Six Against The Rock (Telefilm)
Picture: C
Sound: C+ Extras: D Telefilm: C+
In 1987, the TV movie was in trouble and it with the
freedom of cable TV kicking in, it never truly recovered. One of the more interesting signs of its
decline can be seen in Six Against The Rock, from a veteran director
(Paul Wendkos) and a cast of names considered known and gritty actors of the
time for the most part. This included
David Carradine, Dennis Farina (uncharacteristically low-key), Richard Dysart,
Charles Haid, Howard Hesseman, David Morse, Jan-Michael Vincent and even Johnny
Weissmuller Jr. in a tale about a siege of Alcatraz Prison by six inmates who
want out.
Though more serious than Michael Bay’s The Rock, it
is not as good as that or Don Siegel’s Escape From Alcatraz (1978) with
Clint Eastwood, still the best, smartest, gutsiest and darkest dramatic film on
the subject to date. With that said,
the telefilm is uneven and never takes off as much as it could, including an
intent to go out of the way to not deal with certain political issues only
hinted at. Being a TV movie of the
time, they could only go so far anyhow, so this was an obvious attempt to be a
ratings grabber. Too bad it did not go
further, but so is the crime of the decline of telefilms on U.S. TV.
The 1.33 X 1 full frame image was shot by cinematography
veteran Philip Lathrop, which helps make it much more watchable than the
teleplay would have, but this transfer is too fuzzy and grainy. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is a little
better, with fuller sound. There are no
extras, but since the Criterion Collection DVD of Michael Bay’s The Rock
has so many extras on the history of the island and prison outside of any film,
what would have been the use?
- Nicholas Sheffo
