VideoDisc
20th Century Fox Video
"Junior Bonner"
Winner Academy Award
RCA VIDEODISC
CED :: Capacitance Electronic Disc System
Rated PG
103 Minutes / Color
© 1972 ABC Pictures International, Inc.
© 1972 Twentieth Century-Fox Video, Inc.
Starring:
Steve McQueen
Robert Preston
Ida Lupino
" The first teaming of superstar Steve McQueen and super-director Sam Peckinpah had film critics and audiences aglow with
excitement in 1972. McQueen, known for his action roles, and Peckinpah, were bound to come up with a super-special film.
And they did with JUNIOR BONNER. But it was not the film many expected. Instead of a hard-nosed, tough-guy picture,
JUNIOR BONNER was a lyrical elegy, a moving character study. But to those sensitive to Peckinpah's themes in his earlier
films, JUNIOR BONNER was very much in keeping with the director's best work, for JUNIOR BONNER is a probing examination
of a man out if his time. Many acclaimed JUNIOR BONNER as a true human comedy and accepted it into Peckinpah's canon
of genuine masterpieces.
Seen today, JUNIOR BONNER takes on an even more importance, more poignancy, then when it was first released. The untimely
passing of Steve McQueen, a man whose life was as exciting, as dynamic, as his film roles, lends JUNIOR BONNER a nostalgic,
almost mystical air. Too, this film about one of the last of a fading breed of men might also be seen as Peckinpah's
autobiography. Peckinpah's problems in making and releasing films according to his own standards have become legenday.
JUNIOR BONNER, one of the rare times a film corresponds exactly to his wishes, becomes, then, a comment about how hard
it is for the likes of men like McQueen and Peckinpah to live in today's world.
JUNIOR BONNER is the story of an aging rodeo rider, a man nearing 40 who wants to retire with dignity. McQueen, in the
title role, is then, a typical Peckinpah hero - a man out of step with the changing times but who nevertheless clings
to the values and traditions of the past. Junior's championship days are numbered and he knows it, but rather than give
up he determines to go out a winner. Junior takes after his father, Ace, (Robert Preston) himself a former rodeo champ, a
man beloved as a kind of living legend around Prescott, Arizona, home of one of America's most popular annual Rodeo
Celebrations. Ace, and Junior, are authentic relics of the bygone days of the frontier,...true Westerners. Unfortunately,
besides functioning as local legends, neither Ace nor Junior is really much of a success, something Curly Bonner (Joe
Don Baker) likes to point out. If Junior is the best of the Old West, his brother Curly is the worst of the New -
a businessman who trades on the symbolism of the Frontier. Curly supports the family alright, but he trains on the
reputations of Ace and Junior to do so. Junior Bonner, like the film, surely qualifies on that score. "
Used videodisc.
This item is approximately the size of a large record (over 12" x 12")
It has not been tested and has some wear to the label.
The plastic part is slightly yellowed and dirty.
It will be an AS IS sale.
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