Archie und Harry – Sie können's nicht lassen (1986)

Archie und Harry – Sie können’s nicht lassen: Directed by Jeff Kanew. With Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Charles Durning, Alexis Smith. Two elderly gangsters are released from prison only to find they have trouble fitting in as old men who still take no guff from anyone.

“I wasnu0026#39;t disappointed when in 1986, Burt Lancaster announced on BBCu0026#39;s Wogan show that his new movie was going to star himself and his long time friend and frequent co-star Kirk Douglas. Since their first pairing in the brilliant noir thriller u0026#39;I Walk Aloneu0026#39; (1947), Lancaster and Douglas had made several appearances together. Who can forget Lancasteru0026#39;s tough talking Wyatt Earp and Douglasu0026#39;s equally tough yet terminally ill Doc Holliday in u0026#39;Gunfight at the OK Corralu0026#39;? u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSo now it was the mid 80u0026#39;s, the age of the pepsi generation, I wondered how these two consistent stars would adapt to staring together again for the first time since the 60u0026#39;s. The answer is brilliant.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHarry Doyle (Lancaster), and Archie Long (Douglas) are released from prison after a 30 years sentence after being caught dead bang robbing a train. Eager to make a clean sweep, the two senior citizens, are looking forward to starting their new legitimate lives. However, all is not as they had hoped on the outside, and Harry and Archie have problems coming to terms with the way the world has changed. Director Kanew gives us a new genre here. Instead of the u0026#39;fish out of wateru0026#39; scenario, we have the u0026#39;two fishes that have been put back in the water after a severely long timeu0026#39; genre. However, Kanew also gives the audience the inevitable Clichés that go with it, and is always ready to fall back on a youth versus experience incident just about everytime the movie gets enjoyable. After being humiliated, patronised, and generally treated like dirt for the better part of a week, The two ageing gangsters decide that a life of crime has to be better then honest work, and predictably they revert to their previous careers as train robbers.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe film is enjoyable thereu0026#39;s no escaping it, but there are more holes in the plot than there are in a grannies cardigan, and is also SOoooo predictable in fact the films outcome is more predictable than the outcome of a fight betwix elephant and duck. First of all to get 30 years simply for robbing a train, seems a bit excessive for the viewer to even find it believable. Co-incidentally the day the get out of prison is 1 week before the train they were caught robbing is making itu0026#39;s farewell run.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis aside the film IS enjoyable, and Lancaster and Douglas play their parts wonderfully and you enjoy the film more for their presence. Other cast members also rate highly, Eli Wallach is by far the funniest character, and his wonderful performance in some ways steals the film from itu0026#39;s intended stars. and the devine Alexis Smith makes a small cameo as Lancasteru0026#39;s ex lover. Charles Durning is unfortunately once again typecast as the over-weight lazy flatfoot (ala Dog Day Afternoon/The Sting) and although his performances are always good, you get tired pretty quickly of his tough talking patronising character. and finally there is (Pre Wayneu0026#39;s World) Dana Carvey as the Youthful Idealistic Parole Officer, but itu0026#39;s a shame that Carvey is restricted to playing pretty much a straight character, especially considering he is probably one of the funniest men working in Hollywood today.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTough Guys should have been better, but I feel Kanew spent most of the budget on getting the perfect Sterling cast, rather than to hire a good script writer. Worth watching for the final appearance on-screen of this top notch duo. Since Lancasteru0026#39;s Death in 1994, Iu0026#39;ve warmed to this movie more knowing it could never happen again. Itu0026#39;s just a shame it wasnu0026#39;t better as it could have been much better.”