THE KLANSMAN (1974) 1/2* This is a terrible movie, pathetic, putrid, and vile. The Ku Klux Klan's disturbing history is worthy of documentation and contempt, but this garbage is so ridiculous that it makes you wonder if there's anyone in the entire country with any sense. There's no question what Terence Young is out to do, and it's to make an even dumber film than Mayerling, and to make an exploitative film mocking rural southerners. The script is neither realistic nor insightful, and by virtue of its lameness trivializes the disturbing events that it portrays. The acting is truly awful, with Richard Burton (barely scrambling up something that's apparently a southern accent) being the very worst. Linda Evans is hopelessly over her head as a character with only a few lines, but it's not entirely her fault as Young unfailingly puts her in ridiculous situations. There's something almost humorous about O. J. Simpson prowling the hills with a rifle, thinking that he's "the revolution" whilst uttering phrases like "bourgeois negro," and devotees of his trial may find it either corroborative or ominous. I found it neither, but I may be one of the few white people in the world still not entirely certain that he wasn't set up by racist cops. Lee Marvin isn't quite as bad as the appeasing sheriff, but ends up looking like an idiot anyway, because of all that surrounds him. My recommendation is to be amazed by the variety of talent represented in the opening credits, and enjoy the Staples Singers tune that accompanies them, and then very quickly turn it off before the police car gets to the edge of town.
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