Winter Kills is a brilliant 1979 paranoid political thriller by novice director William Richert, which got great reviews but was pulled from theaters after a short run. It also has garnered a well-deserved cult following.
Jeff Bridges plays the brother of an assassinated U.S. President who comes into contact with a dying man who claims to be the actual assassin and suggests a shady conspiracy plot. A bigger-than-life, frightening John Huston plays the Joe Kennedy-like father. Bridges goes down a rabbit hole with false leads, femme fatales, near-death attempts on his life and other mayhem as he tracks down clues to his brother’s murder.
Richert assembled an astonishing cast- Richard Boone, Eli Wallach, Toshiro Mifune, Dorothy Malone, Anthony Perkins, Sterling Hayden. Even Elizabeth Taylor shows up. The movie had a troubled history- they were forced to shut down production for lack of money and reassembled the team years later. Filled with wonderful, quirky, dark comic touches and beautifully filmed (Vilmos Zsigmond), it’s just a fabulous treat. I adore this movie and love turning friends onto it
This presentation by Quentin Tarantino and the invaluable Rialto Pictures from a new 35mm print and is at the Film Forum (Aug. 11-24) (209 Houston St.)
Wow! ❤️