Variety
Newman gives an excellent performance, assisted by a terriffic supporting cast, including George Kennedy, outstanding as the unofficial leader of the cons who yields first place to Newman.
Full review
Cool Hand Luke
Classic prison drama starring Paul Newman as a cool-headed inmate who riles up the rugged correctional system by actively defying it. Also stars George Kennedy and Dennis Hopper.
Having been committed for a misdemeanour, rebel without a cause Luke Jackson (Newman) is thrown into a prison camp. But instead of accepting it as hell-on-Earth, the Southern chain gang member doesn't lie down. His ballsy antics slowly win over his fellow inmates, and after multiple escape attempts (each one reaching varying degrees of success), the camp bosses try to break him. However, Luke proves to be a tough nut to crack.
Cool Hand Luke's many iconic moments include the egg-eating contest, the warden warning "What we've got here is a failure to communicate", the mirror sunglass-wearing guard, and the card game that gets out of hand.
Nominated for four 1968 Academy Awards, winner of Best Supporting Actor (George Kennedy).
1967Rating: M126 minsUSA
DramaClassic
- Director:
- Stuart Rosenberg ('The Amityville Horror', 'Brubaker')
- Writer:
- Donn PearceFrank Pierson
- Cast:
- Paul NewmanGeorge KennedyStrother MartinJo Van FleetClifton JamesJ.D. CannonLou AntonioRobert DrivasDennis Hopper
Cool Hand Luke / Reviews
Total Film
Swaggering and iconic 41 years since its release; full of affection yet somehow cruel.
Full reviewThe New York Times
That traditional object of sorrow and compassion in American folk song and lore, the chain-gang prisoner, is given as strong a presentation as ever he has had on the screen.
Full review
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