Electra Glide in Blue, a 1973 film notable for being director James William Guercio's debut film, stars Robert Blake and Billy "Green" Bush as two cops who attempt to fulfill their own dreams: John (Blake) - a promotion; Zipper (Bush) - a bike. This film has recently gained critical praise, despite the original derision towards it and the dismal box office numbers for a film of this caliber. It's also notable for being the beginning of the short-lived acting careers of many Chicago members (all four of them play minor-role hippies).
For the plot: in a nutshell, John wants to get a promotion while Zipper wants the best bike in the world. John gets his promotion (to detective's driver), but with an added price: either conform to what detective Harve says or to write tickets on a motorcycle. John, seeing what Harve does for confessions and to solve murder cases quick, gives up his dream to find another one, leading to his own death. As for Zipper, he steals something viable towards the case and buys his dream bike out of his childlike naivete.
For the actual critique itself: the film has some of the most inspired cinematography I have ever seen. Using wide shots to show how isolated John, Zipper, and Harve are, it also uses zoom outs to show how the soul leaves the body, not caring about its former life. With that, it overshadows the hokey acting and the deliberately loose plot (patterned after "Easy Rider") - making Guercio seem like a master of the camera on his first try.
The sound quality varies on the copy I watched: at points, the film seems so crystal clear while at other points, Zipper sounds muffled (1970s muffle) whenever he speaks his innermost fears. Is that deliberate on the sound crew's behalf, knowing Guercio's production work with Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire? As for other parts of the film, it worked good as a clash between the real and the fake, while being a tale against being a manchild.
Overall, I give the film an A- for trying so hard and working about 95% of the time. This film has to be seen - due to its obscurity, nobody gets why too much freedom can make somebody fake or make somebody real due to loneliness. Oh, and there's some good dry humor in here: Bob Zemko playing the man who doesn't know who Bob Zemko is; John displaying his skills as a conservative-really-liberal cop; and Zipper's obsession with comic books, especially "Pogo". It, to me, predicted the rise of Chicago's mediocrity (John is Guercio, Zipper is Chicago - as Zipper becomes dumber to get his dream, John matures astoundingly - and he's killed by Terry, who killed himself in 1978). Yeah, after some bad things, this film becomes quite symbolic of many things.
For the plot: in a nutshell, John wants to get a promotion while Zipper wants the best bike in the world. John gets his promotion (to detective's driver), but with an added price: either conform to what detective Harve says or to write tickets on a motorcycle. John, seeing what Harve does for confessions and to solve murder cases quick, gives up his dream to find another one, leading to his own death. As for Zipper, he steals something viable towards the case and buys his dream bike out of his childlike naivete.
For the actual critique itself: the film has some of the most inspired cinematography I have ever seen. Using wide shots to show how isolated John, Zipper, and Harve are, it also uses zoom outs to show how the soul leaves the body, not caring about its former life. With that, it overshadows the hokey acting and the deliberately loose plot (patterned after "Easy Rider") - making Guercio seem like a master of the camera on his first try.
The sound quality varies on the copy I watched: at points, the film seems so crystal clear while at other points, Zipper sounds muffled (1970s muffle) whenever he speaks his innermost fears. Is that deliberate on the sound crew's behalf, knowing Guercio's production work with Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire? As for other parts of the film, it worked good as a clash between the real and the fake, while being a tale against being a manchild.
Overall, I give the film an A- for trying so hard and working about 95% of the time. This film has to be seen - due to its obscurity, nobody gets why too much freedom can make somebody fake or make somebody real due to loneliness. Oh, and there's some good dry humor in here: Bob Zemko playing the man who doesn't know who Bob Zemko is; John displaying his skills as a conservative-really-liberal cop; and Zipper's obsession with comic books, especially "Pogo". It, to me, predicted the rise of Chicago's mediocrity (John is Guercio, Zipper is Chicago - as Zipper becomes dumber to get his dream, John matures astoundingly - and he's killed by Terry, who killed himself in 1978). Yeah, after some bad things, this film becomes quite symbolic of many things.
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