Jimmy Graham (Jan-Michael Vincent) is rejected from enlisting in the Army. As a boy, he testified about his mother's death which put his father Harry K. Graham (Robert Mitchum) in prison. He had a tough upbringing. He tries to visit Harry in prison but is told that he's been released. Harry is living in a trailer. Jenny Benson is his girlfriend. Jimmy is still angry at his father and wants him back in prison despite spending time with him.
The rape comes out of nowhere. It needs a better setup. The movie is going along great up to Harry smashing the car windows. I was assuming that Harry was innocent at that point and expected a reconciliation story. After Harry confesses, I don't see reconciliation as a good story path. I would prefer more anger from Jimmy. If he becomes more volatile, the rape becomes less abrupt outlier. There is also another problem. Jenny becomes less as a character and more as an object. The movie treats it as a conflict between the men when the crime has been committed against the woman. It's an awkward turn. There is some value in the complicated family conflict in the movie. I like the turn and the resolution much less.
The rape comes out of nowhere. It needs a better setup. The movie is going along great up to Harry smashing the car windows. I was assuming that Harry was innocent at that point and expected a reconciliation story. After Harry confesses, I don't see reconciliation as a good story path. I would prefer more anger from Jimmy. If he becomes more volatile, the rape becomes less abrupt outlier. There is also another problem. Jenny becomes less as a character and more as an object. The movie treats it as a conflict between the men when the crime has been committed against the woman. It's an awkward turn. There is some value in the complicated family conflict in the movie. I like the turn and the resolution much less.