Summaries

Three skydivers and their travelling thrill show barnstorm through a small midwestern town one Fourth of July weekend.

At different stages of life and thus their career, Mike Rettig, Joe Browdy, and Malcolm Webson comprise a stunt skydiving troupe, they traveling around the United States performing at events. Mike is the outwardly laconic veteran, although the one who takes the most risks. Outwardly Joe is the showman, although he, as the business manager, is behind the scenes risk averse in doing whatever he feels is best for their bottom line. He is already looking at the breadth of his entire life in what he sees as his career path post-skydiving. And Malcolm is the introspective novice who looks to the senior partners. Their stop in the small college town of Bridgeville, KS on the Independence Day weekend, there where they are staying only overnight before needing to move on, is different if only because it's where Malcolm was born and raised, although he hasn't lived there or been back since he was ten when his parents passed, sending him into foster care as his only relations, his maternal Aunt Elizabeth Brandon and her husband Uncle John Brandon, for their own reasons didn't take him in. Although he had no intention of even contacting them in not having kept in touch with them over the intervening years and thus not really even knowing them, blood relative or not, Malcolm does get in touch with his relations, Aunt Elizabeth who invites them all to stay at their house, it under the stated "front" of being comfortable having strangers staying with them in always renting out a room to a college student, the current one being a young woman named Annie Burke. Mike, Joe and Malcolm's stay in town and with Malcolm's aunt and uncle will be affected largely by Elizabeth and John's crumbling marriage and the reason behind it.—Huggo

On a 4th of July weekend, three barnstorming skydivers arrive to perform in a small Kansas town. They are hosted by the youngest member Webson's aunt, the unhappily married Elizabeth. While Browdy one-nights with a topless dancer, a doomed romance flares up between Elizabeth and Rettig. Tension builds, and explodes with a spectacular skydiving show.—Markku Kuoppamäki

Details

Keywords
  • prologue
  • aerial camera shot
  • scene during opening credits
  • skydiving
  • kansas
Genres
  • Action
  • Drama
  • Romance
Release date Sep 2, 1969
Motion Picture Rating (MPA) R
Countries of origin United States
Language English Italian
Filming locations Benton, Kansas, USA
Production companies John Frankenheimer Productions Inc. Edward Lewis Productions

Box office

Tech specs

Runtime 1h 47m
Color Color
Sound mix Mono
Aspect ratio 1.85 : 1

Synopsis

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