Marooned

Saturday is traditionally "Take out the Trash" day.

Marooned (John Sturges, 1969) Martin Caidin's book "Marooned" presented the dilemma of an astronaut stranded in Earth orbit in a Mercury capsule whose retro-rockets—designed to slow its speed and have it fall back to Earth—failed to fire. That astronaut was doomed to remain in space—although eventually, in years, its orbit would decay enough that it would re-enter the atmosphere on its own—until his meager supply of oxygen ran out and he suffocated. As a book, it was merely okay, taking into account the logistics of actually spending the money and disrupting testing schedules and safety protocols over one man's life. 

There have been some close calls. The accidents of both the American and Soviet space programs are well-documented, and Apollo 13 came within a cat's whisker of skipping off the atmosphere on its return journey after an explosion disrupted their oxygen and power supply. But, no being—since the days of testing capsules with animals—has ever been stranded in space. Technically, it happened June 2024, when two astronauts, who were supposed to only spend 8 days up at the International Space Station, had to abandon their return, and have been up there ever since. Supposedly, the new "rescue" mission was supposed to launch this week...but it's been postponed.

Now, a movie was made in 1969 based on author Caidin's book, but, by the time of its release, the space program had advanced enough that there had already been one manned landing on the Moon with another scheduled days away. So, they looked at future NASA plans—one of which would be called Skylab, a low-tech space station using a spare third stage rocket casing as the orbiter—and based the fictional "Ironman One" mission of Marooned on that. Three astronauts (Richard Crenna, James Franciscus, and Gene Hackman) go up in their capsule to rendezvous, dock and spend seven months on their ersatz, roomy space station, but when Hackman's character gets a little space-woozy after just five months, everybody decides it's time to come home and *pfft* the retro-rockets don't work. Oh, the little green-light that says they're working is on ("We're gonna decorate it for Christmas!" the commander cracks). 

Now, the easiest solution is to get back to their little crude space-station which has plenty of oxygen—their space capsule having a limited supply—but since their big engine won't work, it makes it a little out of reach, space-wise. They have maneuvering thrusters, but they don't have the oomph to do anything but spin the space-craft around. So, NASA has to figure out a way to get their astro-boys back before the air runs out in 42 hours. And that's where the proverbial pooches really get screwed. Oh, NASA's good at schedules, and launch-windows, and prepping enough Tang™, but when it comes to seat-of-your-pants Hail Mary plays, well...let's have a meeting about that.

Thank God, that Charles Keith (Gregory Peck) is, as he likes to tell everybody "head of Manned Space," and as soon as you say "Houston, we've got a problem" it's his problem, too. The thing is, after looking at all the read-outs and not being able to repeat the problem with a similar retro-rocket on Earth, he's ready to give the "it's a risky business, and we will go on in their name" speech, he's told by Astronaut Lead Ted Dougherty (David Janssen)—who's "head of Space Man," I guess—that they should launch a rescue mission with an unproven booster, an untested vehicle prototype and with a hurricane bearing down on Florida and do it in 42 hours. What could go wrong?

But, before you can say "hand me those frozen "O"-rings, Keith shoots it down as being too risky and could only make a bad situation worse. That's when he gets a call from the President—it was Nixon, at the time—who says "Make a bad situation worse? I'm all for it!" Daugherty starts training for the mission—it should be the remedial lesson to save time—but, God turns the hurricane towards Florida, delaying the launch, which leads to the decision to launch when the eye of the hurricane is over the cape. That's some precise hurricane. But, the delay will mean that the trapped crew's oxygen supply will run out.

That is, the oxygen supply for three astronauts. Two might just make it. So, Keith gets to make one of the most cringe-worthy conversations in the history of space movies:

 

Charles Keith: Jim... how do you uh... how do you evaluate... the oxygen situation? 

Jim Pruett: Um... Well, we have whatever oxygen's left in the spacecraft system. And, there are only, uh... two bottles of emergency oxygen on board, five minutes each, that's uh... ten man-minutes. Um... my backpack, and uh... Lloyd's and Stone's, but um... there's not much oxygen left in them.

Charles Keith: Well, you'll have to save your backpacks for the EVA transfer.

Jim Pruett: Yeah I know that. 

[pause] 

Jim Pruett: 55 minutes, 

[longer pause] 

Jim Pruett: we'll be dead by then. 

Charles Keith: Well, only if you... continue to use oxygen at the present rate...

Jim Pruett: Well, uh, we can't cut down. 

Charles Keith: Let's... think about that... 

Jim Pruett: Do, uh... do you want us to lower the partial pressure again? 

Charles Keith: No, we've examined that, it won't work... 

Jim Pruett: Well we're lyin' here like corpses now... uh... what else can we do?

Charles Keith: You must... think... 

[astronauts exchange glances, realizing the unspoken implication of Keith's statement] 

Jim Pruett: Yeah, we're... thinkin'... 

Charles Keith: Are we talking about the same thing? 

Jim Pruett: Yeah. 

Charles Keith: Why don't you... talk it over. If you could... work out something... it would be of great help... 

Jim Pruett: Yeah we'll talk it over.

Charles Keith: I must point out Jim, that any *effective* action must be taken immediately... 

Jim Pruett: Look, don't tell me what to do! We've been takin' your god damned orders and where the hell are we? From now on WE'RE gonna make all the decisions! Whatever we do, you're OUT OF IT! 

Charles Keith: Oh I uh... appreciate what you're saying Jim... and I agree with you... You're exactly right...

  

MAD Magazine (#138, October, 1970) had a field-day with that dialog:

As a "space-kid" growing up, eyes glued to the television every time a space mission happened, this seemed absolutely ludicrous (we hadn't had a death in space yet, only during training, and NASA's lucky streak on their space-flights was nothing short of amazing, but you couldn't tell me that). I was already sitting in my seat, arms folded tightly across my chest with a scowl on my face as the depictions of the vehicles in orbit around the Earth wouldn't have passed muster as a "simulation" the networks always used when they didn't have "picture" for what was happening during their coverage (and that was pretty dicey, even though it inspired the movie Capricorn One and hundreds of resultant conspiracy theories).

Look, I was 14 and that's an age when "fair" is a foreign concept. But, Marooned was released a full year after 2001: a Space Odyssey, with its pristine special effects, and I considered this movie one giant leap backwards. Nothing looked right, or even realistic. The space hardware was pristine, no wads of aluminum foil hanging off the ships (used to reflect sunlight and heat at the time), no wear-and-tear, and they resembled the older Aurora models I used to cement together, in fact, I could have sworn at the time I saw glue on the obvious seams of the Marooned ships. These days, I'm more charitable, but back then, I considered the movie "a travesty"—big word for 14!—but, I told my Dad I liked it...hey, he took me to the movie. I was a punk but I wasn't an ingrate.

And the thing won an Oscar for special effects. Granted, it's only competition was Krakatoa: East of Java (and, as we all know, Krakatoa was WEST of Java, so those were some pretty special effects!). You think you've got a gripe with your favorite picture not winning an Oscar? I've got you beat. I'm torqued because this one DID win an Oscar.

David Janssen flying out of the eye of a hurricane.

Marooned has one big Legacy feature: it's the most expensive, star-filled movie ever to have been featured on "Mystery Science Theater 3000" (albeit in a truncated form entitled "Space Travelers") as the first episode of their fourth season. This is the version of the movie that I prefer to watch.

So, the stranded astronauts still in orbit dredged up the memory of this movie. And I've read a lot of pearl-clutching and rending of garments over their fate, being stuck in orbit floating around Earth with plenty of food, water, oxygen, and the best view in the Solar System. You want to know how the astronauts who've been marooned on the ISS feel about having to stay when they were only scheduled for 8 days? NPR interviewed another member of the astronaut corps and her reply was telling: "Well, I can tell you what the rest of us astronauts down here feel—we're jealous!"

 

Now, that's The Right Stuff. 

Don't Make a Scene: The Great Escape

The Story: The success of John Sturges' The Magnificent 7 allowed the director to gain traction on a project he'd been trying to get going for ten years, a film of Paul Bricknell's account of an elaborate Allied escape from a German POW camp during the second world war—what would ultimately be released as The Great Escape.

But, if Sturges thought his next movie would go as smoothly as his previous one, he was mistaken.

The Magnificent 7 was a westernized version of Akira Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai, transplanted from feudal Japan to Mexico, but keeping the Japanese director's disparate characterizations of the swordsmen. Featuring an impressive array of "young turk" actors (herded, as it was, by Yul Brynner), all of whom were jockeying for screen-time and to be noticed. 

 

Horst Buchholz was probably the most egregious at attracting attention to himself (but then, he had the Toshirô Mifune part). But, the actor most folks complained about trying to "upstage" them was Steve McQueen, fresh off three seasons of the TV series "Wanted: Dead or Alive" and wanting to make his mark back in films. Yul Brynner was a particular target of McQueen's show-boating, but he'd seen all this before. "All I have to do is take off my hat," he said.

 

When it came time for The Great Escape, Sturges had in mind another star-studded cast and he pursued McQueen—who hated the script. His character, Virgil Hilts, didn't have enough to do, wasn't important enough to the story, and...McQueen wanted to show off his motorcycle skills.** McQueen wanted a major re-write, favoring him...and riding a motorcycle. Sturges was willing to let him go, but the financing studio, United Artists, wanted McQueen, and so Ivan Moffat was brought in to re-write James Clavell's and W.R. Burnett's script to beef up his part.

Richard Attenborough played the man behind the break-out scheme, Bartlett code-named "Big X", and he was a last-minute replacement for Richard Harris, who was stuck filming This Sporting Life, which was going over schedule. Attenborough remembered that dealing with McQueen on-set was, in those days, problematic—McQueen would walk off the set if unhappy and was constantly looking over his shoulder to see if anybody was up-staging him. Yet, for all the prima donna attitude, McQueen was only making $87,500 for a top-billed role, while his second, James Garner, made $150,000—no doubt due to Garner's popular run on the TV series "Maverick" and subsequent film roles.

 

Check out today's scene, which was drastically re-written from the original* to set off McQueen's position as a rebel and reluctant joiner. In fact, McQueen's role became, for a good portion of the script, quite separate from the rest of POW's and only comes into play towards the end.

And he gets the motorcycle chase.

 

Reading the original, Hilts is deferential, coming to Bartlett's quarters to ask questions about the escape plan, which he has doubts about. In the film, Bartlett and MacDonald go to him. McQueen works his dialog around delaying bits of business, making you wait for his words. Pretty good strategy, that. 

 

But Attenborough and counter-attack it quite efficiently. Yes, they appear in the weaker position, sitting down throughout the whole scene and waiting for Hilts to show up to his room. As written, they don't have much control of the scene. As played, however, it's another matter. 

 

Here, Bartlett and MacDonald are completely in command, casual, with a mission to make Hilts do something he's determined not to do given his nature. They know he's a lone wolf and a renegade, and they see using that as a challenge as much as getting rid of tunnel dirt, or making uniforms and civilian clothes out of scraps and blankets. When Hilts refuses, they acquiesce and are completely genial about it...waiting for Hilts' weak spot to show its hand. They'll agree with him completely and concede every point until he works himself around to doing what they want. Attenborough's Bartlett, in particular, rarely looks Hilts in the eye, seemingly seceding any authority, and certainly not trying to impose any military authority over Hilts' American POW, and his hemming and hawing just keeps your attention a moment or two longer, the staccato rhythm giving you the impression he's making it up on the spot.

 

It's a wonderful strategy—and it's both in the story and in the staging—where you use the other player's ego against them.

That's how you upstage Steve McQueen: you play it cooler than he does.

 

The Set-Up: World War II; a German camp for Allied POW's, specifically those who have the nasty habit of constantly trying to escape. To disrupt Germany's war effort, British Squadron Leader Bartlett (Richard Attenborough) coordinates a mass escape from the compound to distract German units from the war effort. The plan is to take out 250 men, and they have all the details worked out, but they need more information—information they can only get from the outside. And so Bartlett and the camp's intelligence officer MacDonald (Gordon Jackson) pay a visit to the camp's most frequent escape artis—"The Cooler King" Virgil Hilts (Steve McQueen).

 

Action.

BARTLETT: Hilts...

MacDONALD: Good morning, Hilts.

HILTS: Uh-oh.

HILTS: Well, if you're here to find out if I'm going out again, I am.   

BARTLETT: When? 

HILTS: 17 days. 7th of July. 

MacDONALD: Dark of the moon.

HILTS: Correct. 

BARTLETT: Is Ives going with you? 

HILTS: Yeah, if he wants to. 

MacDONALD: You know that Ives is close to cracking? 

HILTS: Yeah.

HILTS: Figure it's better for him to go out in the tunnel, huh? - 

MacDONALD: Safer. 

HILTS: Right. 

BARTLETT: Hilts, It's, uh, possible, of course, 

BARTLETT: ...for one man to get out through the wire, even get away, 

BARTLETT: but there are in fact a considerable number of people besides yourself...

BARTLETT: ...in this camp who are trying to escape. 

HILTS: I appreciate that. 

HILTS: Something's coming - 

HILTS: I can feel it - 

HILTS: and it's coming right around the corner at me, Squadron Leader. - 

BARTLETT: My name's Roger. - 

HILTS: All right, Roger. 

BARTLETT: Yours is Virgil, isn't it? 

HILTS: Hilts. Just make it Hilts. 

BARTLETT: Yes, well, um...as I was saying, uh,...

BARTLETT: Hilts, 

BARTLETT: ummm, we have maps of Germany - general maps, that is. 

BARTLETT: In fact, we have all the information we need, uh, for the escape routes out of Germany. But um...

BARTLETT: ...what we do not have... 

HILTS: Is a clear...

HILTS: ...idea of what's 500 yards beyond those trees. 

MacDONALD: Right. We've tried every goon in the camp. 

MacDONALD: No go. 

BARTLETT: We must know the exact position of the local town. 

BARTLETT: We want to know where we hit the main roads, they must patrol them. 

BARTLETT: Where the police stations are, 

BARTLETT: where they've got their military roadblocks. And most important of all, 

BARTLETT: we've got to know how to get from here 

BARTLETT: to the railway station. 

HILTS: No. 

HILTS: Absolutely not. 

HILTS: When I get through that wire, I'm not gonna be making maps for you guys. 

HILTS: By morning, I'm gonna be so far away, you won't hear if they're shooting at me with howitzers. -  

HILTS: Hm?

MacDONALD: Understandable. - 

BARTLETT: Completely. 

HILTS: I mean, I'd like to help, but (chuckles ruefully)...  

HILTS: Interesting idea. - 

HILTS: How many you taking out? - 

BARTLETT: Two hundred and fifty. 

HILTS: Two hundred and fifty?! 

BARTLETT: Yeah. 

HILTS: You're crazy. You oughta be locked up.***

HILTS: You too. 

HILTS: 250 guys just walking down the road, just like that. 

BARTLETT: Well, some on the road, some by train, 

BARTLETT:  some cross-country. 

MacDONALD: They'll have forged papers, clothes, maps, compasses, rations. 

HILTS: Has it occurred to you

HILTS: that you're gonna alert every goon in the country. 

HILTS: Anybody that can carry a pitchfork is gonna be out looking for you. 

HILTS: Why, they're gonna swoop down and scoop you up so fast it'd make your head swim. 

BARTLETT: Yes, well, (ahem)... 

BARTLETT: ...thanks, anyway. - 

HILTS: Hey, If there's anything I can do to help ya on the tunnel,

HILTS: just let me know. - 

MacDONALD: That's very good of you. 

HILTS: Any time. 

HILTS: Wait - a - minute. 

HILTS: You aren't seriously suggesting that if I get through the wire

HILTS: and case everything out there and don't get picked up,  

HILTS: to turn myself in and get thrown back in the cooler for a couplea months 

HILTS: just so you can get the information you need? 

BARTLETT: Yes. 

BARTLETT: One has to ask some very strange things in the job I have.

MacDONALD: We'll give you a front place. - 

HILTS: I wouldn't do that for my own mother. - 

MacDONALD: I don't blame you. - 

HILTS: Well, OK, then. - 

BARTLETT: Well, it's completely understandable. - 

HILTS: Well, OK, then. 

BARTLETT: Yes, well, thanks, Hilts. 

The Great Escape

 

Words by James Clavell and W.R. Burnett ... and Ivan Moffat

 

Pictures by Daniel L. Fapp and John Sturges

The Great Escape is available on DVD, Blu-Ray, and Ultra 4K HD from M-G-M Home Video...and The Criterion Collection.

 

 

* Here's the scene in Clavell and Burnett's script (dated April 26, 1962) as it was originally written, before McQueen's requested re-write. As one can see, the "Hilts" character is clearly in the diminished position, asking permission and such to talk to Bartlett in Bartlett's room. In the film, Bartlett and MacDonald visit Hilts in HIS room.

 

Wearily he picks up the schedules, starts for the door. A knock. Ashley-Pitt opens the door, reveals Hilts; 

BARTLETT Yes, Hilts? 

HILTS Do you have a minute? 

BARTLETT Certainly, come on in. 'Night, Eric. 

ASHLEY-PITT (closing door) Sleep tight! 

BARTLETT Sit down, Hilts. Have you got all your gear ready? Iron rations? 

HILTS Yes, thanks. (after pause). Just wanted to ask a couple of questions if you don't mind. 

BARTLETT Shoot. 

HILTS Well. How many are going? 

BARTLETT Two hundred and fifty. 

Hilts blinks, then smiles faintly. 

HILTS That's a mighty big number. 

BARTLETT It's a big plan. . 

HILTS What do you figure our chances? To get that number out? BARTLETT Excellent. To get them out permanently - very bad. 

HILTS (after a pause - .perplexed) I thought the whole idea was to - well, escape. To get home. 

Bartlett studies Hilts thoughtfully. 

BARTLETT It is. At the same time maybe it's not quite so selfish. You might call it a war effort. A lot of fellows are carrying part of the war ball we should be carrying. (beat) I'll make it clear for you. (beat) When one man escapes, this one man diverts about a hundred goons from their war effort if he's caught within an hour. A thousand goons if it takes them a day to catch him. Ten thousand if it takes a week. Soldiers - police - mainly. Say we multiply that by two hundred and fifty. Think of the monumental muck up we'd cause the goons. Why we'll involve millions - if we're lucky! The whole bloody Reich - if we're very lucky. · 

Hilts stares at him bug-eyed.: 

HILTS I thought I was blitz happy - but you, you're the blitz king of them all. (beat) or wire happy~ 

BARTLETT Who am I not to be? 

HILTS (after a pause) Say we're not lucky. Say some guys get killed. You think that monumental muck up would be worth it? 

BARTLETT If it shortens the war by a day - even by an hour - yes. 

HILTS Say it doesn't. What then? 

BARTLETT That's the measure of my responsibility. 

Hilts stares at him. 

HILTS Boy, this is one for the book. (pause) How many you figure'll make it? 

BARTLETT That's up to Lady Luck - or Fate - or God - depending on your point or view. (gently) Look, Hilts. Escaping is always a very personal decision, always a volunteer operation. No one - Big "X" or the senior officer - no one orders anyone to escape, or not to escape. You wouldn't be wrong if you decided not to go. 

Hilts stares at him pop eyed: 

HILTS Oh, I'm going. Of course! I just wanted to know the odds. Going? Of course I'm going.. I just wanted to know the score. Suddenly the air raid siren begins shrieking. 

EXT. COMPOUND - NIGHT 

HUNDFUHRERS and their dogs react. Abruptly the searchlight vanishes. Hut lights begin to vanish. Only gloom now ... 

INT. BARRACKS - NIGHT FULL SHOT  

The barracks lights flicker and die. In the gloom, faces react. Hope, pride. 

OTHER FACES mixed with just a little fear on some. 

INT. RAMSEY'S HUT - NIGHT

RAMSEY looks up from the book he had been reading. Reacts, grimly satisfied. 

The siren begins to die. 

EXT. COMPOUND - NIGHT FERRETS AND GUARDS ever more watchful in the blackness. 

INT. BARTLETT'S ROOM - NIGHT 

BARTLETT and Hilts are listening. The siren dies. Silence. 

Then faintly but distinctly the sound of bombs exploding, and distant ack ack. 

BARTLETT The goon're catching a packet. 

HILTS (as thoughtfully) Must be something big around here to bomb so far from home. 

BARTLETT (after pause, almost absently) I often wonder where home is. These days. · 

Hilts glances at him, then: 

HILTS Guess I'd better high tail it 'back. 

But Bartlett is preoccupied listening -- filled with longing, staring out or a window. 

BARTLETT (absently) Thanks for dropping by. 

Hilts exits.

 

** Sure, it seems petty...but 8 out of 10 videos of The Great Escape is Steve McQueen on a motorcycle. That's what people remember it for.

 

*** This may be my favorite line in the whole movie—they're ALREADY locked up. They're POW's!