The citizens of a small Texas town become worried and panicked when a local bad boy escapes prison and heads for his hometown. (from IMDb)

Another obscure title that recently landed on our doorstep is the 1966 drama, The Chase. What's odd about this film is that it is likely nothing you'd actually expect from everything presented to you about the film. For example, The movie poster shows an explosion and a running Robert Redford with Marlon Brando's prominent profile smack-dab in the middle. You'd think you're in for a 60's version of The Fugitive, right? Sadly, no. Not even a little bit.

What The Chase actually is is one of those more pretentious dramtic films that use the gimmick of an escaped convict to make some grand social commentary. When Robert Redford's Bubber Reeves (Yes, that's actually his character name) escapes prison with another inmate, his small hometown goes into a tizzy about it. Right after their escape, the other convict with Bubber murders an innocent bystander to take his car and clothes, leaving Bubber in the lurch. The film seems to just span one day since Bubber's escape, so word of the murder is quickly pinned on the troubled young man, who really is only guilty of much lesser crimes. But as gossip spreads across the town, a few morally-questionable people - who have no problem partying excessively and cheating on their spouses - end up getting worked into a frenzy over the jailbreak and start causing some serious problems. The story is kind of a hot mess - and not an appealing one - and the end result is wildly unsatisfying.

Marlon Brando's sheriff character, Calder, may be the most decent character in the film, but he's not really the focal point of the story, and he's still not even that likeable of a character. A curious amount of the runtime is spent on people around the town, flirting with their friends' spouses, spreading gossip, acting entitled, and flexing their status. It kind of feels like the 1958 Steve McQueen horror film The Blob if you completely removed The Blob from the story. (In that case, it'd just be a bunch of stupid teenagers running around town doing stupid teenager things.) For example, we meet a woman married to Robert Duvall's character who isn't very subtle about cheating on him with a coworker who is also married, and she even hints that he's messing around with yet another person. The town celebrates the birthday of the mayor whose married son is messing around with Bubber's wife, Anna, played by Jane Fonda. And while Bubber just wants to seek solace from the law and return to his wife, the town starts escalating the scenario to be more potentially violent and threatening than it is. In a drunken rage, some of the guys unite in a racist, law-hating frenzy that turns deadly. It's less about "the chase" and more about perceived morality of the people.

With that said, this movie would at least be PG-13 by today's standards. There's a brutal beating scene that is pretty bloody, but it probably isn't quite R-rated level. There isn't any serious profanity beyond moderate cussing, and there is no graphic sexual content shown. However, affairs are very openly suggested and discussed very casually. The movie is not subtle about it. Jake shows up at a hotel to meet with Anna - not their first time doing this either - and they kiss on the floor while she's in a bathrobe. We then see her bare back as she's getting changed for them to go looking for her husband, Bubber. There's quite a bit of blood during the beating scene, where a group of guys punch and kick a police officer repeatedly (the scene seems to go on forever, too). We see a considerable amount of blood on his face and running down his shirt. Later, a person has some blood on their clothes when debris falls on their chest. And finally, a character is shot multiple times and we see them lying dead with blood all over their clothes. For profanity, the "n" word is used once (and a group of guys menace an innocent black man), "S.O.B" is used once, and both "h*ll" and "d*mn" are used close to fifteen times each. Again, I wouldn't quite say this all adds up to being worthy of an R rating, but it's all pretty edgy and is very mature in nature.

Maybe film buffs hold The Chase in higher regard, but for me, I found it too long, too boring, and too pretentious for its own good. I'm fine with dramas and even social commentaries, but something about this one just really didn't land for me. If you're a fan of any of the cast, it might be your cup of tea, otherwise I'd recommend just skipping it. From a technical stand point, the Blu-Ray transfer is quite good for a mid-60's film, as it's rather crisp and colorful. However, the clarity also makes some of the makeup - like the swelling on someone's face - look more fake. Still, if you're a fan, this is a solid HD transfer.