MovieChat Forums > Joe Kidd (1972) Discussion > Great Lines

Great Lines

posted 19 years ago by CmdrCody
11 replies | jump to latest

The talented Elmore Leonard wrote a great script for Clint, didn't he?

Frank Harlan:(hefting his Savage 99 rifle with scope) "...Now we're here on a huntin' trip. Maybe get some mule deer...an elk...maybe one of those big mountain cats. Now, these men are first-class hunters, my friend. Now, whatya say...fifty dollars?"

Joe Kidd: "...I don't guide anymore...for animals or men."

Frank Harlan (laughing): "...Saw right through us, didn't ya?"

Joe Kidd: "...Well, you're after Luis Chama."

[–] joekiddlouischama 19 years ago

Yeah, the lines are coolly crackling and Eastwood and Duvall articulate them with cagey irony.

[–] joekiddlouischama 19 years ago

By the way, in between the pre-production meetings with Eastwood, Leonard would write some pages, and then the producer, Sidney Beckerman, would cross out Leonard's dialogue and insert his own. Then, just prior to the conference with Eastwood, Leonard would cross out Beckerman's dialogue and put his own lines back in. This pattern continued, and yet Beckerman never said anything about it—apparently, he just enjoyed crossing out dialogue. As for Eastwood, Leonard said that he was the easiest person in the world to work with and that he never raised a fuss about the script.

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] 19 years ago

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[–] richardshell 17 years ago

I think one of the great things about this movie are the movie lines. Some of them are very good just like in Deliverance, The Outlaw Josey Wales, or Kelly's Hero's. The cenematography (sp?) was excellent and the music was good too. I am sorry but I just don't agree with the movie critics on this one. I have watched this movie over and over and I enjoy it every time. I keep finding little things that I missed the time before. The supporting actors are good. I wonder if Eastwood had anything to do in selecting any of them. Wasn't one of Harlan's gunmen in Coogan't Bluff? When Eastwood works with someone and likes them you will oftentimes see them in his later movies. Recall the bartender in High Plains Drifter? They must have had a ball filming this movie. It makes me want to visit that part of the US to see some of the country.

[–] EnterJamesClayton 17 years ago

There are lods of absolute gems in Joe Kidd, and Clint's performance is awesome. It's a perfect representation of his Western persona...

My favourite is when he punches the sheriff: "Next time I'll knock your damn head off." It's like the perfect blend of Dirty Harry and his spaghetti western 'Man With No Name'.

"don't think...feeeeel"
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[–] ABN-Para 16 years ago

Favorite line: "Well the fun's over and he's gone to church."

[–] Andy4444 16 years ago

And right before that the sniper says, "Dam, that boy don't ever learn."

[–] JaggerMan 15 years ago

At the beginning of the movie when Joe Kidd is taken from the jail to go before the Judge, ouside the jail the Sheriff is outside waiting. Joe says to the the Sheriff, "You shouldn't have hit me Bob." And that's when the Sheriff says to Joe Kidd, "Next time I'll knock your damn head off."

It's classic that the line comes back at the Sheriff at the end of the movie.

[–] JaggerMan 15 years ago

But my favorite line in the movie is when Joe Kidd is leading Harlen and his men in the mountains to track down Luis Chama under the guise of a hunting trip. When they run into Chama's men, Joe Kidd asks if they have seen any elk. Chama's man says, "Listen, why don't you go up in the San Juans; maybe you'll get a bear."

[–] MuleDeer 14 years ago

That guy had another great line when Harlan asked about Chama.

"Yeah, I've seen him sometime. Well, we gotta go. If I see Louis Chama, I'll tell him you are looking for him."