Rent The Chase (1966)

Brando Smoulders while the Town’s on Fire - The Chase review by griggs

A year before Arthur Penn kicked Hollywood’s teeth in with Bonnie & Clyde, he served up the The Chase—all tension, sweat, and Southern sleaze, but not quite the revolution.

On paper, it’s dynamite: Brando as the weary sheriff trying to hold the town together with a stare and a sigh: Redford, all bruised charisma, as the escaped convict everyone turns into a symbol; Fonda, strung tight between regret and desire. And that’s before you even get to the supporting cast—Fox, Dickinson, Duvall, Rule—each adding fuel to the fire that’s always just about to ignite.

The plot is simple: a jailbreak and the social meltdown it triggers in a small Texas town. But the atmosphere is the draw—greed, gossip, booze, and bigotry ooze out of every frame. By the time it erupts into a junkyard hellscape, it’s less about justice adn more about collapse.

It doesn’t always stick the landing, but the chaos feels earned. Brando doesn’t perform as much as smoulders—like he’s waiting for the credits to put him out. Messy, yes. But never dull.