The Carpetbaggers (1964)

Absolutely Fantastic

Absolutely brilliant

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

This movie is truly a classic in the sense that old Hollywood is a classic itself. George Peppard is the son of an alcoholic father who is married to a beautiful young wife played oh so good by Carroll Baker. She is lusty and trashy and in love with Jonas. The father dies and he inherits all the movie business, and turns it into an empire at the cost of everyone and everything. It was wonderful to see all the stars in this movie, Lew Ayres, Bob Cummings, Martin Balsam, and the remarkable Alan Ladd. Ladd practically steals the show with his portrayal of the down on his luck silent western star. Since Jonas wants Carroll Baker for himself, and she decides to marry Ladd, he sets her up in a movie with Ladd and she becomes a major star. Jonas marries Elizabeth Ashley and drives her away only to find that in the end it is he not anyone else, to blame for his terrible existence. The final scene between Ladd and Peppard is movie magic. Ladd should have received a well deserved Oscar for his performance. To those that thought he looked puffy and aged, I disagree. He was perfectly cast and it was his last and finest performance.

This is the most successful of all the Harold Robbins adaptations (Though for my money "The Adventurers" is the most fun). Made at at a time when the movie industry was trying to shake off the strictures of the production code, "The Carpetbaggers" has an odd feel to it as director Demytryk and screenwriter Hayes struggle to bring some of Robbins sexed-up material to the screen. Thus we are subject to scenes where the lead characters walk off screen while we get to stare at an empty set as they cavort verbally.What makes this film work is the casting and the performances. Carol Baker drawls out her Jean Harlow-like lines spilling out of Edith Head gowns and looking great. Elizabeth Ashley is a standout as the one "good" character in the piece - the long suffering wife of the Howard Hughes surrogate Jonas Cord.As Jonas Cord, George Peppard starts out a little weakly, but as the film goes on and he becomes more and more soulless the performance starts to work - with his malevolent yet dead stare making an impact. Martha Hyer, Bob Cummings and a very tired-looking Alan Ladd are also fine in their roles.This is a great example of a 1960's best-seller adaptation. The direction, though stolid moves the story along and the great set design,photography and costumes are evocative of the period of the story (pre WWII). The one element that I found unforgivable was the rather abrupt happy ending which is true to neither the spirit of the Harold Robbins novel nor the 149 minutes of film which came before it.

This is an extremely long story about a Howard Hughes-type mogul, and what the filmmakers think made/makes him tick: which, I'm guessing, is that he had a horrible "Rosebud"-feeling about the death of his brother. Mr. Hughes was alive when this movie came out, so I hope he got a good laugh out of "The Carpetbaggers".It looks like a ton of money was wasted on this production. The most interesting subplot was the story of washed-up silent movie actor suffering through the introduction of "talkies". The main problem is that I don't care about these characters. I didn't get the madness fear until a couple of hours of watching. This was, at times, mildly interesting. I will never sit thru this movie again and I feel very good with that knowledge.I read this movie was advertised as "For Adults Only". It appears to be aimed at movie audiences who desire lurid sexual situations, but consider themselves above actual "adult entertainment". Interestingly, this reflects one aspect of Mr. Peppard's character. Maybe, in the mid-1960s, non-adults would have a curiosity about this film, but you won't have to worry about children bothering to sit through this one today. ***** The Carpetbaggers (1964) Edward Dmytryk ~ George Peppard, Carroll Baker, Alan Ladd

Why anyone would bother to tell the Howard Hughes story and change all the names is anyone's guess, but here it is. THE CARPETBAGGERS is way over the top entertainment that somehow manages to skirt campiness despite casting George Peppard in the lead role. Never the most imaginative actor, Peppard is in virtually every scene and your tolerance for him will dictate how much fun you have watching this potboiler. The A-list supporting cast includes Lew Ayres, Alan Ladd, Martha Hyer, Elizabeth Ashley, and Martin Balsam. Carroll Baker appears briefly as Peppard's insanely too young stepmother and Bob Cummings is great as a shifty PR man. B-movie legend Audrey Totter has a great bit as a hooker who sets Peppard on the right road after a booze soaked binge. THE CARPETBAGGERS is directed by the hack Edward Dmytryk from the novel by Harold Robbins --- a match made in schlock heaven if ever there was one!