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Cool Hand Luke (1967)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
1 November 1967 (USA)
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Tagline:
"What we've got here is failure to communicate." more
Plot:
A man refuses to conform to life in a rural prison. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar.
Another 4 wins
&
6 nominations
more
NewsDesk:
(48 articles)
AFI's 100 Years ...100 Movie Quotes
(From Extra. 4 November 2009, 4:45 AM, PST)
They don't make them like Paul Newman anymore, a true giver
(From Monsters and Critics. 30 October 2009, 6:01 AM, PDT)
(From Extra. 4 November 2009, 4:45 AM, PST)
They don't make them like Paul Newman anymore, a true giver
(From Monsters and Critics. 30 October 2009, 6:01 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Sticking it to the man
more (191 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Paul Newman | ... | Luke |
 | George Kennedy | ... | Dragline |
| J.D. Cannon | ... | Society Red |
| Lou Antonio | ... | Koko |
| Robert Drivas | ... | Loudmouth Steve |
| Strother Martin | ... | Captain |
| Jo Van Fleet | ... | Arletta |
| Clifton James | ... | Carr |
| Morgan Woodward | ... | Boss Godfrey |
| Luke Askew | ... | Boss Paul |
| Marc Cavell | ... | Rabbitt |
| Richard Davalos | ... | Blind Dick |
| Robert Donner | ... | Boss Shorty |
| Warren Finnerty | ... | Tattoo |
 | Dennis Hopper | ... | Babalugats |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
126 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Norway:16 |
Canada:A (Nova Scotia) |
Australia:M |
Spain:7 |
Portugal:M/12 |
USA:Approved (certificate #21450) |
Sweden:15 |
France:-12 |
New Zealand:PG |
Finland:K-16 |
Ireland:12 (blu-ray) (2008) |
Ireland:15 |
UK:15 |
Singapore:PG |
USA:GP (re-rating) (1970)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
In the "road-tarring" sequence, the actors actually blacktopped a mile-long stretch of highway for the county.
more
Goofs:
Continuity: While Luke's mother is smoking a cigarette, it gets smaller when the camera switches angles.
more
Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "ReBoot: Enzo the Smart (#1.8)" (1994)
more
Soundtrack:
Cotton Fields
more
FAQ
Does Luke die at the end?How many boiled eggs does Luke eat?
A Note Regarding Spoilers
more
more (191 total)
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"For the secret of man's being is not only to live but to have something to live for. Without a stable conception of the object of life, man would not consent to go on living, and would rather destroy himself than remain on earth, though he had bread in abundance." - Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Luke returns home after the war. He's a drifter. A loner. He's been handed one bad hand after the next, and, no matter how he plays his cards, he always seems to lose. The film opens with Luke, drunk and shameless, knocking the heads off parking meters. The authorities try to cash in on our everyday movements, and this lack of freedom ticks Luke off.
Luke is sent to prison and what follows is one of the greatest existential movies of all time. Luke's conversations with God, his isolation and alienation, his experiences and a pair of profound scenes, both involving his mother, elevate "Cool Hand Luke" above most prison-break movies.
While "Shawshank Redemption" preaches hope and patience and "Cuckoo's Nest" harped on about freedom, "Cool Hand Luke" takes a far more mythical stance. We don't know much about Luke. He never looks anyone in the eyes when speaking and always has a sly grin on his face. And yet behind his smile we sense deep pain, his lack of control matched only by his dogged spirit to continue fighting.
While "Cuckoo's Nest" had a system that despite its flaws genuinely tried to heal and help others, Luke's social institution is corrupt and in many aspects pointless. Still, for a while Luke abides by it. He goes about the state's business with a smile, cutting grass and paving roads. He only has 2 years in chains. He can make it. And like he says, he has no place else to go. No plans. He plays his cards with cool, detached ambivalence.
In one beautiful scene Luke's dying mother comes to visit. Their conversation is genuinely touching. She tried her best with him, giving him nothing but love. And yet, no amount of motherly affection has helped Luke. Because of this she wishes mankind were like dogs. She wishes she could abandon her children and forget about them. Never having to worry or fret about how they are, what they'll do or where they'll go. She loves Luke, but hates the agony he puts her through. And yet we sense that she understands him intimately. Perhaps she admires him because she too has been dealt a life of bad hands.
Luke's outlook changes when his mother dies and the prison warden locks him in a box for no particular reason. When the Boss says "Just doing my job", Luke replies "That don't make it right." And it isn't right. But it's the system and so Luke has to abide.
From here on Luke begins to fight back. He may spend his life on his knees, but by God he will not submit to anyone! Of course the other inmates begin to idolise Luke, worshipping his never-give-up spirit. But rather than fight themselves, they sit back and exalt him. Luke begins to resent this. "Step feeding off me!" he yells. But they're content to sit on the sidelines. He's a one man revolution, and like many revolutionaries he's praised for his stance from afar but never actively supported.
Why do men have to die for causes before we take notice?
The film ends on an ambiguous note. Does Luke smile? Does he die? Does he survive? If he does survive, is his survival merely wishful thinking on the part of his fellow inmates? Note that the film's final image is a brief shot of a photograph. It was established in an earlier sequence that this idyllic photograph represents a lie. We also know that the photograph was torn to shreds earlier in the film. The ending thus suggests that though Luke has died and the system utterly beaten him down, the men nevertheless choose to believe in him. They believe he has risen (the film is filled with Christian imagery), that he's survived death and still fighting the fight, sticking it to the man for all of mankind.
But like that happy photograph, filled with false smiles, their belief is an illusion. Luke is dead, and though his fighting spirit remains in the hearts of these men, it will take a revolution to wake them up and shake them out of their weak surrender. What fuels their revolution, what fuels all revolutions, is the hope that Luke represents. Yes this hopeful idyll is a myth, but it is a necessary one which must be sustained lest we submit.
10/10- An accidental masterpiece. The planets really lined up for this one. The only flaw is an overly silly (though iconic) car wash scene.
Worth multiple viewings.