Reviews (9)

Great film, great acting.
Exellent film, inspired and eye opening to those who have never seen how far the lack of understanding will take you or how much of a life can be spent doing harm to those you do not even know.
I'm sure you will enjoy this film and the message it delivers. Well done.

Sinise's Third Best Only To Truman and Forrest Gump!!!
Gary Sinise steals the show in George Wallace, the TNT documentary made about the three-time governor of Alabama and four-time presidential candidate. I honestly think Angelina Jolie, not Mare Winningham, should of gotten the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the movie. Winningham is a fine actress and portrayed her character well, but I thought she was rather drab. When Jolie takes over as the second Mrs. Wallace, she delivers her role with much more conviction and flare. Of course though, Sinise is the best actor in the cast and is most deserving of the award he got for Best Actor. Sinise's best role in my opinion, as you can likely guess from my review title, is his role in Truman, followed in a close second by his Lieutenant Dan portrayal in Forrest Gump, but this movie was a just as close third. I read one review of this movie which said the reviewer would have liked to see more about Wallace's 1968 campaign for President. I personally would have liked to see more about his '64 and '76 presidential bids because they have more historical signficance, being that his '64 run took place during the most controversial time in his career, the Civil Rights Movement, and it was his first presidential campaign. And I would have liked to see more of his 1976 run because he did best as a candidate. And, as history itself and the movie both dictate, people seem to forget that when Wallace became a segregationist, he was very much reluctantly drawn into it by the Ku Klux Klan, rather than he was always one as most everyone who knows of him thinks. I think this point to his character should have been better addressed. Besides these small flaws, the movie was great overall. I also found something in common between this movie and Forrest Gump. In both, Sinise plays characters who are marred by physical trauma, and both characters have some very negative things to say about their conditions. As I said earlier, this movie is great overall and well worth watching especially if you are a history/political buff. Get it!!!

George Wallace: from liberal to racist to redemption
The fighting little judge from Alabama was known as the most liberal judge in Alabama and probably in the South. But one gubernational defeat makes him turn to racism in order to capture the governorship.

Gary Sinise turns in an incredible performance as the governor, he has become one of my favorite actors ever since his equally brilliant performance in "Truman".

I like the way that this movie doesn't judge Wallace as good or bad, it leaves that to the viewer. In one scene you can see Wallace commenting on the beating of Civil Rights activists at the Edmund Pettus Bridge saying "This is a victory for US! We turned them back" and you actually think that Sinise as Wallace believes what he's saying.

The movie presents some historical footage here and there, you can see president Lyndon Johnson and Martin Luther King's famous "how long?" speech.

It does have a number of flaws though, I'd have liked to see more about election 1968, the way Nixon tried to prevent Wallace from becoming governor in 1970 by sponsoring Wallace's opponent, the infamous General Curtis Lemay pressconference. And the fictional character Archie isn't quite pulled off by the director, it strikes me as an anomaly in the movie.

Also it shows Wallace meeting Cornelia, his future second wife at governor Folsom's inaugural in 1955, this would have made Cornelia about 23 years old in 1972 when in fact she was 31. The reason for that is that George and Lurleen met Cornelia at Folsom's FIRST inaugural in 1947 and not 1955

The most moving scene is where Wallace is wheeled into the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church (Dr. King's former church) where he, in front of a stunned black congegation apologizes for his role in black suffering. The authenticity of this scene I found questionable until I read about it in Stephan Lesher's book "George Wallace American populist".

But in the end George Wallace the movie is a masterpiece capturing the sentiments of the 50's, 60's and 70's. The late governor's children are said to have been content with the portrayal.

George Wallace
EXCELLENT! SPLENDID PERFORMANCE BY MARK VALLEY AS BOBBY KENNEDY.

solid fare for political junkies
It's hardly surprising that Ted Turner, a political animal if there ever was one, would turn his TNT productions into a vehicle for politically themed movies. This film, along with "Kingfish" and "Nixon and Kissinger" is the kind of product Turner no doubt loves to sponsor. Those of us who are closet political junkies ourselves, but who may not have the time or inclination to read lengthy biographies of well-known politicos, can at least begin to satisfy our social consciousness jones with these usually worthy efforts.

_George Wallace_ is certainly that--a worthy effort. It does not answer every question I've ever had about the man, but it does provide us with a portrait of a very complex, power-hungry individual, one who sacrificed principal for power and who became a symbol of a kind of racism that he did not really fully embrace. At least as seen by scriptwriter Marshall Frady (on whose book this film is based), Wallace had no particular ax to grind with the black community and was primarily a populist who initially sought the support of all the "folks". One gubernatorial defeat, however, was all it took to convince him that despite his reservations about extremists like the Klan, he would have to play the race card in order to win the governorship of Alabama.

And thereby hangs the tale--or would have if he had not been shot at a political rally in 1972. The film's take on Wallace is that this event and the intense personal suffering that ensued brought about his eventual personal and, to some extent, political redemption. This may well be so, but writer Frady and director John Frankenheimer do slip significantly in presenting this turn-about. Wallace's conversion in the film rings too many false notes. I don't know if Wallace ever spontaneously dropped in on a black Baptist church, for instance, but if he did, it is all the more incumbent on the filmmakers not to portray the event too hamfistedly. Only Gary Sinise's nuanced performance keeps that scene from becoming an embarrassment. All too often Frankenheimer and Frady seem to be going for the kind of cinematic shorthand found in politically themed films. Conversations become near tracts or simply clunky ways of advancing the political story.

Still there's no denying Frankenheimer's ability to get a tough story across. And the actors are generally first-rate.(Only Joe Don Baker as Wallace's populist mentor winds up going over the top). On the distaff side, Mare Winningham(a subdued and graceful steel magnolia--the kind of role Lee Remick once specialized in) and a fresh on the scene Angelina Jolie give remarkable performances. Clarence Williams III is solid as the (fictional) stoic black trusty who serves the Wallace household for decades. And, of course, a good ol' boy milieu as presented here always presents juicy roles for character actors. _Wallace_ is full of familiar faces, actors you've seen dozens of times before but whose names you'll struggle to place. They seem to be having a grand old time putting on the accents and affecting the mannerisms of the South.

Still it's ultimately Gary Sinise's movie. His '97 Emmy was richly deserved. He is simply fascinating to watch here. It's one of those cinematic performances where you're first reaction is "why did they ever cast him...there's no resemblance whatsoever..." And in within minutes you forget all that and become so caught up in the performance that you can't imagine anyone else playing the part. ... Read more

Reviews (53)

a classic and a must for race fans
John Frankenheimer broke new ground when he filmed "Grand Prix", putting cameras on single-seater cars and thus creating some of the most amazing footage ever shot of cars from that era. The movie is on the light side as far as the story development goes, and while James Garner is very convincing as an American grand prix ace, one has a harder time buying this sort of act from Yves Montand who plays the aging Ferrari driver. Eva Marie Saint is cast as a magazine journalist following the grand prix circus around Europe, trying to get a story - a storyline that was recently successfully resurrected in "Driven". Her lovestory with Montand is not exactly hot, but the highly dramatic race action in Monte Carlo, Spa, and Monza (they still used the famous banking of the autodromo in those days!)more than makes up for that. The film features cameo appearances of some of the era's greatest drivers like Graham Hill. Letter-boxed on a larger screen is the only decent way to completely enjoy the breath-taking cinematography of this classic.

Grand Prix starring James Garner
Grand Prix, the film, is an amazing documentary portraying grand prix racing in the late 1960's. James Garner plays an outstanding role as American driver Pete Aaron. With little dialogue and plenty of authentic race footage, Grand Prix can eaisly be quoted to be the best racing movie ever produced. John Frankenheimer took the racing fans image of early grand prix racing to it's greatest extreme and and made it into one of the first auto racing films ever to be produced. A production of this quality will never be recreated because of the manner in which it was made. The footage is real racing, not acting. Helicopters were flown down the straightways 15-20 feet above the cars during races. The FIA these days wouldn't let an aircraft within miles of the circuit, making a film with the action of Grand Prix impossible to duplicate.

Grand Prix
Having recently rediscovered Formula 1 racing on the Speed Channel, I went looking for the finest movie ever made concerning the Grand Prix, the movie of the same name. I was fortunate to have seen it in Cinemascope in a theater especially designed for just such movies - humongous curved screen, as fine a sound system as then available. I've watched the movie several times on the little box but it's never duplicated the original experience. I CANNOT BELIVE it is not yet available on DVD. If ever a movie deserved the DVD treatment this is it. The very finest movie of its kind - it accurately captures the essence of Formula 1 racing and is every bit as timely and viable a viewing experience as it was 38 years ago. If we pull together it will soon be available - I have no doubt.

Grand Prix, Grand indeed!
It has been said that this is the best racing movie ever made. It is.

No movie before or since has been able to capture the feeling and essence of racing in the 60's or any other era.

What director Frankenheimer does in this movie is still exciting even by today's standards.

Even though I am a huge Steve McQueen fan, Le Mans definitely takes second place to Grand Prix.

I was really excited to see the movie Driven with Stallone, until I saw it. All I kept saying to myself was "This is not even close to Grand Prix". Grand Prix has not only raised the bar, but has set it as well.

Do yourself a favor, don't rent, but rather buy this film and get ready for an education on how great movies were made and should be made.

Beware: Pan and Scan
Be aware that this is a Pan and Scan version of the film, a fact that is omitted in the product description. As a result, many scenes that were thrilling in Cinemascope and awkward here. Nonetheless, I fully concur with other reviewers - this is a must have film for car buffs and racing fans. ... Read more