You do a fantastic job with your reviews in general, but occasionally you do one that resonates with me, and I like to send you a quick note on those occasions. Your review of The Adventurers is one of those times.
You ask: "How, after all, could a film by a major director and featuring a big all-star cast go so completely wrong? The answer is: it didn't. The Adventurers is not high art, but it doesn't deserve its place in the Razzie book of ten worst films of all time."
With that passage, you hit the nail on the head, in my opinion. I watched this movie a couple of years ago and concur with your review. No way this is one of the worst films of all time. It probably will not make any favorites lists, but it is worth the effort to view it once.
As always, keep up the good work.
Martin Sheffield
Retro Responds: Thanks for the kind words, Martin...I find that, all too often, epic box-office failures are often judged by their financial fate, not their artistic merits. I'm not making the argument that The Adventurers is some great work. However, calling it one of the worst movies of all time seems way over the top. I can well understand why our own contributing writer and editor Sheldon Hall wrote to me to say he felt the film was "a stinker". Fair enough, but even he isn't making the argument that the film ranks among the ten worst of all time, as apparently the Razzies are claiming. Of course, such judgments are purely subjective and there is no right or wrong answer. However, I find that many people knock big boxoffice disasters based on vague recollections or general critical consensus. Among the other prominent "victims" of this scenario: the Liz and Dick version of Cleopatra, Mutiny on the Bounty, The Alamo (which actually was a financial success but has been deemed a bomb), the Brando remake of Mutiny on the Bounty and of course the infamous Heaven's Gate, which people are finally and justifiably re-evaluating. Some unenlightened critics still cite On Her Majesty's Secret Service as a film that died at the boxoffice, thus resulting in George Lazenby being fired as 007. For the record, although the film grossed far less than the preceding Bonds, its grosses would still have been the envy of most producers- and Lazenby quit the role and was not fired. Again, saner heads have prevailed in more recent years and the film has finally been receiving the praise it has always deserved. Hopefully, some of the aforementioned movies I've cited will, too.
(Readers can send their opinions on any topic to: cinemaretro@hotmail.com Because of the large volume of mail we receive, we can't guarantee the letter will be published, but we do try to answer every E mail.)