Figures in a Landscape (1971)

Dear Joseph Losey,Figures in a Landscape was a great survivalist action drama set in a hostile mountainous landscape. The film begins with a great tracking shot of two men running along a beach with the fading sun and the high tide in the background. A helicopter follows them in the distance. A great way to start your film. I was hooked immediately. The fact that we do not know what the characters are escaping from and who is tracking them down makes this film very interesting and unique. Though the relentless chase from the sky by the inhuman helicopter clearly underlines who we are supposed to sympathize with. I liked the great sweeping camera moments and the point of view shots from the helicopter (the camera is placed just behind the pilots). The hilarious exchanges between the two escapees (the often indecipherable Robert Shaw and weakly Malcolm McDowell) are as interesting as the action scenes and the location. It is a cruelly underrated and unknown film, Joseph.Best Regards, Pimpin.(8/10)

May contain spoilers. Read on at your own peril. But there seems to be little to spoil on this stinkburger! This film starts in the middle of some ongoing story. Apparently these people were in jail for some reason we don't know and got out of jail by some method we don't know. And then a goat herder is killed. Why? He was there.That's the perfect start to a "Modern" film. We start with nothing, are told damn little about what's going or motivation of characters or any backstory and have to figure out what went before and what is going on and why, while trying to relax and enjoy a movie. That's a lot of work! If I wanted to work, I would go to work! Who are they? Why is this happening? Where are they? Don't know. Let's hope somehow, we will find out or this will be a waste of time. 16 minutes in and... their hands are still tied and the helicopter is trying to give them haircuts. Why don't they just land? Who is in the helicopter? Why are they doing this harassment of these two people? What's this movie about? No clue yet. Stay tuned. Maybe we will find out.... Maybe.... It seems they are tied with cloth or rope why don't these two back up together and untie each other? I am thinking I am wasting my time watching this. If anything happens, I will let you know. But don't wait if you have some paint to watch drying! 30 minutes in and the plot is really taking off. They found a knife to get their hands free. That's it for now. Still waiting for something to happen...Now that their hands are free, they did what they apparently know best. Robbery. And they were seen. Not very good robbers for sure.Well, they managed to open a can (tin) and ate something and both of them shaved. Riveting stuff!! Oh, the mastery of the medium by writer and director. IS MISSING HERE? 45 minutes in and... The dizzying speed of the plot has made me hungry. I am going to eat. If anything else happens in this movie, call me. I will have my phone with me, just in case...(That sound you just heard was me pressing STOP on the player)

Alternately baffling, shocking and irritating, this film is remarkable in a lot of ways. It shows that Malcolm McDowell is a really talented actor who went to waste after being typecast as a sleazebag; he never got any decent roles after that.What's unusual about this film is that we are never given more than scant information about who these guys are, why they are running and from whom, or where on earth this is all supposed to be taking place.You might think that all this, plus the almost nonexistent plot would make this film supremely forgettable, but this is far from the case. My only complaints were that Robert Shaw's character kept bursting into screaming and cackling fits at inappropriate times and the ending, for me, almost ruined the whole thing. Why did Mac feel he had to try to finish off the helicopter just when he had finally reached safety? Other than that, this is an extraordinary film. I would have given it a 9 except for the above issues.

I saw this movie for the first and last time on Dutch television in the late 70's / early 80's. I was 9 or 10 years old at that time. I remember it gave me the creeps. Especially the helicopter... that could show up at any time. This film has been in my head for a long time (not remembering the title) Since I know the title (recently) i can't wait to see the movie again but unfortunately this films isn''t available on tape or DVD. I wonder what happened to it and i would like to ask anyone involved in making this film to blow the dust from the original print and release it very soon. Then I can judge the film again and maybe come to the conclusion that it is a terrible movie after all ;-)Rob (The Netherlands)