:31:30,000 --> 00:31:32,000
You wouldn't believe it.
513
00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:36,000
Reed is still after the trio and he's calling for Luke to try to keep up with him.
514
00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:41,000
And this is when deputy bill notices the Chrysler parked outside the house and he staffs to investigate that.
515
00:31:41,000 --> 00:31:44,000
But a shot rings out and draws his attention.
516
00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:50,000
And now everyone who's running is running down a hill and it's tricky going.
517
00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:55,000
They get to a dock start to cross and read fires one more time.
518
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:59,000
He hits a pole and a bit of the shot hits Jenny knocking you into the water.
519
00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:04,000
That he bill is calling for backup to come to the levee road near weeds house.
520
00:32:04,000 --> 00:32:08,000
Wayne has that rifle that we saw in their car previously and he's firing back.
521
00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:15,000
He's doing it says Chris is pulling Jenny from the water deputy bill steps near reads parked car and calls for them.
522
00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:17,000
And then he runs in that direction.
523
00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:21,000
Now Chris and waiting Jenny have taken refuge in a houseboat at the end of the dock.
524
00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:23,000
Jenny is bleeding quite a bit.
525
00:32:23,000 --> 00:32:29,000
She got hit in the ear and Chris is telling to her while Wayne is looking out the window shotgun at the ready.
526
00:32:29,000 --> 00:32:30,000
But it's really quiet.
527
00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:35,000
He calls out to read saying that he's a crazy SOB and why are you trying to kill us?
528
00:32:35,000 --> 00:32:39,000
We haven't done anything man, but there's no answer and looking at the window.
529
00:32:39,000 --> 00:32:46,000
We can't see anything Chris is going to try to how wire the boat but there's a metal plate covering the ignition and he can't get to the wires.
530
00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:51,000
Chris says that something horrible has happened and he read things that we did it.
531
00:32:51,000 --> 00:32:53,000
And Chris goes out to shouted him.
532
00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:58,000
He says that we have a girl who's hurt and she needs help and he repeats that they didn't do anything.
533
00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:00,000
But there's still no answer.
534
00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:05,000
And says he doesn't want to be a sitting duck on this houseboat and that he saw an outboard about 50 yards away.
535
00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:09,000
If he can get to it and get it started then they could at least get to the other side of the river.
536
00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:14,000
Wayne asked how he's going to get there without getting shot and Chris says that he can swim.
537
00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:18,000
But Wayne asked can you swim with this and he has him to rifle.
538
00:33:18,000 --> 00:33:20,000
Wayne's assistant that Chris takes the gun with him.
539
00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:25,000
Chris tells him that as soon as they hear the outboard start up to get outside and be ready to jump in.
540
00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:31,000
So Chris gets in the water and starts waiting to the outboard holding the gun over his head while Wayne and Jenny silently wait.
541
00:33:31,000 --> 00:33:34,000
We're back with Deputy Bill. He's still searching for Reed.
542
00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:37,000
And then we see that Chris has made it to the boat and he climbs in.
543
00:33:37,000 --> 00:33:42,000
And then we get the point of view of someone who's going through the bushes towards him.
544
00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,000
Chris tries to start the motor but it's not cooperating.
545
00:33:45,000 --> 00:33:48,000
And then he sees someone looking at him. He stops.
546
00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:52,000
And inside the boat Jenny and Chris note the silence.
547
00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:57,000
Then the silence is broken by the son of a gunshot. Wayne calls out Chris. Are you all right?
548
00:33:57,000 --> 00:34:01,000
But no answer. Wayne and Jenny continue to listen to the silence.
549
00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:03,000
Then they hear footsteps coming down the dock.
550
00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:06,000
And then they hear it on the boat. There's someone there.
551
00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:10,000
Hoping that it's Chris they call out to him but there's no answer.
552
00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:14,000
And then very slowly the door to the cabin there in opens.
553
00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:19,000
And they look on scared but they're not doing any evasive maneuvers.
554
00:34:19,000 --> 00:34:23,000
And then suddenly Wayne and Jenny are both shot in the chest in very slow motion.
555
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:26,000
We can't tell if there's one shot or two here.
556
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:29,000
But Wayne and Jenny were not standing that near to each other.
557
00:34:29,000 --> 00:34:34,000
Are both taken down. Jenny falls on a couch and Wayne just falls on the floor.
558
00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:37,000
Deputy Bill is still out looking for Reed and he does find him.
559
00:34:37,000 --> 00:34:41,000
He finds Reed laying dead somehow under a tree.
560
00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:46,000
He's wedged between two tree trunks. He's dead but we don't see any evidence that he's been shot.
561
00:34:46,000 --> 00:34:50,000
And we're not sure if that gunshot that we just heard got him or not.
562
00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:55,000
Bill's there for a minute but then he moves on because we start to hear a gun cocking over and over again.
563
00:34:55,000 --> 00:34:58,000
Now this is a 50 year old movie but it does have a twist ending.
564
00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:01,000
So if you don't want to know what the twist ending is, don't listen.
565
00:35:01,000 --> 00:35:07,000
Bill heads down the dock and to the houseboat and there he finds Luke standing there still cocking the gun,
566
00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:11,000
staring at the bodies in the houseboat. Bill takes the gun and tells Luke everything is going to be okay.
567
00:35:11,000 --> 00:35:18,000
And just then Chris returns, sees that his brother has been killed and Luke cries into Deputy Bill's shirt.
568
00:35:18,000 --> 00:35:22,000
There's no one comforting Chris. And then we fade to Chris.
569
00:35:22,000 --> 00:35:26,000
He's at the repair shop. He's sitting in his car. He's getting it back finally.
570
00:35:26,000 --> 00:35:28,000
And he's not alone.
571
00:35:28,000 --> 00:35:32,000
The whole town seems to be assembled there. We see Deputy Bill, Annie the police woman,
572
00:35:32,000 --> 00:35:38,000
Ida, Hamp's wife, Gurney the gun guy. They're all standing around looking at him.
573
00:35:38,000 --> 00:35:43,000
He starts off the car and drives off, which is hard because his arms in a sling. So obviously he was the one that got shot.
574
00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:49,000
As he does this, the text comes on the screen on March 26, 1961 after one retrial and two stays of execution,
575
00:35:49,000 --> 00:35:57,000
Lon Hawkins and Elisha Gibbons were executed in the electric chair for the murders of Deputy Ray D. Von and Mrs. Carol Morgan.
576
00:35:57,000 --> 00:36:05,000
On September 7, 1973, Luke Morgan celebrated his 29th birthday in a mental hospital in Tennessee where he was expected to spend the rest of his natural life.
577
00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:10,000
This is all over Chris driving away and the Bobbie Gentry song, another day, another time.
578
00:36:10,000 --> 00:36:18,000
And we see one more font that says Chris Dixon is now a master sergeant in the US Air Force and a station in Hawaii with his wife and three children.
579
00:36:18,000 --> 00:36:27,000
So I guess he gets a happy ending. And then as he's driving towards the horizon, we see that father and son, the pair who are fishing, returning.
580
00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:34,000
Andy Griffith style. Yeah. Andy Griffith style. And then over the credits, the entire song, another place, another time plays out.
581
00:36:34,000 --> 00:36:42,000
And that's the end. Before we take our break, let's go back a few minutes and go over the incidents that happened at the end of this film.
582
00:36:42,000 --> 00:36:46,000
Because there's some confusion, I think, and interpreting what happened.
583
00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:54,000
Yeah, we argued about it. Well, we didn't argue about it. We were trying to figure out how read died because there's really no wound on him.
584
00:36:54,000 --> 00:36:57,000
The last gunshot we heard was the one that struck Chris.
585
00:36:57,000 --> 00:36:59,000
And it looks like he's wedged between a tree.
586
00:36:59,000 --> 00:37:05,000
So, yeah, that's it's almost one of those locked room mysteries where there's no way he could be dead. And yet he's dead.
587
00:37:05,000 --> 00:37:12,000
I don't know if we're supposed to assume that Luke killed his father for some reason, but I did go back and watch the last 20 minutes of this this morning.
588
00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:23,000
And here's what I discovered when Wayne is shooting back at Reed, Reed is an area he's kind of stumbling around and it looks like the same area where his body is found.
589
00:37:23,000 --> 00:37:33,000
So maybe Wayne hit him, but we don't see a we don't see evidence of a gunshot, but that seems the most logical explanation because there's no shots after that except for the one that hits Chris.
590
00:37:33,000 --> 00:37:36,000
There's no yelling. That's when it's quiet. Nothing happens.
591
00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:44,000
That makes sense. It doesn't seem like they had a really good vantage point from the houseboat to take a shot that would get up into the woods and kill Reed.
592
00:37:44,000 --> 00:37:47,000
But if that's not the answer, then I don't know what it is.
593
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:53,000
I think it's a more logical answer than Luke going ballistic at that point and killing his father.
594
00:37:53,000 --> 00:38:01,000
Yeah, with his bare hands, the butt of a gun, who knows, maybe he was shot in the back of the head though, because we see when he's lying down, he's on his back.
595
00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:05,000
So maybe Luke shot him in the back of the head and we just did hear the shot.
596
00:38:05,000 --> 00:38:07,000
The Luke even have a gun.
597
00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:10,000
Of course, he's got a gun. He killed Jenny and Wayne.
598
00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:14,000
I thought he took his father's gun at that point. I thought that was his father's gun that he took.
599
00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:17,000
That is it. I don't know.
600
00:38:17,000 --> 00:38:22,000
So I think that's the most logical explanation is that we use a better shot than he gave him credit for.
601
00:38:22,000 --> 00:38:26,000
But if he did shoot Reed, where did the shot land?
602
00:38:26,000 --> 00:38:33,000
Because the movie didn't show us any blood and they showed blood on Jenny and they showed blood on Chris.
603
00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:37,000
So it's not like they weren't going to make a wound where a wound should be.
604
00:38:37,000 --> 00:38:41,000
I think if it was obvious that would have given it away because there were no other shots fired.
605
00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:46,000
Right. So maybe he got hit in the back and then he fell on his back.
606
00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:48,000
But why would he be facing away?
607
00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:52,000
It's a conundrum. As with a lot of things in this movie, we just kind of have to go with it.
608
00:38:52,000 --> 00:39:05,000
Welcome back to the American International Podcast where we are discussing making county line from 1974.
609
00:39:05,000 --> 00:39:14,000
I couldn't find a whole lot of information on the production of this movie. However, I found a site that listed a lot of news items that were relevant to this film.
610
00:39:14,000 --> 00:39:24,000
For example, in April 27th 1973 issue of daily variety announced that Carolyn Stellar and her son, Leaf Garrett, were cast to play the mother and son in this film.
611
00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:27,000
But Stellar didn't remain with the project as we know.
612
00:39:27,000 --> 00:39:37,000
June 4th 1973 box office news item reported that Alan Vint Geoffrey Lewis, Cheryl Waters and Timothy Scott were added to the cast and the film was set for production in California.
613
00:39:37,000 --> 00:39:44,000
Even though the incidents depicted in the picture would be set in Macon County, Tennessee, Tennessee or Texas. We're not sure.
614
00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:47,000
That's another thing we weren't sure about where we're supposed to be.
615
00:39:47,000 --> 00:39:51,000
So box office also had a difficulty trying to figure out the geography of this movie.
616
00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:54,000
That was pre-production. Maybe they changed it during production.
617
00:39:54,000 --> 00:40:06,000
Writer director Richard Compton and writer producer Max Baer based their screenplay on what they said were the real life murder of a woman and her rural communities, distribution against three young people who were falsely accused of crime.
618
00:40:06,000 --> 00:40:14,000
December 7th 1973 daily variety article noted that Max Baer, Jr. who was the son of champion boxer Max Baer.
619
00:40:14,000 --> 00:40:23,000
And who was also widely known for his role of Jethro Bodine on the television series of Beverly Hillbilly's finance the $500,000 budget entirely on his own.
620
00:40:23,000 --> 00:40:26,000
Though he also got a little help from his golfing buddies.
621
00:40:26,000 --> 00:40:32,000
One of Baer's buddies, real estate agent Roger Camras, once credited as the executive producer for the film.
622
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:37,000
And he played the role in the film of the man in the car who tries to pick up Jenny at the gas station.
623
00:40:37,000 --> 00:40:43,000
Director Richard Compton, who also co-wrote the script, said in the director's commentator of the movie that
624
00:40:43,000 --> 00:40:51,000
he wanted to set the movie in the 1950s because he loved the automobiles of the era and that he thought the vent brothers had a 1950s look.
625
00:40:51,000 --> 00:41:00,000
The production team licensed the footage of the McCarthy hearings that is playing on the Morgan's TV just before careless surprise by the burglars to add to the authenticity of the time period.
626
00:41:00,000 --> 00:41:05,000
However, there was at least one anachronism that dishwasher and cow Morgan's kitchen shouldn't have been there.
627
00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:13,000
Compton's director of photography, Daniel LaCombra helped save the production a lot of money by making use of natural or available light in many of the scenes,
628
00:41:13,000 --> 00:41:16,000
rather than renting a generator and rigging a production light.
629
00:41:16,000 --> 00:41:20,000
On that same director's commentary, Compton said that he was really pleased with the results.
630
00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:28,000
The entire film was also shot in a five square mile area of Sacramento, California, with the location carefully chosen to look like it could be Southern in origin.
631
00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:34,000
Compton and Baer never agreed on what Jenny's mysterious backstory would be and it is never devolved in the film.
632
00:41:34,000 --> 00:41:38,000
But Compton said he thought that she was probably escaping a bad marriage.
633
00:41:38,000 --> 00:41:41,000
And at least one animal was harmed in the making of this movie.
634
00:41:41,000 --> 00:41:47,000
Like I said, during that hunting scene, Max Baer really did shoot him kill the bird, RIP Bird.
635
00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:56,000
And Max Baer who never smoked anything, insisted that his character be a smoker, which is why there are a couple of scenes of him awkwardly pretending to smoke.
636
00:41:56,000 --> 00:42:00,000
The houseboat scene was inspired by the original Cape Fear film starring Robert Mitchum.
637
00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:04,000
Compton cited the movie as a major influence on his work and his life.
638
00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:11,000
According to Daily Variety, Barrett screamed an answer print of the film for industry insiders before he negotiated for its distribution.
639
00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:13,000
And it received widespread acclaim.
640
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:22,000
Impressed by the picture, Filmmaker Howard Hawks offered Barre financial assistance and committed himself to working with Barre on his second effort, not this one.
641
00:42:22,000 --> 00:42:28,000
On March 7th, 1974, the Hollywood Reporter announced that AIP was set to distribute the film in the Western Hemisphere.
642
00:42:28,000 --> 00:42:37,000
The news item noted that the theme song, another time in a place written and performed by Bobby Gentry, would be released as a single as well as part of a soundtrack album.
643
00:42:37,000 --> 00:42:49,000
An interesting side note in 1974, Tom Loughlin had re-released his film's Born Losers in Billy Jack to drive up anticipation for his upcoming film The Trial of Billy Jack, which would be released toward the end of that year.
644
00:42:49,000 --> 00:43:02,000
And these films were distributed en mass with hundreds of prints being struck and distributed at once. This method can bring a larger up front some of the profits rather than a steady stream over time, as the films are distributed from city to city.
645
00:43:02,000 --> 00:43:09,000
Sam Arkoff took note of this and decided to experiment with this method of distribution and Macon County Line seemed like a good guinea pig for this.
646
00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:18,000
The problem was the cost to strike the prints necessary would come at a cost of about $250,000, which Sam Arcoff was not about to cover himself.
647
00:43:18,000 --> 00:43:27,000
So he reached out to Max Baer and Roger Campras and said that if he could take money off the top of the profits, he would give the film mass distribution.
648
00:43:27,000 --> 00:43:39,000
This would cost Bayer and Campras about $75,000 initially, but the gamble did pay off and distributing the film through this method end up generating around an extra $9 million in film rentals.
649
00:43:39,000 --> 00:43:50,000
Wow, according to Daily Variety, Bayer was inspired to develop the script after reading a newspaper story about a kid's birthday. Not sure how that tracks, but then he formed his own production company to finance the project.
650
00:43:50,000 --> 00:43:59,000
He had recently walked up the set of an independent production filming in the South, disgruntled by the producer directors and competence and convinced that he could do it better.
651
00:43:59,000 --> 00:44:10,000
Baer allegedly wrote the film on the back of scripts during breaks filming the Beverly Hillbillies and a stated in Daily Variety, Bayer couldn't remember the name of the film and claimed that it would never be finished.
652
00:44:10,000 --> 00:44:24,000
However, in October of 1977, Baer and A.I.P were being sued by minus productions who claimed that making county line was a reworked version of their unreleased film, redneck America, love it or dot dot dot.
653
00:44:24,000 --> 00:44:40,000
Variety stated that Baer played a deputy sheriff in that film but quit after a few days on location. So is that the same movie? Maybe not because in 1977, a federal judge ruled against Midas claiming that the two films were distinct enough to override charges of copyright infringement.
654
00:44:40,000 --> 00:44:52,000
Making County line is docudrama in tone and although it was presented as a true story to attract a wider audience much like the Hollywood revisionist film Walking Tall, its plot and characters are entirely fictional.
655
00:44:52,000 --> 00:44:55,000
Leif Garrett also starred in the three Walking Tall films.
656
00:44:55,000 --> 00:45:08,000
And again, although it's widely assumed and we said earlier that the film is set in Macon County, Georgia or Tennessee, it actually appears to take place in Texas because person Wayne pick up Jenny and Louisiana and agreed to drive her home to Dallas.
657
00:45:08,000 --> 00:45:17,000
There's no Macon County in Texas but there is or was a tiny town called making Texas about halfway between Dallas and Shreeveport, Louisiana.
658
00:45:17,000 --> 00:45:25,000
And its population began to decline after World War II by 1985, only a church, a cemetery and a few scattered houses remained.
659
00:45:25,000 --> 00:45:40,000
The really, really nice car that the brothers drive in the movie is a 1949 Chrysler Town and Country convertible. Only 993 of these were built at a base price of $3,765 which obviously is a lot more in today's money.
660
00:45:40,000 --> 00:45:48,000
In excellent condition, at an auction in 2018 or even today, that car would sell for over $100,000.
661
00:45:48,000 --> 00:46:02,000
The music chosen for this film has an interesting backstory as well. The producers knew that they wanted to convey the mood of the scenes in which they were set. The early temp track included Deep Purple by Earl Bostic in the opening sequence, which was replaced by Sh-Boom in the final film.
662
00:46:02,000 --> 00:46:11,000
Smack Dab in the Middle by the Mills Brothers, which was replaced by Jim Dandy to the Rescue. And Jambalaya by Hank Williams, which would be replaced by Keep On Keeping On.
663
00:46:11,000 --> 00:46:24,000
The problem was the original music that they had hoped to use wasn't cleared and the costs were more than the production could handle. The producers hoped that they could get their distributor to cover the costs, but AIP basically said that that's on you to fix this.
664
00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:37,000
But they weren't able to get a $3,000 bank loan, which was enough to clear the three songs that do appear in the final cut and to hire composers to Phillips to compose a new score to replace the canned music that had appeared in the temp track.
665
00:46:37,000 --> 00:46:49,000
They still needed a big song for the close, so Roger Campras called Bobbie Gentry, whom he had previously dated, and they worked out until where if she saw the film and liked it, she would compose a song for it. And that's how they got another place another time.
666
00:46:49,000 --> 00:46:51,000
I guess it was a happy breakup.
667
00:46:51,000 --> 00:46:58,000
Macon County Line was released on August 8, 1974 in the United States, not in all cities, of course.
668
00:46:58,000 --> 00:47:10,000
The movie was retitled killing time in the United Kingdom. AIP offered to send theater owners copies of that Bobbie Gentry single and other time and other place, so they could send it to local DJs to promote the movie.
669
00:47:10,000 --> 00:47:15,000
They also suggested capitalizing on the current nostalgia craze in a number of ways.
670
00:47:15,000 --> 00:47:30,000
One by having DJs promote a 50s fashion night at a special performance of the film with prizes going to the best dress couple and they encourage those theaters to park a 50s era car in front of the theater to attract interest or to have a three some of young people to guys in a girl.
671
00:47:30,000 --> 00:47:42,000
Try the car down Main Street or to shopping centers wherever for added exposure being a quiet title for AIP making County line didn't really fit into one of the established genres that they had been known for.
672
00:47:42,000 --> 00:47:46,000
So they had trouble figuring out the best way to market the film.
673
00:47:46,000 --> 00:47:53,000
Generally their films were marketed before production would even begin so they had this finished film and had to figure out what to do with it.
674
00:47:53,000 --> 00:48:05,000
And it took some time before they finally worked out how to promote it some of the tag lines that they did come up with include it was the fall of 54 a time when laughing was easy and left they did until they crossed the Macon County line.
675
00:48:05,000 --> 00:48:08,000
They're on the bad side of the wrong man.
676
00:48:08,000 --> 00:48:13,000
And you do don't cross the Macon County Line meet Sheriff Reed Morgan.
677
00:48:13,000 --> 00:48:17,000
He doesn't like punk kids, strangers or smart alecks from up north.
678
00:48:17,000 --> 00:48:21,000
Chris and Wayne were all three and they had crossed the Macon County line.
679
00:48:21,000 --> 00:48:24,000
It shouldn't have happened. It couldn't have happened. But it did.
680
00:48:24,000 --> 00:48:27,000
No it didn't. It's not a true story.
681
00:48:27,000 --> 00:48:37,000
A blurb in box office magazine after the films release reported that Macon County Line had grossed more than $3.6 million in two weeks with showing them 352 theaters.
682
00:48:37,000 --> 00:48:45,000
This matches all AIP records reported the article adding and the figure will be even higher when some unreported grosses are added in.
683
00:48:45,000 --> 00:48:53,000
This is more remarkable considering that the showings were concentrated in only five areas Atlanta Charlotte Dallas nor leans and Washington.
684
00:48:53,000 --> 00:48:56,000
So that article was published in July of 1974.
685
00:48:56,000 --> 00:49:02,000
So I think that was probably a pre release before the wide release in August on December 12th 1975.
686
00:49:02,000 --> 00:49:13,000
A variety announced that Macon County Line was the highest grossing film in the IP's history earning $35 million in domestic box office receipts and $11 million in domestic film rentals.
687
00:49:13,000 --> 00:49:16,000
According to the January 16th 1975 New York Times review.
688
00:49:16,000 --> 00:49:20,000
The picture had already grossed $8 million before it opened in New York City.
689
00:49:20,000 --> 00:49:27,000
The film received mixed generally positive reviews and brothers Alan and Jesse Vint were widely acclaimed for their performances.
690
00:49:27,000 --> 00:49:38,000
The film's production budget of $225,000 which doesn't count what it costs to distribute the film made it reportedly the single most profitable film of 1974.
691
00:49:38,000 --> 00:49:42,000
That's of all movies not just AIP movies in cost to gross ratio.
692
00:49:42,000 --> 00:49:47,000
It earned $18.8 million in North America and over 30 million worldwide.
693
00:49:47,000 --> 00:49:56,000
It was the largest grossing film per dollar invested of all time and it retained that title until the release of the Blair Witch Project in 1999.
694
00:49:56,000 --> 00:50:04,000
Return to Macon County, a semi-sequel to this film also written directed by Richard Compton released in 1975 star Nick Nulty and Don Johnson.
695
00:50:04,000 --> 00:50:11,000
Samuel Arkoff got a presents credit on that film and despite having nothing to do with the film, Baer had profit participation according to box office.
696
00:50:11,000 --> 00:50:21,000
Macon County line is one of several so-called driving flicks that were presented as true stories, a la The Legend of Boggy Creek 1972, Walking Tall 1973.
697
00:50:21,000 --> 00:50:28,000
The Texas Chainsaw massacre in 1974 and Jackson County jail 1976 and the town that dreaded sundown 1976.
698
00:50:28,000 --> 00:50:41,000
In each case, most if not all of what was portrayed on the screen was outright fiction with the exception of the town that dreaded sundown which took inspiration from the fan killer murders in Texas in 1946 and then abolished the actual murders to make them more cinematic.
699
00:50:41,000 --> 00:50:45,000
Macon County Line earned $10 million in rentals in North America.
700
00:50:45,000 --> 00:50:58,000
Anchor Bay released the film on both VHS and DVD in February of 2000. The DVD release included an audio commentary with director Richard Compton and the feature at Macon County Line 25 years down the road.
701
00:50:58,000 --> 00:51:05,000
And both of those extras also appear on the Shout Select blu-ray edition of Macon County Line from shout factory.
702
00:51:05,000 --> 00:51:15,000
So let's talk about where we've seen the Macon County line cast and other AIP productions. Alan Vint, who played Chris Dixon, was in The Unholy Rollers in 1972.
703
00:51:15,000 --> 00:51:22,000
Cheryl Waters, who portrayed Jenny Scott, who had next appear in Rape Squad aka Act of Vengeance in 1974.
704
00:51:22,000 --> 00:51:30,000
Max Baer Jr, who is deputy Reed Morgan, would go on to appear in The Wild McCullochs in 1975 which he also produced.
705
00:51:30,000 --> 00:51:38,000
Geoffrey Lewis who played Hamp had previously appeared in Dillinger the year before 1973.
706
00:51:38,000 --> 00:51:44,000
And Jesse Vint the other Dixon boy, Wayne, would go on to appear in Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw in 1976.
707
00:51:44,000 --> 00:51:51,000
Timothy Scott who played Lon Hawkins also appeared in The Wild McCullochs in 1975.
708
00:51:51,000 --> 00:51:57,000
Along with James Gammon, who played Elisha Gibbons. Apparently the two of them were very good friends and appeared in a lot of things together.
709
00:51:57,000 --> 00:52:03,000
He was in The Wild McCullochs in 1975 and also would go on to be in Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw in 1976.
710
00:52:03,000 --> 00:52:09,000
Leif Garrett who played Luke Morgan had appeared in the three Walking Tall films.
711
00:52:09,000 --> 00:52:15,000
The first release in 1973 by Cinerama releasing would be re-released by AIP in 1974.
712
00:52:15,000 --> 00:52:21,000
Part Two: Walking Tall came out in 1975 and Final Chapter: Walking Tall in 1977.
713
00:52:21,000 --> 00:52:32,000
He also became quite the teen idol as we all know. Doodles Weaver who played Augie had appeared in Hot Rod Gang way back in 1958 and was also one of the cast of the wild McCulles in 1975.
714
00:52:32,000 --> 00:52:35,000
And that same year he appeared in Six Pack Annie.
715
00:52:35,000 --> 00:52:42,000
Jay Adler who played the in-pound yard man had appeared in Runaway Daughters back in 1956.
716
00:52:42,000 --> 00:52:49,000
Producer Roger Campras who was the man in the car who hit on Jenny gave himself another cameo in The Wild McCullochs in 1975.
717
00:52:49,000 --> 00:52:55,000
And finally Edward Cross who played Ed and I'm not sure who Ed was I think he might have been in the diner at the beginning.
718
00:52:55,000 --> 00:52:59,000
We never mentioned him. He's probably the guy who's at the cash register complaining.
719
00:52:59,000 --> 00:53:03,000
Maybe we'll find him when we get around to discussing Foxy Brown from 1974.
720
00:53:03,000 --> 00:53:09,000
So Cheryl I think that's all we have on making County line except for our own opinions.
721
00:53:09,000 --> 00:53:14,000
So using our AIP scale where A is awesome, I is intermediate and piece pathetic.
722
00:53:14,000 --> 00:53:17,000
How do you rate Macon County Line?
723
00:53:17,000 --> 00:53:23,000
Watching this movie I started to wonder could it be that AIP attaches name to a genuinely good movie?
724
00:53:23,000 --> 00:53:29,000
Not only did Macon County Line get good reviews, it did exceedingly well at the box office.
725
00:53:29,000 --> 00:53:31,000
Should we even be talking about this movie?
726
00:53:31,000 --> 00:53:38,000
So many of AIP's films land in the so bad it's good bucket and a good many more qualify is just plain bad.
727
00:53:38,000 --> 00:53:44,000
So I enjoyed the unfamiliar sensation of watching a movie for this podcast that had so much going for it.
728
00:53:44,000 --> 00:53:48,000
For starters, I thought the story was very well thought out at the beginning of the film.
729
00:53:48,000 --> 00:53:53,000
The audience feels like it's looking at a rolleking road trip as to rowdy, randy brothers from up north
730
00:53:53,000 --> 00:53:59,000
shag and steal their way through some southern burgs picking up a game female companion along the way.
731
00:53:59,000 --> 00:54:07,000
But it's not long before the movie turns menacing the beauty of the script though is in how subtly the tide turns against the three.
732
00:54:07,000 --> 00:54:12,000
And that menace believe it or not is delivered by Jethro Bodine.
733
00:54:12,000 --> 00:54:18,000
If anyone listening grew up watching the Beverly Hillbillies like I did you may have written Max Baer off as an actor.
734
00:54:18,000 --> 00:54:24,000
Jethro the character may have been an entertaining lunkheaded hayseed but he was still a lunkheaded hayseed.
735
00:54:24,000 --> 00:54:31,000
I would have been hard pressed to imagine Jethro or Max Baer portraying his nuanced character as he does here.
736
00:54:31,000 --> 00:54:37,000
Not only that, but he co-wrote the script so we have him to thank for the story at least in part.
737
00:54:37,000 --> 00:54:47,000
Baer plays Morgan as a person who absolutely believes in his own goodness without dwelling at all on how that goodness is reserved for only the people that he believes are like him.
738
00:54:47,000 --> 00:54:55,000
For outsiders, whether it's a couple of northern kids or black folks, well, Deputy Reed has an entirely different persona.
739
00:54:55,000 --> 00:55:01,000
And Baer does a stellar job of playing both sides of Morgan without a trace of cognitive dissonance between the two.
740
00:55:01,000 --> 00:55:07,000
There are other great performances in the movie to notably Geoffrey Lewis who is an absolute delight as Hamp.
741
00:55:07,000 --> 00:55:15,000
As we said from the director's commentary, he improvised a lot of the stage business and some of his dialogue and he is just wonderful.
742
00:55:15,000 --> 00:55:23,000
I think the Vint brothers are also good, not as good as Baer or Lewis, but they have to carry a big portion of the film and they have to make us care about them.
743
00:55:23,000 --> 00:55:25,000
And they do that very effectively.
744
00:55:25,000 --> 00:55:30,000
Their characters aren't great guys, but they're also not bad guys and they certainly didn't deserve what happened to them.
745
00:55:30,000 --> 00:55:33,000
Sam Gilman as Deputy Bill is also very good in this.
746
00:55:33,000 --> 00:55:41,000
And though James Gammon and Timothy Scott were despicable creepy criminals in the movie, I thought they were very good at being criminally creepy.
747
00:55:41,000 --> 00:55:48,000
I also thought the film was beautifully shot, especially the scenes where Chris and Wayne are walking out to the impound not to retrieve their car.
748
00:55:48,000 --> 00:55:59,000
That scene was filmed on a road as a sun rose behind them and the light and the color perfectly represent the hopefulness the brothers and we in the audience feel at the beginning of the movie.
749
00:55:59,000 --> 00:56:02,000
I also think Compton did a great job of location scouting.
750
00:56:02,000 --> 00:56:08,000
I really thought it was set in the south and was surprised to find out it was in California that shows how much I know.
751
00:56:08,000 --> 00:56:10,000
Now it's not a perfect film of course.
752
00:56:10,000 --> 00:56:15,000
The film's two contrivances, the pretense that it's based on a true story and the twist ending.
753
00:56:15,000 --> 00:56:21,000
I don't really think they're necessary and they kind of detract from what is otherwise a gripping and tragic story.
754
00:56:21,000 --> 00:56:33,000
I think if they found a way to work around the plot's conveniences where the killers, Wayne, Chris and Jenny all stop at the same house on the same night at the very same time, it could have been a stronger script.
755
00:56:33,000 --> 00:56:40,000
I think there was a way to rework the ending of the script so that Reed came on the boat to kill Wayne and Jenny just like we expected he would.
756
00:56:40,000 --> 00:56:42,000
And then have Luke kill his dad.
757
00:56:42,000 --> 00:56:50,000
I think that would give us a shocking ending, but they wouldn't go full M. Night Shyamalan where they deliver a twist ending just for the sake of having a twist.
758
00:56:50,000 --> 00:56:53,000
Still, I very much enjoyed the trip to make and county line.
759
00:56:53,000 --> 00:56:57,000
I think the story will stay with me a long time as sad as it is.
760
00:56:57,000 --> 00:57:01,000
And I think that's a good thing. I'm giving this an A. What do you think Jeff?
761
00:57:01,000 --> 00:57:05,000
Well, to me, making county line feels very much like a product of the 70s.
762
00:57:05,000 --> 00:57:12,000
And that's not to say that it's dated. The films of the 70s just have a unique style and feel to them that had been lost in the era of home video.
763
00:57:12,000 --> 00:57:21,000
Placing the setting of the film in the 1950s doesn't change that. This story could just as easily have been set in the 70s and very little would have had to have been changed.
764
00:57:21,000 --> 00:57:27,000
It's my understanding that the only reason this is set in the 50s was to add production value to a very, very low budget film.
765
00:57:27,000 --> 00:57:34,000
They were able to acquire a bunch of older cars fairly inexpensively would be the equivalent gathering cars from 1999 to 2000 today.
766
00:57:34,000 --> 00:57:39,000
And this along with the soundtrack helped to recreate the time frame, which is the setting for Macon County Line.
767
00:57:39,000 --> 00:57:48,000
When I said that the movies the 70s had their own style, of course there are exceptions, but many of what are considered to be the greater films of the era have few things in common with making county line.
768
00:57:48,000 --> 00:57:54,000
The story starts really slow. The viewer needs to meet and learn about the characters before they're thrown into the drama of the story.
769
00:57:54,000 --> 00:58:01,000
And we do this through long stretches of the dialogue that usually reveals character, but often does nothing to advance the plot itself.
770
00:58:01,000 --> 00:58:12,000
To put this into perspective, it's a device that today's viewer would tell them how the patients for though quite in Tarantino frequently uses this device only instead of the characters telling dry tales of what they did last week.
771
00:58:12,000 --> 00:58:18,000
These devices at the dialogue with references to pop culture, which makes them more interesting and accessible to a wider audience.
772
00:58:18,000 --> 00:58:28,000
And because he was able to notice this device properly from the hundreds of hours spent watching and studying these films and then exploited so successfully in his own material Tarantino is praised as a great writer.
773
00:58:28,000 --> 00:58:35,000
But back to making county line now there are some instances where actions speak louder than words in terms of Chris and Wayne's character development.
774
00:58:35,000 --> 00:58:43,000
The opening sequence with the prostitute and the following went at the diner where they dine in ditch and tie the cop cars together certainly gives us some insight into their characters.
775
00:58:43,000 --> 00:58:50,000
But we don't really get to know any of their motivations until Chris reveals their story to Jenny after they pick her up.
776
00:58:50,000 --> 00:58:53,000
And speaking of Jenny, we never do learn much about her.
777
00:58:53,000 --> 00:58:59,000
We know that she's 20 years old, she's going back to her hometown of Dallas and the reason why she's leaving wherever she was.
778
00:58:59,000 --> 00:59:01,000
But that's it and it really doesn't matter.
779
00:59:01,000 --> 00:59:03,000
Jenny is literally just along for the ride.
780
00:59:03,000 --> 00:59:07,000
The heart of this movie is the sequence with Hamp at Douglas Lubrication.
781
00:59:07,000 --> 00:59:13,000
The first three minutes is the dialogue between Hamp and Augie about the potential trade for the mayor.
782
00:59:13,000 --> 00:59:17,000
This does nothing at all to advance the plot, but it does serve to purposes.
783
00:59:17,000 --> 00:59:25,000
It gives the viewer insight into Hampt's character and it drives home the fact to Chris, Wayne and Jenny and the viewer that they are stuck in Hicksville.
784
00:59:25,000 --> 00:59:32,000
The entire sequence with the cutaways takes about 12 minutes of screen time, which is a big chunk of an 88 minute movie.
785
00:59:32,000 --> 00:59:36,000
And during this time, nothing in port really seems to happen.
786
00:59:36,000 --> 00:59:40,000
Yet a lot does happen during this time when Kristen Wayne attempt to barter with Hampt.
787
00:59:40,000 --> 00:59:47,000
After seeing his earlier exchange with Augie, they know this is something he might be open to and Chris tells Wayne to get the gun.
788
00:59:47,000 --> 00:59:49,000
We don't know what's going to happen next.
789
00:59:49,000 --> 00:59:53,000
We've only started to learn about these characters and we don't know what they're capable of.
790
00:59:53,000 --> 00:59:58,000
At this point, I still had no idea where the story was going to go, so I felt the same uncertainty.
791
00:59:58,000 --> 01:00:00,000
Hamp must have felt as the situation unfolded.
792
01:00:00,000 --> 01:00:07,000
And this sequence also serves as the official start of the film as all the pieces are placed in position for the rest of the film to play out.
793
01:00:07,000 --> 01:00:13,000
Chris, Wayne, Jenny, Reed, Lon and Elisha are all in the same place at the same time.
794
01:00:13,000 --> 01:00:18,000
Reed, Lon and Alicia are all given the head start while the others have to wait for Hamp to jerryrig the car.
795
01:00:18,000 --> 01:00:23,000
But he does this and by doing so, essentially, waves the checkered flag to set the story into motion.
796
01:00:23,000 --> 01:00:28,000
Macon County Line has an obvious three-act structure with the lines between them clearly delineated.
797
01:00:28,000 --> 01:00:32,000
Act 1 is everything that happens before Chris, Wayne and Jenny arrive at Hamp's.
798
01:00:32,000 --> 01:00:37,000
And Act 2 continues until Reed arrives home with Luke to discover his wife has been murdered.
799
01:00:37,000 --> 01:00:40,000
And then we go into Act 3 and the resolution plays out.
800
01:00:40,000 --> 01:00:42,000
One thing that struck me about this film was the camera work.
801
01:00:42,000 --> 01:00:44,000
There's a lot of interesting camera work going on here.
802
01:00:44,000 --> 01:00:47,000
There's a lot of zooms, but they're not intrusive.
803
01:00:47,000 --> 01:00:52,000
There's a lot of unusual pans and they're revealing.
804
01:00:52,000 --> 01:00:55,000
And again, it's not jarring the way it's done. It's done very well.
805
01:00:55,000 --> 01:00:59,000
Well take that along with the lighting. This is just an impressive work all together.
806
01:00:59,000 --> 01:01:02,000
The first time I watched the movie, I wasn't sure how I felt about it.
807
01:01:02,000 --> 01:01:05,000
But that's my initial reaction to a lot of films made in the 70s.
808
01:01:05,000 --> 01:01:08,000
There aren't always happy endings. There may be loose ends.
809
01:01:08,000 --> 01:01:10,000
And they're very true to life in that regard.
810
01:01:10,000 --> 01:01:14,000
The filmmakers deemed it necessary to add that true story disclaimer at the beginning of the film.
811
01:01:14,000 --> 01:01:18,000
But I don't know that that would have affected my feelings of the film.
812
01:01:18,000 --> 01:01:23,000
It's difficult to say for sure because I already knew that the story wasn't true before seeing it the first time.
813
01:01:23,000 --> 01:01:27,000
But when I watch a movie, I'm already prepared to suspend my disbelief.
814
01:01:27,000 --> 01:01:32,000
So even though the circumstances of events rely heavily on coincidence, I may have been okay with that.
815
01:01:32,000 --> 01:01:36,000
But after watching this movie three times during the past week, once with the commentary track,
816
01:01:36,000 --> 01:01:38,000
I found this to be a great little film.
817
01:01:38,000 --> 01:01:40,000
And I can certainly see why audiences flock to see it.
818
01:01:40,000 --> 01:01:44,000
And I'm sure AIP's distribution experiment didn't hurt with that either.
819
01:01:44,000 --> 01:01:48,000
So I'm going to agree with you and give Macon County line an awesome rating of A.
820
01:01:48,000 --> 01:01:49,000
Great. We agreed.
821
01:01:49,000 --> 01:01:52,000
So it may not have worked out for all the characters involved,
822
01:01:52,000 --> 01:01:55,000
but I think that you and I have successfully crossed the Macon County Line.
823
01:01:55,000 --> 01:02:00,000
And we were going to bring this episode to a close until we Return to Macon County.
824
01:02:00,000 --> 01:02:03,000
But that's for the future until the next episode.
825
01:02:03,000 --> 01:02:08,000
I'm Jeff Markin and I'm Cheryl Lightfoot and we'll meet you at the drive in.
826
01:02:08,000 --> 01:02:12,000
Follow the American International Podcast on Instagram and Letterboxd
827
01:02:12,000 --> 01:02:20,000
@aip_pod and on Facebook at facebook.com/americaninternationalpodcast
828
01:02:20,000 --> 01:02:24,000
The American International Podcast is produced and edited by Jeff Markin.
829
01:02:24,000 --> 01:02:27,000
A man whose mind is distorted by hatred.
830
01:02:27,000 --> 01:02:28,000
And Cheryl Lightfoot.
831
01:02:28,000 --> 01:02:31,000
A girl hungry for too many things.
832
01:02:31,000 --> 01:02:45,000
The American International Podcast is part of the Pop Culture Entertainment Network.
833
01:02:45,000 --> 01:02:47,000
[Music]
834
01:02:47,000 --> 01:02:57,000
[Music]