Impasse

Released by: MGM Limited Edition Collection
Released on: December 6, 2011.
Director: Richard Benedict
Cast: Burt Reynolds, Anne Francis, Vic Diaz,
Year: 1969
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The Movie:

Directed by prolific TV director Richard Benedict in 1969, Impasse stars Burt Reynolds as a man named Pat Morrison, an American veteran now running a salvage business in Manila. When word gets out about a cache of gold that was hidden in the area during the Second World War to prevent invading Japanese forces from confiscating it, Pat teams up with a few buddies (Vic Diaz, Rodolfo Acosta and Lyle Bettger) to try and find. At the heart of all of this is a pro tennis player named Bobby Jones (Anne Francis), whose father (Clarke Gordon), has a heart condition but may also know about the gold's location.

After Bobbie inexplicably takes in a random hippie chick as a boarder, a sleazy reporter convinces her that her father, who she believes to be dead, is alive but won't give up the details unless she gives up the booty. Eventually, and not in the least bit surprisingly, Bobby and Pat cross paths and he falls for her - but there's still the matter of the gold, but before he can get to that he's going to have to deal with some kidnapping and some black mail and a few other nefarious plot twists!

There might be some rather massive plot holes in this movie, but Reynolds carries it well enough that you don't mind so much - this isn't the type of film you go into if you're looking for an original or well crafted plot anyway. While the movie may rely fairly heavily on heist movie clichés, Reynolds charisma and sense of humor keep things entertaining and if he and Anne Francis aren't exactly lighting the screen on fire with their relationship, at least she looks good even if her performance is more than a little bit wooden. Surprisingly, Filipino exploitation movie stalwart Vic Diaz gets more screen time than usual here and he's amusing enough in his part as he generally tends to be.

A large part of what makes Impasse work, however, is the scenery. Shot throughout the Manila area and in more remote areas of the Philippines, the film manages to create an interesting atmosphere particularly towards the end of the film where our small crew is heading up the hill to catch their prize while passing bombed out bunkers and empty military structures along the way. If nothing else, the scenery here is very atypical, showing us a seedier side of the tropics rather than the beaches and jungles American made films seem more inclined to show off.

Benedict's direction is decent in that he keeps the film moving at a good pace and coaxes decent work out of Reynolds, really the only one with a whole lot to do here. A few good action sequences stand out, some decent humor works its way into the plot maybe a little more often than you might want it to and the dialogue, courtesy of John C. Higgins' script works well. The end result might be a minor catalogue film rather than an unsung classic but it does what it does well and you can't fault it for that.

Video/Audio/Extras:


MGM's 1.85.1 anamorphic widescreen transfer presents the film in what we can safely assume is its proper theatrical aspect ratio and generally it looks quite good here. Detail is strong, color looks great and there's not much print damage at all outside of a speck here and there, and the consistent grain present throughout gives it a nice film like appearance. The disc is well authored, free of compression artifacts or edge enhancement and generally provides the movie with a strong picture.

The Dolby Digital Mono track, in the film's native English, is also fine. Levels are well balanced and there are no problems with hiss or distortion to report. Don't expect any subtitles or alternate language tracks, you'll be disappointed, but the audio is of perfectly good quality here, even if there's nothing particularly remarkable about it.

Extras include nothing except a static menu and chapter stops.

The Final Word:

Impasse isn't a classic by any stretch but it's entertaining enough and it features some fun work from Burt Reynolds and Vic Diaz and some nice eye candy from Anne Francis. The locations do this film a lot of good and help make up for the fact that the plot is pretty goofy. MGM's MOD/DVD-R release looks and sounds pretty decent but doesn't even include a trailer, sadly. Overall, this is a fun time killer if not much more than that.