Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Michael Crawford | ... | Harry Hayes | |
Ryan O'Neal | ... | Scott Reynolds | |
Charles Aznavour | ... | Pavel Vendek | |
Jeremy Kemp | ... | Jim Harcourt | |
Elaine Taylor | ... | Christine | |
Stanley Baker | ... | Bill Oliver | |
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Athol Compton | ... | Sunny Pintubi |
Rafer Johnson | ... | Commentator | |
Kent Smith | ... | Kaverley | |
Sam Elliott | ... | Richie Robinson | |
Mona Washbourne | ... | Mrs. Hayes | |
Reg Lye | ... | Gilmour | |
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June Jago | ... | Mae Harcourt |
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Don Newsome | ... | Cal Wood |
Hugh McDermott |
This movie is about four marathon runners from different countries who are preparing for the Rome Olympics. The movie takes you through some of the runners personal training schedules before finally showing the marathon. Written by Jenny Evans <J.Evans@uts.edu.au>
To some viewers, this movie is notable primarily for being the film debut of Sam Elliott. He gets 10th billing in the role of Ryan O'Neal's friend, Richie, who supplies him with pills intended to improve physical stamina. The pills, however, prove to be more harmful than beneficial.
Though Richie doesn't seem to be making any money off these pills, he still comes across as a "pusher" and thus qualifies as one of the few unsavory parts in Elliott's long career. Actually, Elliott's dark, almost saturnine looks lend themselves well to villainry and here those looks are effectively contrasted with Ryan O'Neal's fair-haired, blue-eyed, boy-next-door appearance.
Much of Elliott's early appeal, of course, was unabashedly sensual and here he's given a spa scene with O'Neal which has each of them stripped down to no more than a towel around the waist. Elliott's darkly-haired, almost furry chest speaks of "experience" whereas O'Neal's almost-hairless one reflects "innocence." Since O'Neal is the "star," however, care seems to have been taken not to allow Elliott to upstage him. The camera tends to linger on O'Neal's torso whereas Elliott's more masculine one is relegated to the background.
This situation changed when Elliott moved up to leading-man status. In 1971's "Molly and Lawless John" and 1972's "Frogs," the camera all but drooled over his bare-chest scenes and in 1976's "Lifeguard" Elliott set the "beefcake" standard for the 1970s by appearing in much of the movie wearing only a pair of swim trunks.