"Personal nostalgia" happens to also describe my feeling about the film, since I happened to be visiting a friend on the set, around the time they were filming the scene with the Japanese tourists.
Certainly it's one of those films that can be endlessly revisited and enjoyed.
One of those moments... from the small highland hamlet where I was born and grew up, on one of my (by then frequent) visits to Glasgow I went to the cinema to see this... David Shire was already a hero. I was a wee bit late, remember running up the stairs to get to my seat as the theatre darkened and the music came on, the titles and credits displayed on a black background. Extraordinary music! Complex, intriguing, but (by God!) exciting, thrilling. What could it be describing? And then the drama. And the tension. But wait a minute - how do they expect to get out of there, to get away with it? Robert Shaw was determined. But Martin Balsam sneezed. Gezundheit!
One of those moments... from the small highland hamlet where I was born and grew up, on one of my (by then frequent) visits to Glasgow I went to the cinema to see this... David Shire was already a hero. I was a wee bit late, remember running up the stairs to get to my seat as the theatre darkened and the music came on, the titles and credits displayed on a black background. Extraordinary music! Complex, intriguing, but (by God!) exciting, thrilling. What could it be describing? And then the drama. And the tension. But wait a minute - how do they expect to get out of there, to get away with it? Robert Shaw was determined. But Martin Balsam sneezed. Gezundheit!
I saw it when it originally came out too. My father took my brother and me to it. I'm surprised it wasn't a bigger hit.
It's still as enjoyable as it ever was. The only thing that starts to irritate is the Neil Simon-like NY-sassy, witty banter. It's too much, too witty to a level that it's dead ahead arrogant attitude which would make you sympathise with the bad guys in other films.