Figures in a Landscape

Figures in a Landscape is the most peculiar film I've ever seen. I've seen a lot of peculiar films (The Keep, The Island, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eye of the Devil, etc.) but this one beats them all in terms of its curious nature.

It has almost no plot. What little plot there is details the efforts of two escaped convicts to evade a menacing black helicopter as they flee through the rugged landscape of some un-named South American country. Did they really commit a crime at all? Why does the chopper pilot want to catch them? Who are they? All these questions, so obvious and central to all the other films of this type, are left unasked and unanswered. This is purely a chase for the sake of a chase movie. Everything is left unexplained, and the immediate action is the only thing that is concentrated upon.

Given the existentialist angle that the film adopts, it is little surprise that it is unpopular.Many people feel cheated by the lack of explanation. I have a soft spot for the film, because it lets me decide for myself what is going on and what has gone before. I feel that Robert Shaw's performance is commanding, and the aerial photography is outstanding. However, I'm not saying that this is some kind of overlooked classic; nor even that it is an excellent film. It's just a wrongly panned film that has enough interesting features within its running time to make it commendable to anyone who has yet to see it.

FIGURES IN A LANDSCAPE is interesting for a lot of reasons: it was directed by Joseph Losey,it stars a very young Malcolm McDowell and it boasts a script by co-star Robert Shaw.

The set-up is very existential: 2 men are pursued by a mysterious black helicopter over a rough, desert terrain. We never learn the reasons for any of this or even where it is taking place.The atmosphere of dread is kept at a high level thru-out.

Everything about the film is as stripped to the basics as the title suggests. The men are never given much more than the briefest of backgrounds. But it is precisely this quality of mystery that gives the film its main points of interest. I would certainly like to be able to see it on a larger screen. The helicopter photography is very impressive and the shots of the two figures traversing the inhospitable terrain are striking.

Robert Shaw gives a ferocious performance. Malcolm McDowell's part requires him to be more subdued but he is capable and provides the film's main sympathetic character.

I saw this movie for the first and last time on Dutch television in the late 70's / early 80's. I was 9 or 10 years old at that time. I remember it gave me the creeps. Especially the helicopter... that could show up at any time. This film has been in my head for a long time (not remembering the title) Since I know the title (recently) i can't wait to see the movie again but unfortunately this films isn''t available on tape or DVD. I wonder what happened to it and i would like to ask anyone involved in making this film to blow the dust from the original print and release it very soon. Then I can judge the film again and maybe come to the conclusion that it is a terrible movie after all ;-)

Rob (The Netherlands)

The viewer is presented with two characters. These characters are on the run, from a black helicopter that keeps chasing after them. The viewer is not told what there crime is, or if they have committed any crime. They both must fight their way through a rocky, rough, dry desert region. All the viewer gets is little stories from each of these men. We find out about children, a wife, former girlfriends, etc. The men struggle to reach a safe place, almost driving themselves crazy, believing that this is possible. This film is not available on video or disc, and the TV print runs shorter than 110 minutes. There may be a large important part of this film missing. Maybe one day it will be released on tape and disc so that a wider audience can see it. This film really is a good piece of film making.

This movie takes what was a difficult novel to start with (by Barry England) and turns it into a rather odd tale of two men on the run. Robert Shaw wrote the screenplay and stars in this, and as usual is excellent as the tough and slightly unhinged Mac, with Malcolm McDowell in slightly overshadowed support as Ansell. You never really find out why they are running or who from (their pursuers are constantly referred to just as 'them'); but at times the action turns bloody and violent, at other times it is more reflective and quiet.

Joseph Losey's direction gives us the sense of two people lost in an expanse of nothing, which makes the scenes with the helicopter chasing them across country even more powerful. It is just hard to care about these two, without any back story to speak of or any sense of just what or who they are. An ok film and worth watching, but slightly frustrating.