The Untouchables (1987) Novelization

Chicago. . . the 1930s. . . gangsters. All the action, all the violence, all the good guys and bad guys that made The Untouchables one of the most popular TV series comes this summer in paperback and on the big screen. The Untouchables is sure to do for the movie tie-in business what Elliot Ness did for Chicago--clean up! The movie stars Robert DeNiro, Kevin Costner and Sean Connery and is scheduled for release June 5, 1987.

***

The author of the novelization is a long-time mystery writer, so he does a decent job of fleshing out the characters and telling the story well.  It is obviously based on an early draft of the script, and lacks the great style that director Brian DePalma brought to the film.  Still, a good read and fills in much detail that is not in the film.

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) Novelization

Written by Joe Millard
1974 Award Books paperback edition.

Based on the 1974 film THUNDERBOLT & LIGHTFOOT, written and directed by Michael Cimino. It starred Clint Eastwood, Jeff Bridges, George Kennedy and Geoffrey Lewis.

THUNDERBOLT & LIGHTFOOT is something of an outlier to the films that Clint Eastwood made in the 1970's. True, it is a 'caper' film and enjoyable enough, but it hits differently than your typical Eastwood movie for a couple of reasons. First, screenwriter and director Michael Cimino brings elements not usually found in the Eastwood films of this era, such as a visual style that shows flashes of what he would bring to his next two films, THE DEER HUNTER and HEAVEN'S GATE. The landscapes of the Southwest are a major part of this film's overall character. Second, the acting is way above average. Jeff Bridges is outstanding in his role, and the chemistry between him and Eastwood is engaging, believable and affecting. George Kennedy is just as good.

The novelization tells the story but lacks the character details that emerged during filming--the screenplay had a fair amount of humor in it that the actors enhanced either through improvisation or at the direction of Cimino on the set. The book does fill in more of the backstory of the characters. 

Hickey & Boggs (1972) Novelization

Written by Philip Rock
1972 Popular Library paperback edition.

Based on the 1972 film HICKEY & BOGGS, written by Walter Hill and directed by Robert Culp. It starred Robert Culp, Bill Cosby as the titular heroes.  The film also boasts a pretty impressive cast of people who had not yet achieved stardom (or at least steady work)--Michael Moriarty, Ed Lauter, Vincent Gardenia, James Woods, Jack Colvin and Rosalind Cash. Also included are Robert Mandan and Bill Hickman, who appeared in a number of films around this time more or less playing the same type of character.

This film was largely unavailable in the US on home video until its 2011 DVD release.  Up until that time, you had to try to catch it when it was broadcast on TV.  I've had the book since 1980 or so, and having read it multiple times over the years, when I finally saw the movie I was surprised how different it was from the book.  It tells the same story, but while the film was rated PG the book (and original screenplay I presume) is R-rated, full of graphic violence, adult language, and multiple instances of naked people.  The movie, which was partly trying to cash in on Culp's and Cosby's I SPY success toned all of that way down.  I was disappointed when I first saw the movie, but having watched it a few more times, I can appreciate the differences.  

The book tells a depressing story about people who have largely given up on life in a fairly realistic way.  The film is probably more depressing and makes Culp's character, in particular, seem more of a mess.  The film comes across as a new wave detective story for the 70's, much in the same way that Altman's THE LONG GOODBYE (1973) did.  Altman's film is a lot more artistic than the lower-budget HICKEY & BOGGS could manage.  It has its moments, but too often there are production touches that are barely above the TV-movie level--blood is obviously bright red paint, and lighting is sometimes too flat.  Still, the film is not at all a disaster and is well worth seeking out.  Culp the director is more interested in feel, so a lot of the backstory was omitted from the film.

The book is even more depressing since it tells a more complete, tougher story.  

Excerpt:

Albert Hickey parked his battered Nova in the lot behind Musso and Frank and walked over to Las Palmas and then down to the boulevard. The August heat hammered him into the pavement. He stood well over six feet but he felt like a midget by the time he reached the corner; a fat, wet midget in a chocolate-colored suit. He stood in the meager shade of a shoe store's awning and lit a cigarette. He wanted to go across the street, across the shimmering asphalt to the other side of Hollywood Boulevard, but it seemed such a long way for a melting midget to manage.

"You got any change, mister?"

The voice came from miles away. It floated up to him, thin as heat waves on the freeway.

"What?"

"Change. . . you know."

He stared down at the girl. It was a relief to see her, not that she was worth looking at. She was pale-faced and lank-haired. A strung-out blonde in granny-style patched blue jeans. Her feet were bare and the color of the sidewalk, only dirtier. She was ginning at him, her teeth translucent, like half-cooked rice. No, not much to see, but he was looking down at her. He hadn't shrunk, after all.

"I don't have any. I spent my last quarter on a yacht."

She sneered at him the way a wolf might sneer if you offered it a grapefruit.

"Fuck it. I should have known better."

She ambled along the street toward Cherokee. There was nothing ahead of her but a lot of hot pavement and a group of pale young men handing out slips of paper that foretold the end of the world. He almost felt sorry for her. Almost, but not quite.

All right, he thought, get on with it; it's only across the street All you have to do is put one foot ahead of the other and wing it from there.

Prime Cut (1972) Novelization

Written by Mike Roote.  Based on the 1973 film written by Robert Dillon and directed by Michael Ritchie. It starred Lee Marvin, Gene Hackman, and Sissy Spacek. 

An odd film that benefits from an outstanding cast, it is a film punctuated by repellent violence and misogyny, with the always dependable Lee Marvin grounding it and making it watchable. You could also make the point that the film is also trying to make some grander commentary on America, but I'm not sure I buy it. Hackman had just made THE FRENCH CONNECTION but it hadn't been released yet, so this film is truly his last movie before he hit it big. Sissy Spacek gives an utterly fearless performance as Poppy.

This is a slight novelization, but the movie doesn't have a lot of plot either. The biggest differences between this and the finished film is that Hackman's character is described as much older and more overweight, and the film keeps Marvin's and Spacek's relationship more ambiguous. There is also more sex in the book than in the finished film. This is well written and gives needed detail to Hackman's character.  While the film has its merits (Lee Marvin and the, ahem, nudity), I found the book to be the idea presentation of the story.  It flows better than the film, which at times seems as though it is trying to play down the action film aspects.

Excerpt:

She stood on the pavement outside the bar, drawing an exquisite fur over her perfect shoulders. Many, many small, high-priced animals had died squealing to make that sable stole for her, and you got the feeling she would have liked to watch them die, her small pointed tongue glistening on her cherry lips and her eyes aglow like a cat's. She was that kind of woman. Her body was so spectacular that it would be a long time before you looked at her face, and she knew it. The satin dress, shiny with jeweled beading, clung to her impossibly small waist and defined her round and swelling hips. The bodice was cut low to display breathtaking cleavage a man could kill for and a warm, smooth, pulsing throat just right for biting. She was blonde, of course---she could never be anything but blonde---and her eyes were masked by an artfully cut pair of thick false lashes. Which was just as well, since above the warm body, her eyes were as cold as a snake's. She was a collector's piece, expensive to buy and murderous to maintain. But she was worth every penny, both in looks and performance.