Themes: Starting Over, Fall From Power, Down on Their Luck
Main Cast: Jack Palance, Keenan Wynn, Ed Wynn, Kim Hunter
Release Year: 1956
Country: US
Run Time: 90 minutes
Plot
Harlan "Mountain" McClintock (Jack Palance) has been a professional boxer for 14 years. He's been in the ring for over 110 bouts and was once ranked number five among the world's heavyweight fighters, but age and the physical punishment of his sport have taken their toll. Now McClintock is growing too old to fight but he lacks the money to retire gracefully, as his manager Maish (Keenan Wynn) suggests he start fighting crooked or switch to professional wrestling. Ed Wynn co-stars as McClintock's corner man, and Kim Hunter plays a sweet but naïve social worker. Requiem for a Heavyweight was a television drama written by Rod Serling and originally broadcast in 1956; the story was later remade as a feature film starring Anthony Quinn. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
During his long and varied career, actor Jack Palance has been accused of overacting more than a few times. Requiem for a Heavyweight, however, offers a burgeoning Palance giving one of the most wrenching and heartfelt performances of his career. As the physically and emotionally pummeled Harlan "Mountain" McClintock, Palance's struggle with his own integrity in the face of an uncertain future is so personal, yet so universal, that one can't help but identify and sympathize with this lost soul. The scene in which a tortured McClintock reaches out to the one woman who can understand his plight and the ridicule the duo endures while quietly pondering his questionable future in a local tavern offers a rare glimpse into the despair that success can bring when its illustrious flame begins to grow dim. Legendary screenwriter Rod Serling's delicate handling of a poignant subject matter that could have easily slipped into overwrought melodrama offers viewers the opportunity to question their own ethics in the face of misplaced trust. After witnessing every shred of dignity and pride stripped from McClintock during the film's touching climax, Serling offers a hopeful coda that suggests even in one's darkest hours, there is always hope to find a truly fulfilling life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
