Save the Tiger (1973)

*** out of ****

Movies that are largely character studies can be interesting, especially when you find yourself really relating to the character in question. When I first saw “American Beauty”(1999) I connected so deeply with Kevin Spacey's “Lester Burnham” that he has always been one of my most cherished movie characters. In “Save the Tiger”, Jack Lemmon provided an equally compelling character in Harry Stoner, but in the end Harry lacks the personal redemption that made Lester so important to me. So while the performance is amazing, and the film is very good, it simply lacks the emotional connection that, at least for me, is so necessary for this type of film.

Harry is a bad guy, though he doesn't see himself that way. He's a WWII veteran, and still suffering from some shell shock from the experience. He co-owns a fashion company, where he employs some 40+ people and he puts up the appearance of a good, entrepreneurial guy. But he cheats on his wife, cooks the books at the company and is negotiating with an underworld character to burn down the factory for the insurance money.

Like a lot of aging guys, he longs for the days of his youth – when the Brooklyn Dodgers were king, when jazz was in the air and and when athletes performed like athletes. He excuses these thoughts because things used to be better. He excuses his personal shortcomings because he keeps his employees paid. He excuses his infidelities because they're none of her damn business. Using a more modern vernacular, he's kind of a douchebag.

But the film presents his point of view as well. There is no real black and white. Is he bad, or just misunderstood? Can the ends justify the means in his business dealings? The film never takes a position, not excusing him as a curmudgeon or condemning him as a villain. He is definitely the anti-hero, as his business partner Phil (Jack Gilford) is the moral center of the film, trying to do the right thing all along.

The scenes with Lemmon and Gilford are gold. Their conversations flow so perfectly that it doesn't seem scripted at all. Lemmon is remembered mostly these days as the straight man to Matthau's loudmouth, but the guy was a flat-out great actor, and it is on full display here. Terrific performances, but as previously stated, I just couldn't get behind the character. He is someone I would never want to know in real life. I can say that with assurance too, as I have known several guys just like him.....

A good movie, with great performances. Not one to be revisited often, but surely worth a first look at least.