University of Virginia Library

Defeated Couple

Playing the defeated couple,
Miss Fonda and Michael Sarrazin
construct unforgettable performances,
giving their characters
more than the necessary amount of
dramatic potency. In most other
movies, these two portrayals would
stand out from the others, but in
'They Shoot Horses, Don't They?"
at least four others share the
spotlight. No film of the past year
(except possibly "Midnight Cowboy")
can equal this one's high
caliber of acting.

Aside from Mr. Young and Miss
York (both of whom, along with
Miss Fonda, are Academy Award
nominees), Red Buttons delivers a
powerful interpretation of an old
sailor with nimble feet and a
not-so-nimble heart who equates
humans with cattle. And Bonnie
Bedelia cannot be overlooked for
her turn as a struggling pregnant girl
who is reduced to singing "The Best
Things In Life Are Free" because
she needs the pennies the onlookers
throw at her (note the extended
irony). This six-way acting tour de
force proves to be Mr. Pollack's
trump card.

This is a film which you will not
leave laughing. It demands to be
taken seriously, for it confronts you
with some unpleasant facts of
human nature and then leaves you
without having removed them. This
is what makes "They Shoot Horses,
Don't They?" so shocking and,
accordingly, so exciting.

(Now at the Paramount)