On Y List of Movie Reviews
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The Young Savages (1961)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
6/24
6/24:
Hey, I like Burt Lancaster, but this is so ridiculous.
The Young Savages is the most liberal piece of shit I've seen in my life. The introduction showed three males killing
a blind boy. That's it...it's an open-and-shut case. There's nothing else to talk about. Excuses, motives, bad childhood years,
low IQ, irrelevant lines of questioning, etc., have virtually no meaning here. Produce the witnesses and the weapons in court,
and point out the killers. That's it. Takes a half-day to be done with the whole thing once and for all.
But noooo...Burt, the worst prosecutor ever in cinema history who should've worn a sign that says "Hey, I work for the defense,
not the state," just wants to get to the truth. The truth...the truth...arrrrrrggghhhh. Okay, here it is: these kids are animals
and need to be put down. Even my cats behave better than them. By the way, does his boss look like the spitting image of Nelson
Rockefeller? He would be the last governor ever to carry out the death penalty in the state of New York. At least, he died of a
heart attack while fucking his mistress. Now, that's what I call funny!
The Young Savages has high production values, but it's a mistake to show the murder; just let that be described orally during
the trial. I applaud filmmakers for getting authentic people from minority groups. Best of all is the avant-garde black-and-white
photography. The film is notable for Telly Savalas' first on-screen appearance.
As one of the three killers, John Davis Chandler could've played Peter Lorre in a biopic for all I know.
Interestingly enough, Neil Nephew, who has the role of a low IQ kid, used to be married to Ellen McRae, having raped her once. He
stalked her so badly that they divorced. He committed suicide six years afterwards. Neil actually had schizophrenia. It was during
this marriage that Ellen McRae changed her name to Ellen Burstyn. Oddly, Neil also did the same for himself.
Here's a fun fact. This is the film that Sydney Pollack got noticed by Burt Lancaster. As a dialogue coach, he worked with Shelley
Winters and various young stars to rehearse for their roles. After liking what Sydney Pollack did, Burt Lancaster told him that he
should become a director, and he would go on to do many films such as
They Shoot Horses, Don't They?,
Tootsie, and Out of Africa.
All in all, The Young Savages might look good on paper, but it's a very manipulative film.