Clint Eastwood's Breezy (1973) with William Holden

A seldom remembered film, it's one of the very first directorial efforts of Clint Eastwood. Most of the films that Eastwood directed are very personal films for him. This is a film handled with much sensitivity, as he himself was approaching the age of the main character played by William Holden.

Neither this film (a great character study from the 70s) nor the existentially-minded character of "Breezy" (played by 18-year old newcomer Kay Lenz) have ever gotten much attention over the years, which kind of surprises me. I never heard of it until last year when I read a review of it from the blog Bright Lights After Dark, where its compared with the work of Eric Rohmer. (Read review here).

It's an exploration of the relationship between young free spirit Edith Alice "Breezy" Breezerman and a wealthy, middle aged, realtor (Holden) who have nothing in common other than they are both single (Holden's divorced) and both live in LA.

Well, sort of. The emotionally immature Breezy sort of wanders through LA with her one possession - her guitar. Just like her nickname; she blows in the wind like a fragile bird. She meets Holden one day while hitchhiking. At first, he's annoyed by her chattiness, and doesn't want anything to do with her. Then he finds himself stuck with her when the cops drop her off at his house one night (she tells the police that he's her uncle!)

After this, the film becomes much more than an Odd Couple / "What-am-I-Going-To-Do-With-This-Kid?" situation, as Holden slowly develops what he described to his wife in Network, a "menopausal infatuation". In one scene, both of them go to the movies to see Eastwood's High Plains Drifter (and they run into two old friends of Holden's who are unaware of the affair)

Seeing them both start to sleep together, as Holden gives in, can be a bit creepy, and I was a bit unsatisfied with how it ends. In the opening scenes of the movie we feel that the story will be told primarily from her point of view, but by the end, and as I think about it, we get to know more about Holden's character, and the scenes he has with his friends and ex-wife explore the issues that a man in his situation would face and would realistically talk about. (Ironically, Holden was divorced from his wife the same year this movie came out)

So why don't we hear more about this movie from the 70s? If you saw it, let me know your thoughts. I think if this film were released last year in 2009, it would be a contender for several Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Actress (and Director).