Momento selvaggio

I must have seen this shortly after it came out, certainly in the early '60s. What I remembered was Mike's apartment and what went on there... what I couldn't remember was the name of the movie... when I saw Ralph Meeker in the Dirty Dozen I used the IMDB to methodically go thru his credits until I found this. You wouldn't believe how many movie 'experts' I've queried and come up empty looking for this movie's title... Now the big task is going to find a copy to view again, 30+ years later and see if I can exorcise these memories. All the so-called experts could suggest based on my recollections was The Collector with Terence Stamp and Samantha Eggar. Both good, some similarities. See them both.

This movie is somber, downbeat, and really really weird. Many women hate this movie because of the ending. And for good reason. I guess you can say this is the kind of movie that leaves one with a bad taste in the mouth. It is the kind of movie where you want to scream at the characters--"what the hell are you doing?" But this film is hypnotic in its strange way. The performances are terrific, and the locations are stunning. They may not have been viewed that way 40 years ago, but today it is a kind of museum piece, very accurately capturing the atmosphere of New York City in the early Sixties. There is an excellent score by Aaron Copland, which was later released as "Symphony for a Great City." Since this was a low-budget movie, one really has to wonder how much he was paid to score this film. You also have to wonder why this movie was such poison for everyone associated with it. The author of the novel never wrote anything significant again. The director, Baker's hubby, faded away. Baker divorced him and Ralph Meeker hit the skids. Something Wild has many tragic dimensions, for both its characters and its stars.

Written and directed by Jack Garfein, "Something Wild" is a gray-toned contemplation of the relationship between need and love. I think it is fair to say that some viewers will be disturbed by the story, which is about a young woman, Mary Ann (Carroll Baker, wife of the director), victimized and despairing, who meets a young man, Mike (Ralph Meeker), whose agenda is unclear.

The pathway from despair to hope, or false hope, is examined by this film in a dramatic and unconventional way. Contributing to the tone of the film are the B&W photography and the score by Aaron Copland.

The acting is terrific. Baker's and Meeker's characters may live in your imagination after the end credits. New York City plays its role as the vast backdrop to this dark tale.

One final note: Though they are only connected by the riveting performances of Ms. Baker, if you like this film, you may like "Baby Doll"--another distinctive and artistically risky film.

Student traumatized by a rape is saved from suicide by a lonely mechanic, who feels she may be his last chance for happiness. Beguiling art film missed cult status by that much. Director Jack Garfien, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Alex Karmel from Karmel's novel "Mary Ann", and his wife, actress Carroll Baker, put everything on the line for this production, but it didn't connect with audiences at the time. It looks good today, however, and has an unusual, unnerving, voyeuristic quality. Baker and Ralph Meeker have intriguing chemistry, though the premise--that the mechanic keeps the girl like a wounded pet in his little hovel--is often creepy instead of romantic (although I'm not sure of the actual intention here). Incredible jazz score by Aaron Copland; striking black-and-white cinematography from Eugen Shuftan. A mixed bag, mostly effective. **1/2 from ****

An offbeat, oddly moving film in which Carroll Baker plays a young victim of rape. Although the crime goes unnamed in this 1961 movie, the pain and anguish suffered by Baker's character, Mary Ann, are candidly as well as sensitively handled. And while the film can only hint at Mary Ann's thoughts (unlike the book on which it was based), Baker gives a touching performance as the victim who tries to deny the crime by erasing all physical traces of it, and then seeking to lose herself in the jungle of New York City, only to find herself trapped in the apartment of a supposed Good Samaritan played by Ralph Meeker. The film's second half is weakened by the sketchiness of the characters' motivations, but the actors help to fill in the gaps. Legendary American composer Aaron Copland has added a grand (perhaps too grand) musical score; Eugen Schüfftan's crisp black & white cinematography and the extensive use of New York City locations add to this drama. Directed by Jack Garfein (Baker's then-husband), who co-wrote the script with Alex Karmel, author of the 1958 novel "Mary Ann."