Cabo Blanco (1980)

I love this movie so much

Must See Movie...

Fantastic!

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Laidback ex-patriot innkeeper Giff Hoyt (a nicely low-key performance by Charles Bronson) runs afoul of nefarious former Nazi Gunther Beckdorff (Jason Robards in fine crusty form) and falls for fetching French femme fatale Marie Claire Allesandri (a charming portrayal by the beauteous Dominique Sanda) while searching for sunken treasure in Peru in 1948.Director J. Lee Thompson, working from a convoluted and involving script by Mort Fine and Milton S. Gelman, relates the complex and compelling story at a steady pace, ably crafts a brooding film noir atmosphere, offers a flavorsome evocation of the exotic setting, stages the action scenes with skill and flair, and sprinkles in a satisfying smattering of pretty naked ladies for extra trashy good measure. The sturdy acting from the excellent cast helps a whole lot: Fernando Rey as suave, yet corrupt police chief Captain Terredo, Simon MacCorkindale as dashing sailor Lewis Clarkson, Camilla Sparv as washed-up booze-sodden floozy Hera, Gilbert Roland as alcoholic weakling Dr. Rudolfo Ramirez, James Booth as ill-fated diver John Baker, and Denny Miller as brutish flunky Hurst. Moreover, this movie deserves extra praise for being more plot and character driven than your average Bronson action opus. Jerry Goldsmith's zesty score hits the stirring and spirited spot. Alex Phillips Jr.'s sumptuous widescreen cinematography makes invigorating use of a constantly mobile camera. A worthwhile picture.

It seems like almost all Hollywood stars have to have their own version of Casablanca.Even Shakespeare plays must not have attracted so many varied 'interpretations'.Even Charles Bronson ?!But surprisingly the movie is still a typical Bronson movie. Factor in the nudity, the fights, the thrills, and the 'he-men' that populate your regular Bronson movie.I personally found the ending a bit'weak and maybe obscure'; but it helps to differentiate the movie from being a direct Casablanca copy. Overall, it stands up OK for die-hard Bronson fans.

Director J. Lee Thompson and actor Charles Bronson always made an interesting team, and this particular effort was the last one I needed to see. Compared with most of their collaborations in the 80s, this is a diamond in the rough and quite an off-kilter, old-fashion adventure / mystery story that sets out to be intriguing and creates a nice feel of the times, than anything relying on Bronson handing out nasty punishment. Well on that point, the violence when it does eventuate is surprisingly brutal, if quick and too the point. When it happens, it comes from nowhere. However Bronson is given a chance to spread his wings, and act with confidence and stalwart appeal. It's a terrifically surly, down-played performance by Chuck in a suitable heroine role. Working off Bronson is a tremendously solid cast. Jason Robards' is subtly powerful in a fine turn and Fernando Rey's sly style always amuses. Dominique Sanda displays a potently classy presence. The support cast rounding it off are just as good with Simon Mac Corkindale, Dennis Millar, Clifton James and Camilla Sparv.Looming from the presentation is a film-noir tone, and I don't really get the 'Casablanca' references (from it being a rip-off to an unfunny spoof) made about it. There's no denying it's rather talky though, but the script is involving and smartly weaved together. This works due to the screenplay having a busy (if muddled) plot and still keeping a breezy (almost brooding) air to it. Some contrived, and convenient actions occur, and the drama can seem a little uncertain. But it never becomes a worry. Also how they used the breathtakingly erotic Mexican backdrop in the action was accordingly staged and well-framed. Talk about nice sight seeing. The swirling, wide-screen camera-work had that ability to capture that organic sense of place, although the underwater shots came off terribly murky. Thompson's direction is undoubtedly workman-like, slow and effective on a much larger scale, despite the dreary look to its visual styling. Jerry Goldsmith's rousing melancholic score is picture-perfect. Everything boils up to an thrilling climax, as the calmness makes way for a stormy (literally) confrontations of two men, who share something in common, but how they go about things are entirely different. They have a past they like to forget, and this is their chance for that to happen and put away that lingering fear of something catching up.One of Bronson's interestingly obscure oddities, which unjustly flopped and deserves an audience.p.s I would love to see a good DVD print of this film, because the grainy VHS copy I rented doesn't do it any justice.

„Caboblanco" is not a bad movie, but you can easily divide its strengths and weaknesses. Fernando Rey and Jason Robards are the strongest actors. They both deliver great performances as they usually do. Charles Bronson does a solid job too. I think that he is often underrated as an actor, because of the decent quality of most of his movies. J. Lee Thompson directs this one in classy old-school-manner that could have produced a far better movie in case the script would have been above average, which it is not. The cinematography, the photography and the choice of locations are truly first rate. And J. Lee Thompson had the spirit and the feel of a director. He was born to do, what he did.Most of the supporting actors are pretty cool as well. But Dominique Sanda was a miscast. Her wooden and strangely impersonal acting did confuse me from the very beginning. She seems to be completely lost in nearly every scene and any suggestions of mystery to her character are not convincing at all. The chemistry between her and Cliff (Charles Bronson) doesn't work out at all and that's a pity, because everything else and everybody else seem so carefully chosen.But the main point to criticize is the script. It delivers some nice ideas, but too many loose ends and open questions. Why do scuba divers let the submarine explode that obvious, though they must have known, that the wreck was not the one everybody's looking for? Why did they kill the fisherman, who was diving for oysters for centuries? How come that Cliff was perfectly placed to rescue him, when the British agent Lewis was trying to escape through the jungle? These plot holes do not fit to an excellent script, which only could lead to an excellent movie. It's a pity, because Caboblanco already got many fine ingredients: competent actors, a perfect score by Jerry Goldsmith, marvelous locations and a stunning cinematography! In the end it's only a decent action flick worth watching once for fans of Charles Bronson and/or J. Lee Thompson.It's interesting to realize that the theatrical version of "Caboblanco" shown in Argentina is 15 minutes (!) longer than the one we watch nowadays in the US or Europe on DVD. My whole impression of the movie might have been influenced by the fact that it was heavily cut, which seems to be possible as soon I think of those "plot holes" I already mentioned. I think it's necessary to get that uncut 102 minute print to be published as soon as possible.Last but not least: Do not forget to check out the perfect Bronson/Thompson collaboration "Murphy's Law" (1986), which is the most underrated B-movie of the decade.