The Great Santini (1979)

Director: Lewis John Carlino
Starring: Robert Duvall, Blythe Danner, Michael O'Keefe

Synopsis:
Marine fighter pilot LTC "Bull" Meechum is assigned to command an underperforming squadron and whip him into shape. He and his family move to South Carolina, but his aggressive competitiveness and imperious behavior strain relations to their breaking point, especially with his son Ben who struggles with his induction into manhood in the shadow of his relentless alpha dog father.

Impressions:
I've heard about The Great Santini for a long time and have only recently had the chance to see it for myself. It's a good movie and certainly worth seeing, but, man, is it ever a difficult watch. The average civilian may not have much sympathy for the elder Meechum, but as a military man myself (albeit a short-serving and slacktastical one), I certainly feel sympathy for him even though most the things he does are terrible. I suppose the movie is more Ben's story, but I would certainly argue that Bull is the deuteragonist at least (though you may feel there's more agonia to his long-suffering wife Lillian or the largely overlooked elder daughter Mary Anne).

If you don't like watching intense interpersonal conflict, this may not be the movie for you, but if you can take it, there's some great character study to be had. The performances are solid across the board, but a particular hat-tip goes to Duvall for knocking it out of the park as Bull Meechum.

Rating:
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