McQueen/LeMans Article

[cegerer]

(3 Pages)

http://www.motorsportvortex.com/features/lemans_movie/lemans.html

[Randy W]

Thanks, Curt. A very well written piece. Too bad Diana Rigg wasn't available to play the leading lady - maybe there might have been more dialogue...

[Eric Mckenna]

Thanks Curt,
That was good read indeed!

[pwd72s]

Agreed...a well written piece. Thanks for finding it, Curt...

[Doug Zielke]

"Beaten to the punch, McQueen (who lived uphill from Garner in Hollywood's Brentwood neighborhood) consoled himself by lobbing empty beer cans into the finicky Garner's driveway. "



Thanks Curt!
You are the enthusiast's enthusiast.

[jbmccandless]

what ever happened to all the footage that wasn't in the film. The article claims all the original footage by Sturges was not included...

[Jim Garfield]

Thanks Curt, interesting article. That was quite a price that McQueen
paid for sticking to his convictions, thank goodness, what a movie.

That slate grey car that he is driving in the beginning of the movie
always stuck in my mind as THE car.

[cegerer]

It is a pretty good article. I was surprised, there're a few things in it that aren't even in "A French Kiss With Death". I read somewhere that all that extra film footage is still in existance ..... Maybe it'll show up on eBay some day. -- Curt

[jyl]

Well, I like "Le Mans" and have watched it several times. The racing action is great and the atmosphere is as well. The whole thing has that sort of endless, sleep-deprived feeling I associate with Le Mans (though I've only been to the race once). I do, however, think it would have been a better movie if there'd been a fleshed-out story.

The article also reminded me of the making of "Apocalypse Now", with Coppola in the jungle, the production in chaos, filming miles of disjointed footage. Anyone seen the "Director's Cut" version, released in theatres last year? It contained a lot of scenes previously cut out -- the French colonial family, the stranded Playboy bunnies -- and I thought they were abysmal. Interesting as a curio, but you could easily see why they'd been cut originally. I suspect the lost footage from "Le Mans" would be like that.

[Wayne 962]

Wow - Excellent article - a worthwhile read!

-Wayne

[Cornpanzer]

Good article....Interesting tho how different some of the details were from what was written in "A French Kiss with Death". In this story it insinuates that his marriage fell apart because of his dedication to the film whereas the book pretty much makes it clear that Stev-o was sleeping with many of his leading ladies.
I wonder what ever happened to that grey 911 that they opened the film with.....what a sweet car.

[cegerer]

"...whereas the book pretty much makes it clear that Stev-o was sleeping with many of his leading ladies."

Yup. Reading 'A French Kiss With Death' will pretty much shatter any preconceived notions one might have about McQueen. He doesn't come across particularly well in that book. I still love his movies though. -- Curt