Save the Tiger (1973)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

John G. Avildsen

Writer:

Steve Shagan (writer)

Release Date:

21 July 1973 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Jack Lemmon in his most important dramatic role since "The Days of Wine and Roses."

Plot:

A businessman's professional struggles begin to conflict with his personal life over the course of two days.

Plot Keywords:

Businessman | Fashion Show | Beach | Suit | Tie

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Jack Lemmon	...	Harry Stoner
Jack Gilford	...	Phil Greene
Laurie Heineman	...	Myra
Norman Burton	...	Fred Mirrell
Patricia Smith	...	Janet Stoner
Thayer David	...	Charlie Robbins
William Hansen	...	Meyer
Harvey Jason	...	Rico
Liv Lindeland	...	Ula (as Liv Von Linden)
Lara Parker	...	Margo
Eloise Hardt	...	Jackie
Janina	...	Dusty
Ned Glass	...	Sid Fivush
Pearl Shear	...	Cashier
Biff Elliot	...	Tiger Petitioner (as Biff Elliott)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:15 (re-rating) (2005) | UK:AA (original rating) | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Filmways Pictures

Trivia:

After three weeks rehearsal on location, this movie was filmed in sequence.

Goofs:

Continuity: Harry wipes Fred's face almost completely clean of the red body paint. In a subsequent shot, Fred's face is covered with red paint again.

Quotes:

Harry Stoner: Everybody misses.
Margo: Not professionals.
Harry Stoner: Oh yeah, professionals too. Quarterbacks get knocked down, nurses get knocked up, somebody invented the Edsel. Everybody misses.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Remington Steele: Sensitive Steele (#4.16)" (1986)

Soundtrack:

Air Mail Special

Superb Lemmon performance

Jack Lemmon will always be remembered for his comic performances. However, he could have been just as great as a dramatic actor. Save the Tiger and his tour-de-force performance in it more than proves that.

He plays Harry Stoner, owner of an heavily indebted ladies designer clothes manufacturing company. The film covers just 2-3 days of his life and we get a pretty good idea of his sad existence in the urban jungle and what he has become - no longer a good, decent person fighting for the right cause. There are references to Stoner's war record and patriotism throughout the film. The fact that the US was fighting the very unpopular Vietnam war could have influenced the themes of this film.

There is little in the way of plot but there is a rich characterization made deeper by the crises in Stoner's life and Lemmon's excellent depiction of a man who is cracking at the seams. My favorite scenes were the ones in the car with the hippie girl towards the beginning of the film and the question she asked him and Lemmon's comic reaction....