atlasmb "The Great Santini" is a critically acclaimed film featuring the Oscar-nominated performances of Robert Duvall and Michael O'Keefe, who portray Bull Meechum and his son, Ben. Bull is a Marine pilot. He calls himself "The Great Santini" and lives by his own code, which is based upon the Marine principles of duty and discipline, but is enhanced to create a larger than life caricature of a gung-ho man who kicks asses and takes names.Bull, his wife, and the four kids move to Buford, South Carolina for his newest posting. Much of the film is a coming of age story about Ben, who interacts with the locals and deals with his father's expectations. As Ben is approaching manhood, his father perceives a decline in his own virility. The resulting conflicts will make you laugh, make you cry, and break your heart. The acting in this film is wonderful.Kudos are deserved by director Lewis John Carlino (who also wrote the screenplay), because the finished film is beautifully paced, lingering when the drama demands. You can tell a great hand was at the rudder.

buckr320002000 I think Ben & Toomer are still talking; Ben may have him to the hospital by the year 2020. The accents in every character are way off, I'm thinking Bob Duvall could've played Major Dad a bit better than Gerald McRaney. Lisa Jane Persky (Mary Anne) gives easily the best performance, albeit brief. If you are looking for the Great Santini, you won't find him. There's nothing really great or redeeming in this movie, just another misogynistic abusive racist asshole father without the ability to cope- terrorizing those who love him. The 1970/1980's propaganda machine ran a successful Bill W campaign, claiming all drinkers as alcoholics rather than focusing on building balanced coping mechanisms. They created treatment programs to force the opiate of the masses down the throat of every drinker. If you can't shame the person then guilt and if no guilt then accept, shun and label. Thus, the great Santini was born. Somehow Bull's drinking becomes a central issue where it wasn't needed, a few racist slurs later mixed into the Roy G Biv of abuse, you realize the salvation of the family only comes in his death. Somehow the best fighter pilot goes down for no reason and he's redeemed through death; the family is freed from the bondage of a Ignorant jar-head.I realize a lot of people love this movie but those are the same people who see genius in the movie Ordinary People. I know it won an Oscar, I'm still bored 35 years later. If the characters had any self awareness, they would've asked Major Dad one thing... When did your vanity surpass Unit, Corp, God, Country. Hope they got Kendrick because his southern accent was an abomination too.

Wuchak Two films were released in 1979, "Apocalypse Now" and "The Great Santini," wherein Robert Duvall played essentially the same character -- a gung-ho, half-crazed Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corps.In "The Great Santini" Duvall plays fighter pilot commander Bull Meechum, who drives his family to his new base in Beaufort, SC (where the film was actually filmed). It's peace-time in the early 60s before the Vietnam War. Bull is ultra-charismatic but flawed. At any given time you either love him or hate him; you'll see this same struggle with his family members. He generally treats them like Marine subordinates which, for the most part, works and they seem to have a lot of good times together, but there's a dark side as Bull is overly competitive, especially with his just-turning-18 son Ben (Michael O'Keefe). Perhaps this is because he's a warrior without a war and he has to fight/win someone. He's also an alcoholic, albeit a functional one. The story details the family's good times and bad times.If you're in the mood for a good drama you can't go wrong with "The Great Santini." Although there are a few comedic moments, which are life-like in nature, this is essentially a serious study on the joys & agonies of family dynamics. The story offers numerous insights to ponder, which makes it a great film for repeat viewings.Many times during the film I was reminded of my growing-up years. In Bull Meechum I see a bit of my father.The one-on-one basketball game between Bull and his son is an exceptional scene. The rest of the family is watching and cheering. They're all having a fun time until it takes an unexpected dark turn. Bull can't handle losing to his son and responds like a total jerk. Yet it smacks of real life. Years ago I was playing chess with my wife on a Lake Erie beach and she beat me, which wasn't usual, and for some reason I got upset about it, perhaps because I wasn't in the best of moods to start with. Looking back, of course, I see how pathetic it was.Unlike Bull and Ben in the film I didn't have an actual relationship with my father. Generally, the only time he'd talk to me was when he was calling me names, cussing me out or telling me I was never going to amount to anything. One day, when I was 15 and my father was in his mid-50s, I was in my room upstairs and my dad started yelling at me from the bottom of the stairs. I couldn't really hear what he was saying and, mumbling, just kinda blew it off. He then ran up the stairs yelling and charged into my room in a rage. If he ever ran at me in such a manner in the past I would just flee the scene, but in this case I was cornered and had nowhere to run. Hence, we went at, the first and only time (physically), father against son. As great as his rage was, mine was greater. Don't get me wrong, I believe in honoring parents and all, but at that point I couldn't take anymore. I was done with the names, the cuss-outs and the deadly curses (e.g. "You're gonna turn to $#!&"). I was able to put him in a headlock fairly quickly and squeezed tight until his entire head turned beet red. I then let him go and he walked out of the room muttering, defeated. And no wonder, he was in physical decline while I was just entering my prime. Strangely, in weeks and months to come he would brag on me about the incident.Why do I bring this personal story up? Because the film is so true-to-life that it will likely stir up growing-up memories for any adult viewer, pleasant and unpleasant, happy and sad.The eldest daughter, the redhead, is played by Lisa Jane Persky. She initially comes off as eccentric, geeky and not very attractive, but wait until you see her on prom night later in the picture. If I was 18 I'd take her out without a second thought. Anyway, go to IMDb and check out a couple of recent pictures of her and witness what a truly beautiful woman she grew up to be.I should also point out that the film has a good, authentic Southern vibe like a handful of other films, e.g. "Mississippi Burning," "Ode To Billy Joe," "Cat People" (the remake) and even (believe it or not) "Squirm." There's so much more I could say about this picture, but I'll leave it for you to discover. Once again, if you're in the mood for a good drama you can't go wrong.GRADE: A-

Hint523 The Great Santini is the story of a man in the Marines (Duvall) who's got a wife and four children. However, he's an alcoholic, and gets angry easily. When the family moves to Beufort, South Carolina, Santini makes a lot of pressure on his eldest son (O'Keefe) to avoid other the blacks and play basketball the best on his team. With all this pressure, the family goes nuts and crazy things happen. Although it's plot is that of a drama, Santini is a head-on comedy. Most everybody in the family will enjoy this, and is a must see. I rated it 8 out of ten stars because I really liked it, but the end seemed to drag on a lot. Worth seeing, funny, dramatic and enjoyable!