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Rating: 5 out of 5
“What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” We have all heard this quote before. Sometimes we want to say it to our kids, and sometimes we really want to say it to a co-worker who doesn’t seem to follow your instructions. I have heard this quote so often throughout my life and never really knew where it came from. I usually call it the “you ain’t listening quote.” I am pretty sure one of my teachers has said it to me quite a few times. Such a beautiful quote.
This gets me to the fantastic movie, Cool Hand Luke. Holy Shit, was this movie GREAT! This is actually my first time ever watching it, and I loved it. Actually, maybe a second time. I remember just one scene when I watched it with my dad, and it was the iconic eating egg scene, but I don’t count it because I saw that scene and moved on. Once again, this movie is FANTASTIC!! (A.F.I. stuff)
Directed by Stuart Rosenberg, Cool Hand Luke begins with Lucas Jackson (Newman) drunk as a skunk and cutting the heads off parking meters. The police roll up and arrest Luke on the spot. He is tried, convicted of destroying public property, and sentenced to two years in prison in Florida. When he arrives, the Warden, who is known as Captain, wonders why Luke, a decorated war veteran, ended up at his “fine” establishment. As time goes on, Luke doesn’t play by the rules of either the Captain or the yard’s leader, Dragline (Kennedy). After several incidents, Luke soon gains respect and becomes an idol among the prisoners. As time goes on, how much can this one man take in the face of hard times?
I honestly don’t know where to begin on how great this movie is. I could talk about the outstanding acting of Newman, Kennedy, and the rest of the cast. I could talk about the film’s overall atmosphere and how intense it was or how funny it was. I could talk about some of the elements and themes that were presented throughout the film. My brain could explode because of how good this film was, and it is one of those films that will stand the test of time and can be watched anytime, no matter how old it gets.
The central theme is the rise of Luke in prison to becoming an idol. Homeboy comes in with the charming smirk and spends one day in the chain gang and was like, I can make this place better. What is one thing they tell you about prison??? Sometimes fighting the biggest dawg in the place and let him know you the shit. After some heated words with Dragline, they have a boxing match. Well, Luke gets his ass handed to him, but the never give up attitude wears on Dragline and lights a spark under everyone. Luke gains respect from many of the inmates, Dragline, and the watchful eyes of the prison guards.
There are really two scenes that I think is amazing and shows how much everyone started to idolize him. The first one was when the chain gang has to shovel sand over a freshly tarred road. They look at the road and know it will be hell and probably never get done. Luke encourages the men with his attitude and tremendous energy and turns the shoveling into a competition. Homeboy throws that sand all over the road as everyone joins in, and when it is all said and done, they finish two hours early and take the rest of the day off for relaxation.
Now my FAVORITE scene and a bug flex from Luke was the egg-eating bet. Homeboy stated he could eat 50 eggs in an hour. Yep, you read that right. 50 freakin eggs!!! It was funny to see him run beforehand and do squats throughout. Homeboy’s belly grew so large like a potbelly pig. After it was all done, homeboy was spread over the table in exhaustion. Need to get the homeboy some Pepto cause he is going to need it.
I love how the film explores Luke’s emotional side and why he is such a rebel. It’s because of his dear ole mother. She is a very independent person, and he admired her ability to live life on her own terms. Luke tried to emulate her, but he got much different results. The most touching and emotional scene was when Luke received news of her passing. To watch him walk over to his bunk and sing a song dedicated to her is touching and sad. You see several tears run down his face. After the mother passes, that is when Luke had enough and attempts his escape.
I found it funny how Luke actually got his nickname, “Cool Hand.” It was literally the next day after getting his ass handed to him that Luke was playing poker with some other inmates. During the game, he pulls out seven dollars and continuously raises each hand and bluffs his way to winning with absolutely nothing in his hand and states, “Sometimes nothing can be a real cool hand.” Oh, just love that scene.
Now I want to talk about this before the cast. They said that the film has a few Christian imageries in it. The one is that Luke is a Saint that comes to the church and how the men idolize him just like men did with Jesus. Now maybe in 1968, I might’ve agreed with this but not today. To me, he is a person that wants to stick it to the man and doesn’t like authority too much. Another scene was when he finished the eggs and was lying on the table. Some said that this represented Jesus on the cross. I saw it as homeboy had a big meal, and his body couldn’t move anymore. Probably had some significant gas also but for real. You ever had a big meal and then laid out in bed.
Paul Newman was SPECTACULAR in his role as Luke. The dude was so cool and strong. Newman is perfect for the role because the dude had a dashing smile, bright blue eyes, and a cool tone about him. I guess that is why the character was named #30 on A.F.I. 100 Heroes. He just displayed this aura about himself that he was too cool for school. Even when it seemed like he conformed, he still rebelled to the very end.
George Kennedy, as Dragline, was another memorable character. Kennedy won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, and he deserved it. He was a hot-tempered person in the beginning to become someone that idolized Luke all the way until the end. He goes from saying you loudmouth to “Oh Luke, you wild, beautiful thing. You crazy handful of nothin’.”
Also, this film had a lot of people that you looked at and go, “I’ve seen that dude from somewhere.” One example is that the film had Dennis Hopper in it. I had to take a second look because he was so young and really didn’t have any lines. What about Harry Dean Stanton? If there is someone who seems to be in a lot of movies, it is Stanton.
Cool Hand Luke is a GREAT film that everyone should watch. Newman is excellent, along with the cast. Many of the scenes are fun to watch. If you don’t want to watch it for those reasons, then I guess “I had a failure to communicate” why you should.
