The Great Santini

Improved With Age
For those of you who are old enough, you probably know the feeling of disappointment whenever you view a film by which you were impressed many years earlier and find that it has not "aged" well. I was wary that that might be the case with The Great Santini because I had not seen it since it was released over twenty years ago. Instead, I found just the opposite for it remains an excellent film with excellent acting.

Has Robert Duvall ever given a less-than-superior performance? I'm sure not, and I was far more able to appreciate his portrayal of Bull Meechum the martinet head of the family for, with age, comes shades of gray not only in your hair but in your viewpoints. I hated Bull Meechum twenty years ago but am now better able to sympathize with this man who only knows how to express emotion through rage or bravado.

Blythe Danner as the strong-willed mother who is the emotional rock of the family is another excellent actor who is a treat to watch. She...

Amazing Plot, Superb Script, And Sublime Acting From A Brilliant Cast
I saw "The Great Santini" in the theatre in 1979 when it was first released. I always thought that Warner Brothers did a huge disservice to the film by retaining the original Pat Conroy book title (although the later re-release as "the Ace" also fails to inspire.) Despite the somewhat lackluster title, this is an absolutely superb film when viewed on many levels. I was originally interested in the film because of the aviation context, but that really only provides a medium for Robert Duvall to develop the character of Bull Meechum.

The real story here revolves around family and interpersonal dynamics in an early 1960s military family. Duvall gives a stunning performance in the title role as a hard charging Marine fighter pilot who finds expressions of affection next to impossible. Although a PG rated film, the language and violence (there is no nudity) are not excessive and are only used when necessary to further the plot (largely in the anti-racism subplot.) Despite this...

Bad Quality DVD
Once again Warner Brothers Takes a good film and doesn't bother trying to find a good master copy in order to do a decent transfer. What is it with them? It's bad enough that they have cheap cardboard covers let alone not even bothering trying to at least have decent copies.
This is a good film and deserved better treatment. SHAME ON WARNER BROTHERS AND THEIR CHEAP TREATMENT OF GOOD FILMS!

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