Dollars

I think heist films can unfairly get criticized at times. They're not quite low-brow, but there's something simple and straightforward about them. Now with that said, there have been some very talented directors who have taken a crack at a heist flick like Jean-Pierre Melville, Jules Dassin, Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino, and in a surprising twist, Richard Brooks in 1971's Dollars (also released as $).

An American banking consultant working in Hamburg, Germany, Joe Collins (Warren Beatty) has helped one highly respected and well-regarded bank install a state of the art security system. German banking allows individuals to keep security deposit boxes that no government or police enforcement agency can examine, a law that several shady characters are taking advantage of....and Joe knows it. He's working with a call girl, Dawn (Goldie Hawn), who has done some "recon work" to root out some of these shady types with deposit boxes at Joe's bank, and together the duo has found three such individuals. Joe knows all the ways around the newly-installed security features, but he also has an ace up his sleeve. If they can pull off the job, the victims aren't going to be able to go to the police with their stolen money now....well, stolen. If only they can pull it off.

I thought I was in for it early on in this Brooks-directed heist flick. The reviews I'd perused claimed this was a comedic-drama, a spoof of heist films. Spoofs? Oh, no, I'll pass thank you very much. With the cast and director involved though, I had to give it a chance. I was then even a little bit more confused when the movie starts, and it didn't feel like a spoof AT ALL. It seemed like the polar opposite, a twisting, turning story involving an opening segment with countless characters and situations that were completely unexplained. Who's that?!? What's he up to?!? I'm confused!!! Well, thankfully things right themselves, and this ended up being a very enjoyable, smart heist flick with just a touch of humor to keep things light.

In 1971, there weren't too many people around cooler than Warren Beatty. Okay, check that. That's true now too -- Beatty is awesome no matter the age, year -- but it was especially true in 1971. His cool was an effortless one, an ability to put an audience at ease almost at will. So while his part as Joe Collins isn't a flashy part, it's a cool part. He has a couple noteworthy scenes including his explanation of the intricate security system and later a rant about the science and percentages of bank robbing. As his co-star, Hawn was the weak link here. She's a little too shrill, a little too goofy for her own good. Cute as a button? Yes. As the duo's three targets, we've got Sarge (Scott Brady), a longtime Army soldier stationed in Germany working the black market, Attorney (Robert Webber), a lawyer who's been shorting a Las Vegas casino for years, and Candy Man (Arthur Brauss), a smuggler who specializes in everything from drugs to cash. Also worth mentioning is Auric Goldfinger himself, Gert Frobe, as the trusting bank manager Joe works with.

So while I liked this heist flick -- and more as it developed -- there's some flaws I have to bring up that bothered me. For one, the spoof criticism isn't valid in my mind. For the most part, it's a pretty serious movie. Why then have Little Richard sing two songs on the soundtrack? They feel out of place and reek of early product placement to me. I usually like composer Quincy Jones' soundtracks, but this one fell short for me. And then there's just the general weirdness. In one scene, we see Hawn's Dawn with Webber's character pre-hook-up. She dresses as a fireman to "put out his fire" while also spraying him with a water bottle. Maybe it's just the angle (and/or my dirty mind), but the angle Brooks chooses to shoot from sure makes it look like Miss Hawn is peeing on Mr. Webber. Oh, the Candy Man also gives his cat a dose of acid -- I suppose to see if its the real stuff....it is -- and disposes of the body in his apartment heater. Weird much?

Now that we've got that unpleasantness out of the way, let's get back to the positives. I liked that Brooks shot on location as much as possible in Hamburg, Germany and Sweden. It feels authentic. The best thing going though is two separate set pieces that help bring the movie up a notch or two. The first is the actual heist in Joe's bank vault. The plan is ingenious, and without giving away any spoilers, an extended sequence that is dripping with tension. Okay, here's a hint. He actually pulls the job with hundreds and thousands of people watching him do it. Confused? Don't be. It's a gem of a scene with a great payoff.

Then there's the finale. If an epically well-done and choreographed heist/robbery scene wasn't enough for you, the ending should satisfy your desire. Joe and Dawn are on the run with two of the three bad guys hot on their tails. In a sequence that runs an entire 30 minutes, we see a chase with barely 15 words spoken. It sounds simple, but a chase with two people chasing one person can be an incredibly exhilarating sequence to watch. No frills, no crazy twists, just one person running for his life with two people chasing him close behind. It rivals a similar chase in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid but with a seriously darker edge. It keeps going and going to the point you feel a little tired just watching it. Credit to Brooks, Beatty, Brady and Brauss for keeping the momentum going, never wavering at any point. A few oddities aside, I liked this one a lot. Highly recommended.

Dollars (1971): ***/****