Sitting Ducks [Restoration]

ERIC SAYS Henry Jaglom was a true maverick of independent film whose career enjoyed enviable longevity, from the New Hollywood Era of the ‘70s through the ‘90s indie-film boom, and beyond. While his name would rightfully get mentioned alongside those of friends and peers like Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson early on—and both critics and younger filmmakers generally showed him respect throughout his career—his films have seldom enjoyed the widespread audiences they deserve. Justin LaLiberty of Cinematographe films is doing great work to rectify that, rolling out a series of restorations of key Jaglom films ripe for reappraisal.

Sitting Ducks may just be my favorite of Jagolm’s films, even as each is special in its own way. It’s a buddy road-trip movie, the kind they don’t make any more—think California Split or The Last Detail. It’s also one of those films, like Jeremy Paul Kagan’s The Big Fix or Ivan Passer’s Cutter’s Way, in which you can see the 1970s turning into the ‘80s before your very eyes. Like the best Jaglom films, it somehow manages to feel both personal and populist at the same time. Seeing a primo deep cut like this, beautifully restored on the biggest screen at The Charles? It’s the stuff of a cinephile’s dreams.