My Reviews Of Robert Shaw's Films

My Reviews Of Shaw’s Films

Jaws - Speilberg's 2nd film and one of his best. Great adventure, suspense and outright horror. Great performances by both Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss. The sequels that followed never quite captured the fun and adventure of the original.

The Sting - A classic film with awesome performances from the entire cast. Shaw gives a cold yet calm menacing demeanor to the character of Doyle Lonnigan. Newman, Redford and Charles Durning are as good as usual too.

The Deep - Not the greatest of films but a fun one I think. Shaw is interesting as the aging sea diver who helps the couple find their treasure. I wish they would have stuck more to the book with the character but it's still a fun ride.

From Russia With Love - The 2nd in the Bond series. Dr. No did not do well in theatres and the idea of making another one was almost shot down but it was decided to give Bond another chance. This film was a huge success and I don't believe it was only because of Sean Connery. Many James Bond enthusiasts agree that this film was the one that spawned the format for the rest of them. I think without Shaw this film would have faltered.

Black Sunday - One of Robert Shaw's best works. This is an awesome suspense film about terrorists planning to detonate a huge bomb in a blimp over top of the Super Bowl. Shaw is a special agent who's been hunting down terrorists for years. He manages to come up against a real psychopathic nutcase played very well by Bruce Dern.

The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3 - Odd idea for a film. 4 guys hijack a subway train. They have it planned out pretty good and almost get away with it, but problems arise and it all goes bad real quick. Great suspense film and another menacing role for Shaw to sink his teeth into well.

Force 10 From Navarone - Not even close to being as good as it's predecesor "The Guns Of Navarone." Shaw hated the script from the beginning. The film also stars Harrison Ford, Carl Weathers, Barbara Bach and the guy who would later become famous as a character called 'Jaws' in the James Bond films, Richard Kiel.

Custer Of The West - This is a great film, a classic and Shaw plays the character better than any other actor has. There are some great scenes in this film, and though at first it's hard to like Custer you begin to realize his decent side as his ideals begin to change and he begins to question his work against the indians. A true story, accurately done and done quite well. Mary Ure also stars.

Battle Of The Bulge - Considered to be one of the best war films ever made by War buffs across the country. Henry Fonda, Robert Shaw, Telly Savalas, and Charles Bronson star in this true account of one of the battles from World War Two. Shaw is very good as the German commander fighting a country too powerful to beat,....America.

Young Winston - This film is okay. A Brilliant man of course but not that exciting of a life really. There are some really great quotes in it though. Shaw plays Churchill's father and is the most interesting character in the whole film. Besides Anne Bancroft that is who gives an excellent performance as Winston's mother.

A Man For All Seasons - Shaw is only in this film for a few scenes and everytime he steals the scene from everyone. One of his best performances ever. Paul Sholfield, John Hurt, and Orsen Welles also star. This is a true classic that was praised by critics worldwide the year it was released. It won the oscar for Best Film.

Swashbuckler - Far from being a classic but a fun ride. A great cast, Shaw, James Earl Jones, Peter Boyle, Genevieve Bujold, and Beau Bridges. You'll also see the old Doritos guy with the thick mustache and the bald black man who sponsored 7-Up for years. This film is actually one of my favorites. I saw it as a teenager and loved the action and jokes. It's also a 'fight against corruption in government' film which is one of my favorite film subjects. It's a little hokey at times but a fair film.

Robin And Marion - This is considered by some to be a classic love story. Sean Connery is back working with Bond again as Robin Hood. Shaw plays the Sherrif of Nottingham and does a great job of it too. This is a very good film which sticks to the story of Robin Hood but shows you more of a human side to it's characters.

The Luck Of Ginger Coffey - This film is an interesting character study but it doesn't really go anywhere in my opinion. It never really gives you an ending. It was very critically acclaimed though, so what the hell do I know?

Diamonds - This is an interesting story. Rival brothers, both played by Shaw that compete constantly and one decides to,...well I won't ruin it for you. You might still have a chance to find it somewhere. Not a great film though.

A Reflection Of Fear - A bizarre horror film with Sandra Locke as his daughter. It's got a kind of ending to it that later was used again with the film "The Cyring Game." This one is done a little classier I think. I don't know if it's because horror is such a cult genre but this one is the highest priced videos on the market of all of Shaw's films.

Avalance Express - Shaw's last film and all the dialouge had to be re-dubbed for his character because Shaw died while this film was being made. It's really hard to enjoy it because of that. The sad thing is, it's a great script with great action. It would have been an awsome film if the voice coming out of Shaw went with the voice that I know. I can't enjoy this film when I watch it though.

The Caretaker - A very well made film with Donald Pleasence. This is one of those classic plays made into a film. From what I can tell it was done on British TV and i managed to get a copy through a friend of mine on the internet. You'll probably never see this film though, bummer. It's a good one.

The Birthday Party - A bizarre story about a birthday party and it's attendants. This party is really more of a reunion between people hunting down a man who's supposed to attend the party. The man of course is Shaw and he gives a really interesting performance as the victim. Or is he the villian? You decide. Of course you'll never see this one either most likely since it's another Made For British TV film.

Hell Town - Shaw, Telly Savalas, and Stella Stevens star in one of the biggest pieces of shit ever made. I would imagine Shaw wanted to cry when he took this script. This was long before his days of fame from the movie Jaws.

Battle Of Britian - This is considered by War Buffs to be the best plane movie ever made. Lots of Air battles in this World War II classic. Shaw is very good in it.

Royal Hunt Of The Sun - Got it on DVD but don't have a player yet. I've never seen it. I heard though that this was at one time a cult classic made by a promising director and cinematogrpaher. This copy I got is not supposed to be a great one though. I guess that's why I got it for only 8 dollars.