Steel (1979) User Reviews

Where can I get a copy?

[brianoflexington · 5/10 · 23 April 2007]

This movie was a big deal in Lexington when they were filming it in '79. It was a great visual taste for anybody who lived here during that time. From the filming of the horse farms, the historic Lexington Cemetery, not to mention the bar scene at the legendary, but now closed High on Rose, also Lee Majors picking up his trucker girlfriend just a stone's throw away from a well known lot-lizard truck stop. Classy.

This movie had everything: -Lee Majors, The 6 Mil Dollar Man himself, playing the tortured hero of the tale. -Terry Kiser of Weekend at Bernie's fame playing Valentino who always had a different woman bring him to work each day. -Robert Tessier playing the tough Cherokee taking the end of a steel beam to his temple and still finishing the job. -Richard Lynch playing the bastard he plays so well as Dancer making Catton face his fears. -Roger E. Mosley of Magnum P.I. fame, playing Lionel who finishes the job even after his best friend dies trying to attach a steel bolt and falling to his death due to a bet on Valentino's girl of the day.

Drama! Yeah it was Dallas-style, but it was 1979. My great-grandmother was an extra during the funeral scene.

I was sitting on my father's shoulders on Vine St. twenty feet from the airbag that A.J. Bakunas went through when he performed his final stunt. How many of you have seen a stuntman die in front of you? This movie should not be forgotten for his sacrifice in filming it.

The shot where the camera pans up West Main where you see Henry Clay's statue over the city and the helicopters bringing in the last floor to finish the job was beautiful.

If anybody knows where I can find a copy of this, please get in touch with me. My family will get a great laugh at the macho-bravado drama, and my friends will finally see what I've been talking about all these years.

Engaging little "B"

[frankfob · 5/10 · 21 August 2002]

Lee Majors made several pictures during his stardom period of "The Six Million Dollar Man." Most weren't particularly good ("The Norseman" was the absolute pits), but this is a neat little surprise. It's along the same lines as "The Magnificent Seven" in that it brings together a disparate group of professionals in order to achieve a seemingly impossible goal--in this case they're a construction crew that has to finish off the top nine stories of a building in the short span of three weeks. The tone is a bit lighter than usual for this kind of film, with some welcome humorous touches, notably the antics of Terry Kiser and Albert Salmi as a libidinous steelworker and a prankish crane operator, respectively. Majors was never an actor with much range, but here he's actually quite good as the crew leader and plays well off the other actors. The movie has a roster of first-rate character actors whose presence raises its interest level several notches. It's also one of the few films where veteran heavy Richard Lynch gets to play against type as a good guy (albeit a tough one), and he's quite effective at it. Jennifer O'Neill is still as beautiful as ever and still can't act to save her life, but she doesn't drag the picture down as she did, for example, in the John Wayne western "Rio Lobo", in which she was so astoundingly inept it was actually embarrassing to watch her; she's better than that here. Director Steve Carver paid his dues with Roger Corman, and while he never attained the levels of success as fellow Corman alumni Martin Scorsese or Jonathan Demme, he was usually a more than competent filmmaker, and he's done a good job of putting this one together. It's well paced, with a few twists and turns, and the cast seems to be having a good time. You could do worse than rent this on a night when you have nothing much to do.

Good ol' boys complete the construction of a skyscraper – good, dizzying fun for undemanding audiences.

[barnabyrudge · 6/10 · 22 April 2011]

Dangerous jobs are usually a sure source of inspiration for movie makers. There have been countless films down the years about mountaineers, racing drivers, bounty hunters, big game hunters and fire-fighters, to name but a few. Curiously, though, there are relatively few movies about men of the construction industry, in particular those brave souls who are involved in the building of towering skyscrapers. Steel goes some way toward putting that right – this simple but enjoyable yarn features some vertigo-inducing sequences as it charts the exploits of a gang of builders who are racing against time to complete the top nine storeys of a skyscraper in a mere three weeks. (Trivia time: the skyscraper in the building was a real building-under-construction – the 333 ft Kincaid Towers in Lexington, Kentucky).

Wealthy construction mogul Big Lew Cassidy (George Kennedy) falls to his death in a tragic accident during the building of a skyscraper. His business empire is inherited by his inexperienced but spunky daughter Cass (Jennifer O'Neill). She has three weeks to over-see completion of the remaining nine floors of the building – if unfinished, the bank will pull the plug on the project, and her father's company will go bust. Rejecting an offer of help from her slimy uncle, Eddie Cassidy (Harris Yulin), Cass decides to hire a team of crack high-altitude construction workers to carry out the job. The main man is Mike Catton (Lee Majors), who pulls together a crew of the most legendary names in the profession to complete the job within the impossible deadline. It's a tough task getting these testosterone-fuelled personalities to work together, but doubly tough when Eddie tries to hijack their progress for his own greedy ends. And to top it all, Mike is desperately guarding a secret – that he "froze" (lost his head for heights) on a recent job, and is now terrified to the point of paralysis of working on high-rise structures.

Steel is a film very much in the mould of other late 70s films like Smokey And The Bandit, Convoy and Hooper. The plot is different, but the overall tone and the good ol' boy hijinks on display are unmistakable. The script is just about as unsubtle as can be, but the actors seem to be having fun with it and their enthusiasm is infectious. Majors has never been the most versatile of actors but he's well within his comfort zone here… this is probably his most charismatic performance in a career notable for its lack of serious and demanding roles. Indeed, everyone is in high-spirited form which, considering the simplicity of the story, is a pleasant surprise. Steel will never win any awards and will never be on anyone's top-ten-of-all-time list, but if you're in the mood for unashamed and undemanding fun you could do a lot worse.

Building under construction only has one chance to be completed, a collection of elite steel workers.

[rm91945 · 29 January 2002]

Big Lew Cassidy (George Kennedy) is in a race against time, and the bank, to complete his latest building. But a tragic accident makes the likelihood of building completion seem impossible. Cassidy's daughter Cass (Jennifer O'Neill), with the help of Pignose Moran (Art Carney), assembles the `dream team' of steel workers to help her finish off the building.

Mike Catton (Lee Majors) leads the rag-tag bunch of hardhats in a race with the bank. On the crew are Harry Doyle (Redmond Gleeson), an ex-IRA bomber who Catton helped get into the steel workers union, Dancer (Richard Lynch) who is likable enough but has that all appealing `edge'-- or as Catton puts it, `He's the meanest b**tard that ever lived', Cherokee (Robert Tessier) who claims he's not afraid of Custer, Tank (Albert Salmi) who runs the big crane and has a warped sense of humor and Valentino (Terry Kiser), the `lover' of the group. Basically this group mirrors the more comic bunch from CARWASH, although this movie is a drama, not a comedy.

An interesting little subplot to this movie is the fact that Catton, after witnessing the death of several co-workers from a fall off a building, is now afraid of heights and in fact had retired from iron work to become a big-rig driver.

Everyone does a fine job of acting, Majors is believable as the leader and O'Neill is a nice surprise as the boss's daughter and potential love interest for Majors. Kennedy always delights in whatever he does, whether as an aging steelworker or work-farm prisoner (COOL HAND LUKE) and Harris Yulin is great as his sleazy brother Eddie.

Kiser is hilarious with his over-active libido and Lynch has some engaging scenes, particularly his confrontation with Catton when he discovers his fear of heights. Lastly, Tessier is entertaining as the `big lug' Cherokee and Salmi's antics and pranks throughout the film will keep you happily entertained.

Though this film is in no danger of winning an Oscar, it is thoroughly entertaining and has a feel-good ending to it. You'll never look at a building under construction the same again after viewing this one!

Lee Majors is The Man of Steel........

[ballplayer270000 · 10/10 · 22 December 2008]

The Six Million Dollar Man plays The man of Steel. How perfect is that?! This movie took a place in Lee Majors' actual home town Kentucky. It was reported that they used actual under the construction building (Kincaid Tower) at the time and build the set on top roof of Eastern Kentucky University building for the shooting.

This was not critically claimed nor big box office hit, and yet it is the one of the best action drama Majors ever produced and stared. Steel surely shines in his life long acting career. It defines what kind of actor he was, and he had great qualities to play this type of role (well, best or worst). He was man's man, but not in egoistic way. He was the kind of the guy let his action speak itself, tough in both physically and mentally, and yet vulnerable, respect and honor his friends, trying to do the right thing.

Mike Catton (Lee Majors) as foreman gathers craziest crews in skyscraper business to fight against all odds to finish up the building to meet the deadline. It is race against time! I still love this 70's ultimate guy movie because it portraits what real American men were used to be like.

Majors made a couple of films such as Agency with late Robert Mitchum and The last Chase with Late Burgess Meredith after Steel. Those two films did not take off, and Majors came back with huge success of TV Fall Guy.

Finally, Lee Majors was not the only man of Steel in this movie. Steel features other men of Steel. Academy Award winners: Art Carney (Harry & Tonto) and George Kennedy (Cool Hand Luke) The film was dedicated for A.J. BAKUNIS who did stunt for George Kennedy's free fall scene from top of the building.

Steel is one of the 70's infamous movie that should be available on DVD.

Jennifer O'Neil was Fantastic

[garyldibert · 10/10 · 28 January 2013]

TITLE: STEEL opened in New York City on December 12 1980 starring Lee Majors as Mike Cattan, the very lovely Jennifer O'Neill as Cass Cassidy, Art Carney as Pignose Moran, Harris Yulin as Eddie Cassidy, George Kennedy as Big Lou Cassidy and Redmond Gleeson as Harry.

SUMMARY: Big Lou Cassidy is a millionaire who likes to big tall buildings all the country. This time he's putting up a building in downtown Houston Texas. Big Lou takes no bull **** from anyone especially his workers. One day when he gets to work, he pulls up driving his limo because his driver gets to many tickets only to find his workers ready to fight each other. There to meet him is Pignose Moran who is good friends with Lou and has been helping Lou for years. Therefore, Lou gets on his hard hat, and starts to the top of the building with a new kid and they're going to set some steel pillars. Lou tells someone to get him a welder so he can weld two pieces together because the bolt won't set right. When Lou starts the welding there's and explosion on the top floor which has one man frozen and won't let go. Lou goes over to try to help him when another explosion goes off sending Big Lou to his Death. Along comes Cass Cassidy Big Lou's daughter who comes to the funeral. After the funeral, Cass and Pignose get together to talk about what she's going to do next. Pignose tells Cass that she has three weeks to get nine floors added on to this tower. Along comes Mike Cattan who used to work was a steel worker many years ago until he froze on top of a building and ever since then he's been driving a truck. One day while going down the highway driving his rig, Cattan hears someone beeping a horn at him and they want him to pull over. Therefore, Cattan pulls over only to find out that the gorgeous woman in the red sports car was Big Lou's daughter Cass. Cass tells Mike that she needs his help because Pignose told her that he was the best. Cass tells him that she needs nine more floors added to that building and she has only three weeks to do it.

QUESTIONS: Does Cass get her man? Why is Lou's Brother Eddie upset with his sister Cass? Does Cattan get the men that he needs to get this job done? Finally do they get this steel put together before the banks comes knocking?

MY THOUGHTS: I love this movie because it was field with action, adventure, and drama that kept you on your sits to the very end. I think Lee Majors was great in his role and George Kennedy was as good as ever. However, the person that caught my interest was Jennifer O'Neill. She was gorgeous in this movie and she defiantly can act. She also had spunk when it came to keeping her men in line. Because of Jennifer O'Neill and that beautiful body, I give this movie 10 weasel stars. One bite of trivia from this movie Stuntman A.J. Bacons died while doubling for George Kennedy in a fall that killed Kennedy's character. The scene had been shot safely with the stunt man jumping from the ninth floor of the construction site/shooting location in Lexington, KY. At the time he held the record for high falls, set while doubling Burt Reynolds in Hooper (1978), but when rival Dar Robinson later beat his distance in a helicopter jump at Knott's Berry Farm, A. J. and Lee Majors returned to the star's home state to re-shoot the opening of the movie with Bakunas actually jumping from the top of the building. He fell correctly onto an airbag, but the airbag split on impact. His father was with him at the time of his death, but his mother never visited A. J. on set because she always feared he would be killed. Ironically, the completed structure, Kincaid Towers, became home to a life insurance company that eventually went bankrupt.

Steel Buildings and Steel Guys...

[curly-17 · 3 July 2001]

During construction of the Kincaid Tower in Lexington, Kentucky, a producer decided to make a movie about it. In the film, they are rushing to complete the building on schedule, they need to put up the top 9 stories in 3 weeks. This calls for some super construction workers-- the "only guy" for this job is a former construction whiz, now the truck-driving, womanizing Mike Catton (Lee Majors). He has to assemble his whole gang of super builders. The "Demolition Man" owes him a favor. Then there's "Dancer" for the last round-up, and others. Albert Salmi as "Tank" is the best of the lot, giving a stand-out performance; when we first see him, Albert is using his electromagnet crane to lift a metallic outhouse 60 feet in the air-- with someone in it! (The person inside the sky-high outhouse cusses a blue streak and throws newspapers at Albert.) There are countless innuendoes, comparing erecting Steel buildings to guys' other functions. In a scene in a bar, Lee Majors confesses to Art Carney that he "froze" on top of a building. Art Carney gives him the manly, double-meaning advice: "This building will give a you chance to 'get it up' again." Then, the Dream Team arrives at the construction site. This is the team they'll be talking about forever! Later, while socializing, Lee Majors says: "I get restless, maybe, just not used to all that sitting around." Jennifer O'Neill says: "You just tell me when you start 'stiffening' up... and I'll give you a massage." Still later, when they are discussing his fear problem, Jennifer asks him: "Why does yours have to be bigger than everyone else's?" As for Albert Salmi, he uses his big crane to drop a huge steel beam on (bad guy) R.G. Armstrong's car-- what a zany! (in real life, Albert Salmi and R.G. Armstrong had been friends for decades, back to when they starred together in the Broadway show "End As a Man" in 1954. R.G. even attended Albert's first wedding. This movie was like a reunion for them.)

Will the Dream Team get the building finished before the deadline? Will Lee Majors overcome his construction erecting dysfunction? Watch the movie and find out.

Great forgotten film.

[wkozak221 · 10/10 · 13 June 2021]

I saw this on late night tv. I was pleasantly surprised. It had some of my favorite actors in it plus Jennifer O'Neill. The cast and story are above average. The action moves along smoothly. I wish they would show It more often. It has one of my favorite actors, Richard Lynch. He did a great job in every role, usually a villain. Here he plays a good guy. You can watch it on YouTube.

AMAZING

[BandSAboutMovies · 8/10 · 25 May 2023]

I seem to really enjoy the movies of Steve Carver, which are all over the place when it comes to genre, like the peplum The Arena, the gangster films Big Bad Mama and Capone, his two Chuck Norris movies An Eye for an Eye and Lone Wolf McQuade and most definitely this movie. He knows how to make a movie that entertains.

Steel starts off by introducing us to Lew "Big Lew" Cassidy (Goerge Kennedy), a real man's man, the kind of business owner that goes up on the skyscraper when it's being built just like his men. What's shocking is that he's dead five minutes into the movie, falling when things go wrong thanks to substandard equipment. The rest of the film is literally an attempt to live up to the standards that he set.

Sadly, on September 21, 1978, stuntman A. J. Bakunas died in this scene. Not only does it set up the danger of these heights in the movie, it also set them for the creation of Steel. The saddest thing about that is that the scene had already been shot safely. Then Dar Robinson beat the record for highest fall that Bakunas set on the movie Hooper, so the stuntman asked to reshoot the fall. He fell perfectly on to the airbag. The airbag split and that cost him his life. That's why the credits say "This film is dedicated to A. J. Bakunis, a man whose zest for life was admired by all who knew him."

That fall is the one in the movie. A. J.'s dad, who was with him on set, told them to use it.

His daughter Cass (Jennifer O'Neill, the best dressed woman in genre cinema) decides she's going to do thingsher fatther's way, no matter what her uncle Eddie (Harris Yulin) has to say about it. But to live up to the deal her father made, she's going to need the kind of leader that can get men to do impossible things. That would be Mike Catton (Lee Majors), a guy who lost his nerve on his last job and has taken to being a trucker. She meets him on the road and convinces him that he needs to get back up in the sky.

It's impossible to explain just what a big deal Lee Majors was in the mid 70s. Sadly, by 1978, the show that made him a success - to be fair, he was already a star from The Big Valley - The Six Million Dollar Man was cancelled. In the three years between that show and finding another hit in 1981 with The Fall Guy, Majors made a few movies like The Norseman, Agency and Killer Fish. And yes, this movie, which puts him in the lead of the Dirty Dozen of steel. His crew is made up of Pignose Morgan (Art Carney), Valentino (Terry Kiser, not yet dead), Lionel (Roger E. Mosley, not yet TC ), Surfer (Hunter von Leer, not yet a Haddonfield cop), Tank (Albert Salmi, not yet a cop investigating ghosts), The Kid (Ben Marley, not yet battling Jaws), Cherokee (Robert Tessier, not chasing Charles Bronson in this movie) and Dancer (Richard Lynch, not a villain in this, amazingly). Oh yeah - this also has great parts for R. G. Armstrong and Redmond Gleeson.

This might be the most manly movie that I've ever had on this site, a film that starts with Kennedy saying, "The sight of a tall building still gives me a hard-on" and ends up with an American flag being lifted high above the streets below. You'll want to celebrate with the rest of the crew, feeling like you're part of them. This movie is a success for me and it's just as much the guys on screen as it is the script by Leigh Chapman (Truck Turner, Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry) from a story by Peter S. Davis, Rob Ewing and William N. Panzer.