Review of Cutter's Way (1981) by Eric R — 07 Nov 2009
A rough, simmering, character study in which the mystery/thriller plot takes a back seat to the exploration of the relationships of the three lead characters; the one-eyed, one armed, one legged paranoid Nam vet Alex Cutter, his depressed alcoholic wife Mo, and his laid back, playboy friend Richard Bone. When Bone thinks he recognizes the rapist/murderer of a young girl as being one of the local "royalty " figures, it gives Cutter a place to put his mind, a place to let all of his paranoia run wild and to take a stand for justice. Bone is reluctantly dragged into Cutter's fantasy which slowly starts to show signs of being a reality. Even so, Bone is hesitant to take action, though he's more than happy to involve himself with Cutter's wife. A dark, bleak, tragedy ensues.
John Heard gives an almost unrecognizable performance and certainly one of the best of his career as Cutter. He grumbles, drunk, shouting, cursing, but at the same time charming.
Jeff Bridges, too is excellent. There are some funny parallels to The Big Lebowski to be seen here as well.
It's just an excellent film with a hell of an ending. Highly recommended.
This review of Cutter's Way (1981) was written by Eric R on 07 Nov 2009.
Cutter's Way has generally received positive reviews.
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