Word: santini
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...year of dreadful films, we suddenly have a choice of several (Resurrection, Santini)--but they don't just triumph by default. Ordinary People, especially, would stand out in the best of years...
...olio of extremes. The film swerves between irony and sentimentality, human drama and melodrama, powerful acting and shameless hammery-sometimes in the same sequence or shot. Screenwriter Carlino and Director Petrie have previously worked in the genres of sci-fi schizophrenia (Seconds and Sybil) and domestic conflict (The Great Santini and Eleanor and Franklin). Here, they have tried to blend the two forms, but the film does not always gel. The problem may stem from a lack of faith in its "small," challenging story. When in doubt, Carlino inserts a violent climax, or Petrie thrusts Edna Mae into an afterlife...
What is most likely to upset people who see Santini is the refusal, as in life, of its volatile mix of comedy and tragedy to fall into a convenient narrative pattern. That and the lack of superstar names probably explain the film's failure in six test markets, prompting Orion to sell it to cable before they could be persuaded to give it a New York opening. Thanks to the huge success of that engagement, you may at last get your chance to see it in a local theatre...
...Santini isn't his real name; it's the nom de guerre (literally) of "Bull" Meecham, Marine colonel, pilot extraordinaire, drunk and practical joker, outrageous egomaniac, and father of a large family which he likes to run like a boot camp. Ben, his oldest boy, is a gentle soul who's beginning to chafe under the discipline, to say nothing of his father's determination to mold him in his own macho image...
...Great Santini successfully contrasts the personal and military confidence of the late fifties and early sixties with the widespread concern and growing doubt of the eighties about American supremacy. But the bramble of conflicting, supposedly interlocking themes, and technical difficulties dimish the impact of the work. The Great Santini could be a fascinating way to spend a few hours, but don't be surprised if you get lost, or if you wind up back where you started...