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Short Eyes (1977)

Rate: 8
Viewed: 1/21

ShortE
1/21: Gritty and realistic, Short Eyes is a hardcore jail picture that's disturbing to watch with a lot of actors from Miami Vice.

If its goal is to deter people from committing crimes by showing what jail life is like, then the message is effective. These characters are truly animals and belong there. I hope never to see or interact with them. They talk a lot of bullshit, too, for the sole purpose of fucking with people's minds.

In many ways, Short Eyes is a play, and it takes place in two rooms: cell block and multipurpose. The characters shift back and forth. There may be some overt physical violence, but the rest of it has been subtle in the psychological sense. Politics and race wars are dealt with as well.

The talks between Juan and Clark are weird. My opinion is they're like timeouts from reality which is similar to Tom Wingfield's soliloquies in The Glass Menagerie. The stuff Clark says is disturbing and not usual in movies.

Natural acting is evident, especially from Joseph Carberry, José Pérez, and Shawn Elliott as Shoe, Juan, and Paco, respectively. The guy with the glasses is Curtis Mayfield who's famous for composing the soundtrack for Super Fly. A very young-looking Luis Guzmán makes his screen debut. Well-known actors Bruce Davison and Mark Margolis are included, too. So is Joe Pesci, believe it or not.

The guy who had his arm broken between bars is Miguel Piñero who also wrote the play. He was in and out of jails and prisons for a long time; hence, I can see how this is a realistic movie. As life imitates art, Tito Goya, who plays Cupcakes, was later arrested for murder and died while out on bail pending the trial.

All in all, anyone who enjoyed Oz should see Short Eyes.