17,736 Steps to a Perfect Life

Odd black comedy from Polanski. Donald Pleasence is a neurotic egghead with a French trophy wife (Françoise Dorléac) and Lionel Stander is the American gangster who shows up at their 11th-century castle.

Sometimes drags a bit, but the humor – a lot deriving from the contrast between the male characters, although Stander’s is not exactly a stereotypical thug - and the uncertainty about where it all was going kept me watching.

There’s a scene on the beach that lasts an uninterrupted seven minutes, featuring multiple characters and the arrival of an airplane: I have to think that was not an easy thing to do. I’d actually be interested in knowing how closely the cast stuck to their dialogue, in general, and how much is extemporaneous.

Dorléac was Catherine Deneuve’s older sister; she died at the age of 25 in her sports car a year after this film was made.

What I learned from this film

I’d thought (mainly from his role behind the bar in Once Upon a Time in the West) that Lionel Stander was short, if exceedingly barrel-chested. Maybe he was, but he dwarfs Donald Pleasence (Polanski emphasizes Stander’s bulk with low angles but side-by-side he looks a lot bigger).