SAVE THE TIGER!

Can you believe that I have been waiting for "the right moment" to feature this movie for some 18 months? You may ask why this is so? I hate to put it this way, but while an absolutely excellent film that won an Academy Award, it's NOT for everyone. The opening scene involves what we likely refer to today as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD with the central character Harry Stoner (Jack Lemmon) awakening from a nightmare screaming. Filmed in 1973, this film is still relevant. Stoner tunes in his television set about the latest news about the war in Vietnam, takes a shower, makes breakfast and dresses as we all do to begin the day. A World War II Veteran, he is is obsessed by the years of his youth when President Roosevelt was in office, baseball was clean and integrity was the order of the day. This Oscar-Winning performance by Jack Lemmon is fascinating as it takes the audience through a 24-hour period in the life of the film's lead character. In this regard, if there was ever a movie to leave you with something to ponder, this is it.

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Harry Stoner owns a garment factory teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, though no one knows it; he keeps this very "close to the vest". He has all the trappings of success. His daughter is enrolled in a Swiss school; his wife thinks he's nuts; there is a gardener, a maid, a swimming pool service company and even a tree surgeon who all meticulously maintains his home. Psychologically, Stoner is treading water to avoid a breakdown. Lemmon turns in a performance here right after "The Days of Wine and Roses" wrapped. He is trying to make sense of a world that has left him feeling alienated. We see him, for example, cruising along Sunset Boulevard in his Lincoln where he picks up a 20-year-old girl who is hitch-hiking named Myra. Stoner is shocked how quickly she offers him sex-which he immediately declines. How times have changed for Stoner!

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We come to know his employees back at the garment factory including the cutter, Meyer, a holocaust survivor and mentor to Rico, the ambitious young gay protege who are ready to kill each other over some arcane issue. Stoner intervenes. That evening, a fashion show is scheduled and Harry has to "talk business" with his associate Phil Greene (Oscar Nominee Jack Gilford). A customer who just placed a large order out of town suddenly dies of a coronary before Stoner can get his signature! Stoner refuses to file for bankruptcy and he definitely doesn't want the Mafia taking over, so arson seems to be an answer he struggles with as the day wears on and he meets with a 15 year veteran of arson in an X-rated movie house to consider the details. Moving on...another client will issue a buy order on the condition that Stoner provides a hooker as part of the transaction. This leads to an amusing scene and more erratic behavior from smoking dope with Myra and trying to breathe life into his marriage to becoming an animal rights activist! I won't reveal the rest except to include you in one scene typifying my sense of "KOOKY" humor. NOT TO BE MISSED: Watch for the scene where Stoner enters a disco and tries to dance and fit in. I almost fell on the floor when he threw his back out! Lemmon's facial expression will knock you over! I remember visiting his grave in Los Angeles last year. Even his headstone is a laugh. It reads "JACK LEMMON in..." I miss the hell out of exceptional actor and I dedicate this film to all of his fans like myself.

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The Cast: Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar Winner (1974) Jack Lemmon as Harry Stoner; Nominated as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Jack Gilford as Phil Greene; Laurie Heineman is Myra; Norman Burton is Fred Mirrell; Patricia Smith is Janet Stoner; Thayer David is Charlie Robbins; William Hansen is Meyer; Harvey Jason plays Rico; Liv Lindeland is Ula; and Lara Parker is Margo. Nominated also for "Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Published or Produced": Steve Shagan and Directed by John G. Alvidsen.

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I've said it before, "This is one hell of a movie, kids!"
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SIT BACK & ENJOY!

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Listening to: The Rolling Stones' CD "Some Girls". It has been a long time, but like Ronnie Wood, I enjoy this effort.