Synopsis
Married small-time crooks Lou-Jean and Clovis Poplin lose their baby to the state of Texas and resolve to do whatever it takes to get him back. Lou-Jean gets Clovis out of jail, and the two steal their son from his foster home, in addition to taking a highway patrolman hostage. As a massive dragnet starts to pursue them across Texas, the couple become unlikely folk heroes and even start to bond with the captive policeman.
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Cast
- Goldie HawnLou Jean Poplin
- Ben JohnsonCaptain Harlin Tanner
- Michael SacksPatrolman Maxwell Slide
- William AthertonClovis Michael Poplin
- Gregory WalcottPatrolman Ernie Mashburn
- Steve KanalyPatrolman Jessup
- Louise LathamMrs. Looby
- Harrison ZanuckBaby Langston Poplin
- A.L. CampMr. Nocker
- Jessie Lee FultonMrs. Nocker
Recommendations
- 80
TV Guide Magazine
The film moves well and never loses its gripping tension, but the lighthearted tone of the beginning takes a dive into an abyss that shocks many viewers. - 70
The New York Times
The movie has a casual craziness that seems especially native. - 63
Chicago Sun-Times
If the movie finally doesn’t succeed, that’s because Spielberg has paid too much attention to all those police cars (and all the crashes they get into), and not enough to the personalities of his characters. - 60
Variety
Unfortunately, the film degenerates in final reels to heavy-handed social polemic and sound-and-fury shootout.
