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Bobby Deerfield (1977) DVD Review
Bobby Deerfield (1977) DVD Credits:
Bobby Deerfield (1977) Directed by:
Sydney Pollack
Bobby Deerfield (1977) Written by:
Alvin Sargent
Bobby Deerfield (1977) Cast:
Al Pacino Marthe Keller Anny Duperey Walter McGinn Romolo Valli Stephan Meldegg
Bobby Deerfield (1977) Released by:
Columbia Pictures Corporation
Region:
1
Bobby Deerfield (1977) DVD Release Date:
10th March 2008
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Bobby Deerfield (1977) Synopsis:

Race car driver, Bobby Deerfield, has never worried about the risks on the track. But after a fellow competitor dies during a race, Deerfield learns the meaning of fear for the first time. With the help of the terminally ill Lillian, Bobby will find that life is sweeter with chances.

Bobby Deerfield (1977) DVD Review:

What do you get when you put Academy Award winning director Sydney Pollack (Out of Africa), with Academy Award winning screenwriter Alvin Sargent (Julia, Ordinary People), and Academy Award winning actor Al Pacino (Scent of a Woman)? An extremely disappointing picture. That’s Bobby Deerfield for you.

Bobby Deerfield is a romantic drama about the racecar driver, Bobby Deerfield of Newark. He’s at the top of his game in the European circuits, never even having broken a bone. But when one of his fellow racers dies in an accident driving the same type of car as he, for the first time in his career Bobby Deerfield is scared. He goes to visit another racer, injured in that same accident. At the hospital he meets a patient, the loquacious Lillian Morelli. She takes it upon herself to teach Bobby Deerfield that life is sweeter when you take chances. But it takes Bobby Deerfield being involved in an accident himself for him to come to his senses. He returns to Lillian Morelli in Italy, but can their relationship last?

Even if the films focus weren’t on racing, you would think that by having Mario Andretti as one of the drives they’d put him to good use. The racing sequences are lifeless, with no music, and too many cut-aways to the spectators. The audience never knows whose in what car, negating any suspense or connection with the scenes.

But this film isn’t about racing; it’s about the unmotivated relationship between Bobby Deerfield and Lydia. Lydia appears to have ADD, always asking random questions, jumping from topic to topic with no segues. Their relationship begins and grows with no apparent reason, unless it is hidden in their cryptic dialogue.

Al Pacino’s performance has as much energy as the rest of the film, though it’s hard to judge whether this is his interpretation or merely the stubborn character he portrays. Many of the other actors are forgettable. The first time you meet the character Lydia you may not even notice her. She stands so still it isn’t until she hands Bobby his jacket that you notice she isn’t a mannequin.

That’s not to say the film doesn’t have its moment. It’s shot beautifully, with pitch perfect composition. The European countryside is utilized well. Despite the lack of segues in conversations, or from scene to scene, the editing is all very smooth. There are plenty of match cuts that provide eye candy. There are little flashes of brilliance within the whole film. The first fifteen minutes of the film containing dialogue that speaks of well of Alvin Sargent. The scene between Bobby Deerfield and his brother is smooth, easily reveals characteristics and motivations. Later, during a photo shoot, all the sound is cut out when the photos are taken. But these little instances don’t make up for the overall picture.

I thought the special features might lend a helping hand, an insight into the production. There is a behind-the-scenes on the DVD, just not for Bobby Deerfield. Instead, the featurette is a behind-the-scenes for 88 Minutes, the new Al Pacino film. It actually comes off more like a long preview for the film, but what it really shows is that Pacino is a great thespian unlike his performance in Bobby Deerfield.

Maybe if the film didn’t spend the first fifteen minutes advertising itself as a racing flick, I’d be a little less harsh. But knowing that Pacino had already done The Godfather and Serpico, while Sargent won an Oscar that year for Julia, it makes me wonder: what went wrong?

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Bobby Deerfield (1977) DVD review written by: Lyz Reblin

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