Top Ten Steve McQueen Anti Heroes

Steve McQueen is one of the most iconic actors there is. He often played determined underdog characters that followed their own rules and didn't much care what anyone else had to say. A typical McQueen lead role is a guy that doesn't talk much, but gets things done undeterred by obstacles. Abandoned by mother and father, he had a troubled childhood with many visits to reform school, he once said "If I hadn't made it as an actor, I might have wound up a hood." Fortunately, he did become a star, his tough life providing fuel for his powerful screen persona. He became known for own traits as much as those of any character he portrayed, his love of racing, his girlfriends, and his combative nature. He had a lot in common with his characters, and said that he eventually learned to be ok with the fact that he was typically "playing himself." He never forget where he came from, staying in touch with the California Junior Boys Republic (a reform school)  where he had spent some time as a teen, in an attempt to help those who started out as troubled as he had been. Although he died at fifty years old, his influence remains strong today. Fortunately, he made the movies, so he can go on being the King of Cool forever.

10 Tom Horn, Tom Horn

Tom Horn is a modern twist on the western genre. Based on a true story, Tom Horn is a figure from the Old West, and the a renowned scout from the old frontier days. Offered a job by a local rancher to be a "cattle detective" Horn sets out to deter rustlers by tracking and killing them if need be. Townspeople beome uneasy about him after a public gunfight and the cattle companies realize that they can't be associated with the outrage although he's doing his job very well. Soon his enemies set him up, framing for the murder of a young boy. He barely resists the charges, and his statements are taken out of context to look like a confession. He escapes from prison, but is soon recaptured. Realizing that he's completely out of his element when it comes to modern politics he agrees and goes quietly to his execution for the crime.While this is not one of McQueen's best performances it's still an interesting story and character, Filmed while he was already feeling the cancer that would take him, this is not the Steve McQueen we remember. He seems to know he's beaten through the whole film, and even his talent at killing isn't much use. As much as McQueen
helped define an era, it's somewhat fitting that he would play a character who didn't fit into modern times.

If you really knew how dirty and raggedy-assed the Old West was, you wouldn't want any part of it.

9 Nevada Smith, Nevada Smith

Nevada Smith is a standard western revenge tale. Nevada is a half white, half Indian kid whose parents are murdered by three men Jesse Coe (Martin Landau,) Bill Bowdre (Arthur Kennedy,) and Tom Fitch (Karl Malden) when he's too young and unskilled to do anything about it. Taken in by a man named Jonas Cord (Brian Keith) he learns from him how to handle a gun. He learns every skill necessary to catch up with the killers, having himself thrown in prison and even learning to read in order to settle the score. "Nevada Smith" is a pretty predictable and standard western, but it is interesting to see Steve Mcqueen take the whole journey from helpless kid to competent killer.

You're just not worth killing.

8 Doc McCoy, The Getaway

Doc McCoy is a great bank robber who is granted parole due to the efforts of his wife Carol (Ali McGraw) who sleeps with Sheriff Benyon (Ben Johnson) to ake sure that it happens. Benyon however, also insists that Doc performs a robbery for him, using his own men, Frank and Rudy (Al Lettieri,) as part of the crew. Doc reluctantly accepts having little choice. The Sheriff's men botch the job. Frank and Rudy escape together, although Rudy kills Frank. Doc and Carol also escape and head for their rendezvous point. RUdy attempts to kill them but Doc shoots him and leaves him for dead. Doc and Carol meet with Benyon and find his real plan, The Sheriff brings up his tryst with Carol, and his plan to have her kill Doc. She kills the Sheriff instead. They take off, on the run from Benyon's people, while Rudy is also pursuing them although they still think he's dead. Doc struggles to trust Carol while they try to figure out a way to stay alive. The Getaway is a Sam Peckinpah film and certainly feels like it, using startling violence for effect. McQueen is firmly on the criminal side of the moral compass here, but even so, he's a lot more ethical than Sheriff Benyon, the law figure. He's certainly a convincing action hero, and we don't have a hard time believing he can handle the violence, but trusting his wife is another story.

If you're trying to get me back in Huntsville, you're going about it the right way.

.

7 Henry Thomas, Baby, The Rain Must Fall

Henry Thomas is a singer in a band, recently paroled. When his wife Georgette (Lee Remick) learns he's out, she comes to join him, bring their daughter along. Raised without a father, he's pressured by his abusive foster mother, Kate Dawson (Georgia Simmons) to stop singing and get a real job. He craves her approval, but she does nothing to support him, instead insisting even on her death bed that he's always been bad. Unable to deal with his issues, his temper gets the better of him and his old habits lead to the same place they always have, while his wife must try to accept that there's little she can do about it, and her best bet is to move on.McQueen here gives a terrific and weighty performance. While he isn't as "cool" here as he is on other films, he is once again playing the outsider. In this case however, the character is ill equipped to function in society. Having only his destructive habits to rely on, he seems destined to end up in prison time and again. His Henry is a real tragedy and thanks to his performance, a sadly believable one.

I'm not going to quit my music! You hear that, old lady?... I'm not going to quit music!

6. Vin Tanner, The Magnificent Seven

In this western remake of "The Seven Samurai" Vin Tanner comes to the aid of Chris (Yul Brynner) attempting to bury an Indian in the town cemetery, despite local protests that only whites are buried there. The two of them agree to help some visitors from a small Mexican village at the mercy of Calvera, (Eli Wallach) a bandit who frequently raids their village. They and five other gunmen follow the visitors back to their village, and all fortheirown reasons, assist them in getting rid of Calvera. This another all star cast similar to "The Great Escape," thistime including, RobertVaughan, Charles Bronson, and James Coburn. Here, McQueen is once again a standout almost taking the lead from Yul Brynner as the most well rounded and all around reliable character.

We deal in lead, friend.

5 Capt. Hilts "The Cooler King" The Great Escape

Capt. Hilts is one in a group of Allied POW's in a German WWII prison camp. Nicknamed "The Cooler King" since his behavior gets him many stints in the cooler, a version of solitary confinement. Led by Roger Bartlett, the Allied prisoners resolve to committ as many escape attempts as possible for two reasons; to escape, and to keep the German soldiers busy with them and away from the war. Hilts attempts his own escapes, which keep attention from the main plan, to dig a tunnel. ALthough the attempts have some success, nearly everyone is recaptured and most are killed, including 50 in a mass execution. McQueen is great here in an all star cast including, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson and James Coburn. His portrayal of Hilts is the best representation of the camp's determination to escape. While most of the camp works in concert, he's typically the wild card, his actions being relied on to draw attention away from others.

Sir, let me know the exact information you need. I'm going out tonight.

4 Eric Stoner, The Cincinatti Kid

Eric Stoner is the Cincinnati Kid, a talented and promising Poker player who wants to be the best. He's coached by his friend and once contender, Shooter (Karl Malden,) who helps him set up a game with Lancey Howard (Edward G. Robinson,) the man to beat if he wants to be the best there is. He's offerred a lot of assistance as Howard has his enemies, chiefly from a man named Slade (Rip Torn) who was humiliated by Lancey Howard in another game. He blackmails a dealer to give the Cincinnati Kid an edge. At the big game, The Cincinnati Kid discovers the cheating and insists that it be stopped, trusting in his own luck. When his demands aren't met, he insists on a change of dealers. The game between Howard goes back and forth finally coming down to the cards, leaving the Kid with his integrity perhaps, but wondering about his luck. Another role perfect for McQueen, The Cincinatti Kid is another guy stubbornly following his own kid. Very talented and full of confidence, he's flawed as well, and we wonder about his distinctions. He insists on only winning through his own luck, yet cheats on his girlfriend in a break from a poker game. While for some characters that may not be significant, for this character and the importance he places on his code, it's tough not to wonder if he changed his own luck.

Listen, Christian, after the game, I'll be The Man. I'll be the best there is. People will sit down at the table with you, just so they can say they played with The Man. And that's what I'm gonna be, Christian.

3. Papillon

Henri "Papillon" Charriere a bank robber, is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, to be served at an island penal colony. He quickly becomes friends with counterfeiter Louis Dega (Dustin Hoffman,) who is an interesting foil for Papillon, relying on his brains, and physically limited, they reach a deal where Papillon  looks out for Dega who has many enemies, if Dega will fund Papillon's escape plans. He escapes but is soon caught and punished for refusing to give up Dega as his financial backer. He quickly comes up with another escape plan and this time takes Dega with him. They're soon separated however and when Papillon is eventually caught he gets five years of solitary and then sent to "Devil's Island" an inescapable prison where he's reunited with Dega and has to decide whether he's done with escape attempts or not. An interesting role and perfect for McQueen in that despite knowing he's a bank robber (although not a murderer he claims) we're asked to put that aside and accept his own code of morality, which here, is basically not being willing to endure the cruel conditions of imprisonment. His determination to escape even though it's impossible is the drive of the movie, along with the long lasting friendship between Papillon and Dega.

Me, they can kill. You, they own!

2. Jake Holman, The Sand Pebbles

Jake Holman is an engineer transferred to the U.S.S. San Pablo, (nicknamed the Sand Pebbles) a gunboat on the Yangtze River in China. Not fond of the Chinese, who are doing most of the work on board the ship, or the standard maintenance practices, which leave a lot to be desired, he insists on working the engine room himself. His insistence on a repair leads to him being blamed for the death of the Chinese engine room boss who was assisting. In training Po-Han (Mako,) the dead man's replacement, his opinion of the Chinese starts to broaden and he actually makes a friend. The friendship comes to a sad end when Po-Han  is captured and tortured and Holman shoots him to end his misery as he has no other options. His shipmate and friend, Frenchy (Richard Attenborough) falls in love and marries a Chinese woman, and is killed sneaking off the ship to see her. His wife is killed as well and the Communists frame Holman for it, adding to the U.S/ Chinese tension by demanding Holman be turned over to China, which the Captain refuses to do. They have the opportunity to leave, but the Captain decides instead on a dangerous rescue mission which leads to Holman making some tough decisions. Probably McQueen's most challenging role, Holman is on the surface an unlikable racist who can't along with others. In his interactions with others, we see that there is more depth to him than he willingly presents. He cares a lot more than he'd admit, although this doesn't typically lead to good things for him.

I was home. What happened? What the hell happened?

1. Lt. Frank Bullitt, Bullitt

Lt. Frank Bullitt is a cop who helped define the "Loose Cannon Cop" in films ever since. The role seems tailor made for McQueen, a stoic loner forced to try and outwit the system he works for just to do his job right. He loves his car but has no idea how to handle a relationship. Assigned a protection gig for a witness against a crime family, he watches as things go off the rails faster than should be possible and he ends up in a political danger as wells as physical. His true adversary in the film is ambitious politician, Chalmers (Robert Vaughan) who tries to sell Bullitt on compromising his integrity to advance his career, which is unsurprisingly not effective. Featuring one of the most memorable car chases in film history, terrific action sequences and a great backdrop for McQueen to be cool, determined, and detached while bringing in the bad guys.

Look, Chalmers, let's understand each other... I don't like you.

Bullitt

Frank Bullitt isn't a typical cop. While most around him work "by the book"  Bullitt does things his own way. He's a loner who despises the system and makes no attempt to hide his disdain. He's also very good at what he does. The newspapers love him, which makes aspiring politician Walter Chalmers(Robert Vaughan,) hand selects Bullitt, to guard Johnny Ross, a mafia member and key witness in a huge case against the Mafia. To give the invitation he has Bullitt called to his huge house where he's having an extravagant party. He promises Bullitt that the Senate SubCommittee hearings will propel those involved into better positions, and tells him that he wants to "take him along"

The assignment is to watch Ross for the weekend until he can testify on Monday. Bullitt has two partners team to cover the watch, Sergeant Delgetti (Don Gordon) and Detective Carl Stanton (Carl Reindel). Chalmers tells him the hotel room where Ross is staying and Bullitt is given the authority to do anything he needs to to keep Ross safe by Captain Bennett (Simon Oakland)


Ross seems surprised at the arrangement and asks a lot of questions, but Bullitt doesn't bother coddling him, telling Ross that the only concern he should have is staying away from the windows. Ross does inform them that Chalmers picked the hotel. They divide up the watch into shifts and Bullitt goes out to a club to meet his girlfriend Cathy (Jacqueline Bisset). Delgetti calls Bullitt to let him know they're changing shifts and Cathy gets annoyed because he won't tell her anything about the call.

Stanton is now watching Ross, and the front desk annouces two visitors at 1:00 in the morning, claiming to be "Mr. Chalmers and a friend." This makes Ross noticeably uneasy. Stanton calls Bullitt, who tells him not to let them in and he'll be there in five minutes. The visitors don't wait at the front desk however, busting into the hotel room shooting, leaving Ross and Stanton unconscious and bleeding. Bullitt arrives at the hotel with police and ambulances already at the scene. Stanton was shot in the leg but has some bleeding problems, while Ross is in worse shape. Bullitt questions Stanton in the ambulance, getting a description of one of the men and his gun. He also reveals that Ross had taken the chain off the door, which helped the men get in. The hospital informs them that Stanton will be alright, but Ross is in critical condition. Captain Bennett meets Bullitt at the hospital to inform him that Chalmers is upset and likely to make up political points by blaming the Police Department for his lack of the promised witness. Bullitt answers the  Captain, "Does Chalmers run this case or do I?" The Captain gives him authority saying  "Do what you think is best, and I'll try to back you up."

Chalmers and some associates soon vist the hospital themselves. Chalmers attempts to put Bullitt on the spot asking what went wrong, but Bullitt counters by asking "Who else knew where he was?" He pushes further, asking what deal Chalmers had with Ross. Chalmers won't answer and claims that the only problem is that the officer's didn't handle their responsibility. Chalmers clearly intends to be intimidating, but Bullitt isn't bothered, dismissing Chalmers, by saying
"You believe what you want. You work your side of the street, I'll work mine."

Chalmers informs Bullitt that he'll come back in the morning with his own people to watch Ross. On his way out he demands to have his own surgeon replace the one who had been treating Ross. After he leaves, one of the killers from the hotel shows up at the hospital, claiming to be looking for a relative with a gunshot wound. Bullitt is alerted to the killer's presence by a call from a hospital employee. He informs Delgetti that one of the killers is in the building and they start searching the hospital. The killer escapes, but they keep him from Ross. Bullitt is in the operating room shortly afterwards when Ross dies during surgery. Bullitt asks the surgeon to keep the file open, not telling anyone (particularly Chalmers) about the death, hoping this will help catch the killers. The surgeon agrees to "misplace" the file. The body is then sent to the morgue as a John Doe.

Chalmers arrives the next morning at the hospital with a large entourage. When he finds Ross is not in the same room, he gets frantic and starts throwing his name around to get results.Captain Baker (Norman Fell) accompanies Chalmers, lending the authority of an official police request to his demands. He then calls Bullitt and asks where the witness is. Bullitt says "I've got him." He refuses to tell Chalmers where Ross is, hanging up when Chalmers puts Capt. Baker on the phone. He then order Baker to write him up, and Baker quickly agrees.

Bullitt goes back to the hotel room for a look around. Degetti and Bullitt question the hotel clerk who says they knocked him out before he saw anything. Bullitt starts intimidating the man which jogs his memory, and he soon remembers seeing them arrive and what cab company they used. Bullitt starts checking out Sunshine Cabs and finds the driver, Weissberg (Robert Duval) who dropped the men off.  He has Weissberg show him where they went and calls an informant, Eddie,  for information on Johnny Ross. The killers meanwhile, are parked nearby watching Bullitt.

Chalmers pays a visit to Captain Bennett at church, promising him career advancement and vague financial reward. The Captain tells him that it's Bullitt's case and if he's hiding the witness, he's doing so for a reason, Chalmers, frustrated,  hands the Captain a "writ of habeas corpus" telling him he's now responsible for delivering the witness. Eddie reveals that Johnny Ross was stealing money, and they tried and failed to have him killed and the mob is now watching the airports and ports so he can't go anywhere.

Bullitt gets back to his own car, a 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390 CID Fastback, and notices the killers car close by following him in a 1968 Dodge Charger R/T 440 Magnum. Bullitt quickly turns the tables and ends up behind them. When they panic, this leads to the most famous chase scene in movie history as Bullitt chases them through the streets of San Francisco for nearly ten minutes.The killers get blown up when they lose control of the car and drive into gas pumps.


Bullitt now has to answer to both Chiefs. Baker, as we know is deep in Chalmer's pocket, and Bennett, who has run out of options after the car chase. Bennett has no choice but to insist that he turn over Ross.  Bullitt reveals when ordered, that Ross is dead, which causes Baker to berate him. Bullitt reveals he has a lead to follow up, a girl's number that Ross had called.The Chief agrees to hold the writ for Ross until Monday morning (upsetting Baker) Bullitt takes the opportunity to follow up his lead. He gets to the girl's apartment to find her strangled to death. Cathy, who drove him to the scene, gets bored and concerned and goes inside to check on him.

She's severely disturbed by seeing the dead woman and Bullitt has to make her stop looking at the body. His callous attitude when dealing with such a horrific scene makes her question if she knows him at all and if anything can ever reach him. Reasoning that his living with violence and death will make him grow more distant from her.
"What will happen to us in time?" she asks
"Time starts now" Bullitt answers.

The dead woman's luggage is sent to the police department from the airport. They discover men's things in one of her luggage trunks along with travel arrangements to Rome minus passport and tickets, as well as a lot of money and evidence with the name of Albert Rennick. He orders a copy of Rennick's passport photo and fingerprints on file for Ross. Chalmers shows up during his investigating and demands a signed admission that Ross died in his care. Bullitt says "when I'm ready" and finally when Chalmers insists just says "excuse me" and leaves Chalmer's standing there. Bullitt reveals that Rennick is actually a used car salesman, Ross set up to pose as him, and the dead woman was his his wife, killed to keep her quiet about the arrangement so Ross can leave the country using Rennick's identity.

Bullitt, Delgatti, and Chalmers head to the airport to catch the real Ross. Chalmers attempts a conversation with Bullitt, reminding him that Ross is still his witness. Bullitt is clear with his response, snarling:
Bullitt: "Look, let's get something clear. I don't like you."
 Chalmers: "Come on, now. Don't be naive, Lieutenant. We both know how careers are made. Integrity is something you sell the public."
Bullitt: You sell whatever you want, but don't sell it here tonight.
Chalmers: Frank, we must all compromise.
Bullitt: Bullshit!...Get the hell out of here, Now.
Chalmers has the sense to comply. Bullit gets an escort to the plane and makes his way to Ross, who jumps out an emergency exit and takes off down the runway leading to an extended foot chase which ends with Bullitt shooting Ross dead. Chalmer's drives away in his chauffered car, while Bullitt stays at the scene. He heads home to find his girlfriend and he takes a long look in the mirror, before the camera moves to his gun, which he'd set aside to wash up.

Bullitt is one of the most influential action movies ever made. Peter Yates has an interesting style, keeping the story moving at a fast pace and trusting the audience to keep up. The various chase scenes are worthy of praise in their own right, yet most of the movie is watching Steve Mcqueen glower, keeping everything to himself. While Bullitt is no Dirty Harry, there could have been no Dirty Harry without him. Bullitt is the ultimate loner, and when Cathy worries about him growing more callous, no one can doubt she's right to be concerned. While everyone else in the movie is bound by clear rules and agendas, Bullitt is impossible to figure out. He obviously despises the system he works in, yet for reasons of his own he continues.  He thinks no more of a enacting a possibly career ending deception, than he would of brushing his teeth.

McQueen's acting is great to watch. He plays the role with several convincing facial expressions, which he has down to perfection. Vaughan is also fantastic, playing sleaze to the hilt. You wonder how anyone can bear to talk to him. Their scenes together are wonderful, each representing an alien world to the other. The supporting roles are all solid if slight. It's also very cool to see a young Robert Duvall, if only for a moment.

Bullitt is not bothered by anything; his character, the epitome of cool and detached.  He does what he feels he should do, unnaffected by anyone else's thoughts. He doesn't care about status or success, he just does what he has to, because for some reason he's good at being a cop. Chalmers is Bullitt's opposite number, completely driven by what others think, and the prospect of obtaining more money and influence. The crime is strictly an excuse to put Bullitt and Chalmers against each other. The fact that there are two police chiefs is also significant. Chief Baker is happy to play Chalmer's flunky, while Bennett sympathizes with Bullitt but ends up unable to back him because of the system they work in. His partners may sympathize, but they simply follow the rules while Bullitt is making moves.  We're to understand that he doesn't have a real ally anywhere. McQueen's demeanor only changes radically once in the movie, when Chalmers suggest he should compromise. "Bullshit!" he says, and we believe him. He won't compromise and that's what leaves him outside the system, not only at work, but in his relationship with Cathy, and presumably in his own life. To me, the ending scene suggests that he knows Cathy is right.

Bullitt is a story about one man at odds with the system, who also knows he's powerless to change it. The Chalmers of the world just drive away when things go badly, and chauffered at that. Even his supporters eye him cautiously, not comfortable with an intensity they can't understand. Bullitt looks good in the headlines, but he doesn't really care about how he looks. He keeps a steady romantic relationship, but lives like a single man. He won't compromise his self sufficiency, any more than he would compromise his own sense of integrity. While some may find it admirable, for Bullitt it looks like steady torture, fortunately for the length of the film, it's torture he can manage. But watching the last scene you wonder how long he can tolerate being surrounded by compromises, and what he'll do when he can't anymore.