Guillermo del Toro Says Clint Eastwood is ‘Pitch perfect” in this Free-to-Stream Thriller
Guillermo del Toro has far fewer cinematic blind spots than the average movie lover. The Mimic director watches absolutely everything. He eagerly takes in obscure indie films, blockbuster fare, and pretty much everything in between. Since he’s a good natured chap, del Toro often takes to social media to share his thoughts on what he’s watching with the masses. I recently happened upon one of the filmmaker’s posts from a few years back singing the praises of a comedic thriller starring Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges. More specifically, I’m talking about director Michael Cimino’s Thunderbolt and Lightfoot.
Via Twitter (don’t even think of calling it X) del Toro took care to praise the performances within the 1974 film and the pacing, saying: “Film: Thunderbolt and Lightfoot by Michael Cimino. Big-hearted and beautifully paced character study. Eastwood and Bridges are pitch-perfect.”
Where is this Guillermo del Toro-endorsed picture available to stream?
If that glowing critique from the Pacific Rim director has you eager to experience Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, you are in luck. The flick is available to stream for free (with ads) on Tubi as of the publication of this post.
Cimino penned the screenplay for the film in addition to helming. The writer/director’s name will likely be familiar to cinephiles as the helmer of both The Deer Hunter and Year of the Dragon.
In addition to Eastwood and Bridges in the lead roles, the flick also features appearances by George Kennedy, Geoffrey Lewis, Catherine Bach, Gary Busey, and Jack Dodson.
Fun fact: The flick is well-noted for its unspoken, yet plenty noticeable, homoerotic subtext. It is particularly obvious in the dynamic between the two leads.
The setup for Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is this:
While stealing a car, free-spirited drifter Lightfoot (Bridges) crosses paths with legendary thief Thunderbolt (Eastwood) in the midst of his own escape. Thunderbolt’s old partners in crime, Red (Kennedy) and Eddie (Lewis), believe he double-crossed them after they robbed a Montana bank vault several years ago. After Thunderbolt successfully pleads his innocence and is let off the hook, Lightfoot rallies them together as a group to rob the very same bank again.
That is everything we have for you, for the time being. Rest assured in the knowledge that there are more exciting recommendations from your favorite filmmakers on the way in the near future. If you’d like to chat more about the cinema of the 1970s, come find me on Threads @FunWithHorror.
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