The Lost Man (1969)

A gang of black militants plots to rob a factory to finance their "revolutionary struggle".

Director:

Robert Alan Aurthur

Writers:

Robert Alan Aurthur (screenplay), F.L. Green (novel) (as Frederick Laurence Green)

Stars:

Sidney Poitier, Joanna Shimkus, Al Freeman Jr.

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sidney Poitier	...	Jason Higgs
Joanna Shimkus	...	Cathy Ellis
Al Freeman Jr.	...	Dennis Lawrence
Michael Tolan	...	Insp. Carl Hamilton
Leon Bibb	...	Eddie Moxie
Richard Dysart	...	Barnes
David Steinberg	...	Photographer
Beverly Todd	...	Sally Carter (aka Dorothy Starr)
Paul Winfield	...	Orville Turner
Bernie Hamilton	...	Reggie Page
Dick Anthony Williams	...	Ronald (as Richard Anthony Williams)
Dolph Sweet	...	Police Captain
Arnold Williams	...	Terry
Virginia Capers	...	Theresa
Vonetta McGee	...	Diane Lawrence

Storyline

Former U.S. Army lieutenant Jason Higgs (Sidney Poitier) who, after becoming a black militant during the 1960s Black Reveolutionary movement, is wounded when he pulls a payroll heist to help imprisoned "brothers" and has to hide from the police. Social worker Cathy Ellis (Joanna Shimkus) falls in love with Higgs while helping him elude capture. Loosely based on the 1947 Carol Reed film "Odd Man Out."

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Plot Keywords:

robbery gone awry | neo noir | robbery | color remake of black and white film | race relations | 

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Taglines:

He crowded a lifetime into 37 suspenseful hours, ticking away minute by minute, fear by fear, bullet by bullet by bullet!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

M

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 July 1969 (USA)

Also Known As:

Es führt kein Weg zurück

Filming Locations:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Poitier met and fell in love with co-star Joanna Shimkus, who became his wife.

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Connections

Version of Odd Man Out (1947)

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Soundtracks

He'll Wash You Whiter Than Snow
Written by Quincy Jones
Performed by The Church Choir (uncredited)

User Reviews

Not One of Poitier's Best

The Lost Man is notable for several things, none of which includes it being a great example of cinema. Sidney Poitier's future wife, Joanna Shimkus. co-starred with him in this film. It's notable for being one of the first films of Poitier where he is trying to buck the system, rather than fit it. In most of his earlier films, he was always dealing with the problems of being a black man in a mostly white society, while living a respectable and useful existence. In this film, he plays a black revolutionary who is robbing "The Man's" bank in order to finance his group's activities. This group is a shadowy, seemingly monolithic entity that remains enigmatic throughout the film.

No one is horrible in this movie. It just doesn't stand up very well. If Poitier's black militant group had been more like the Black Panthers instead of what the Panther would have liked to have been, the movie might seem more of a product of its times. Instead, it comes like a black revolutionary fable. Interesting, but not compelling.