The Hotel du Cap – Eden Roc has been described by Dominick Dunne in Vanity Fair as "the last word in quiet elegance" and "possibly the greatest seasonal hotel in the world."

It is situated on Cap d’Antibes just a short drive from Cannes and serves as the headquarters for the major Hollywood players who attend the Cannes Film Festival; Vanity Fair itself holds its annual festival party there.

This morning Margaret and I rented a car and drove there for breakfast. It was elegant and quiet with only a few guests in appearance. Very agreeable! The coffee and the basket of croissants and brioches were excellent — if not so expensive as to once again underline the inescapable truth that there are many very rich people in our world.

What a place to have breakfast!

But as Mr. Dunne mentioned in his article the hotel now accepts credit cards, as opposed to the days (only a year or so ago) when this fabulous outpost for the wealthy enforced a "cash only" policy.

This policy of course caused those who were guests of the hotel to arrive literally with bags of cash. There is the possibly apocryphal story of the famous (and grandiose) Hollywood producer who arrived in Nice complete with the obligatory retinue of assistants, associates, girlfriend(s), yoga teachers, etc. and began his journey to the hotel suitably outfitted with the requisite cash.

As the story goes, he and his small convoy of intrepid festival goers were hijacked en route and robbed of every penny by a band of thieves who had presumably been "tipped off" as to the details of their arrival! But no one was hurt and I’m supposing that the missing cash was replaced quickly.

My own memories of the Hotel du Cap are less exciting but at another breakfast some years ago I met, quite separately, Arnold Schwarzeneger and Muhammed Ali. Both men were alone, as was I, and we exchanged pleasantries while awaiting our various rendez-vous. I found both of them to be charming and I would be quite surprised if their apparent authenticity was faked. It was a memorable morning for me — as was this morning!

Margaret and I each enjoyed our petit dejeuner, strolled throughout the fabulous grounds, enjoyed the early morning sun under the ubiquitous azure sky and talked about Alfred Hitchcock’s Riviera masterpiece "To Catch a Thief," starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. But when once again screening "To Catch a Thief," we were disappointed with it’s plodding pace and generally unacceptable old-fashioned style. So after some thought, I substituted a movie so far removed from the "mise en scene" of the Hotel du Cap that it qualifies as a direct opposite!

Today, along with images of the ultra sophisticated Hotel du Cap, I recommend Sam Peckinpah’s ultra violent descent into the lawless hell of the Texas-Mexico borderlands of 1913 with the controversial and great film "The Wild Bunch."

Movie Review:

The Wild Bunch

Directed by Sam Peckinpah
Starring: William Holden, Robert Ryan, Warren Bates, Edward O’Brien,
Ernest Borgnine, and Ben Johnson

Generally regarded as Peckinpah’s finest film and as an American masterpiece, it has been variously described by critics as “savagely beautiful,” “the most violent movie ever made,” and “just a very good western with very good performances.”

Upon its release in 1969, it was, to say the least, controversial with its “balletic,” blood-spurting deaths crowding the screen for endless minutes. However, I like and enjoy this movie very much and am solidly in the “masterpiece” camp because what Sam Peckinpah is about to say is exactly what happens to me when I watch this movie. Sam’s words:

“It’s a very uncompromising film; the action, the language, the details and the lives of these people are as I tried to imagine they were. I was trying to tell a simple story about bad men in changing times.  “The Wild Bunch” is simply about what happens when killers go to Mexico – the strange thing is that you feel a real sense of loss when these killers reach the end of the line. There is a humanity to the “Bunch” – and if you can ride out of Angel’s village with them and feel it, you can die with them and feel it.”

The Bunch riding out of Angel’s village.

It took 12 days to film the climactic scenes which were known to the crew as “The Battle of Bloody Porch.” Shot with many cameras and improvised brilliantly starting with “the walk” to rescue Angel – a walk that will end in certain death! And a “walk” that was ultra romantic as well! Who would expect a group of killers to willingly and proudly walk to the most heavily armed spot in the camp to attempt a rescue of one of their members at the price of certain death – but they do and it is thrilling entertainment and theatre as we witness heroism, dignity and a twisted kind of selflessness while feeling their “humanity.”

The Wild Bunch walk to their certain death.

“The Wild Bunch” tells the story of a group of outlaws in 1913, sadly out of time, but carrying on anyway because they do not know what else to do. They kill virtually indiscriminately as, in the opening sequences, their attempted bank robbery is foiled by an equally vicious group of bounty hunters who work for the real enemy – the railroad.

So, the “Bunch,” led by William Holden in a great performance, head for Mexico where they ally themselves with a dissipated Mexican general and his ragtag, piecemeal army who are fighting with Pancho Villa in the Mexican Revolution. This alliance leads to grave misadventures and ultimately to the final shootout where these fearless renegades meet their “uberviolent” end with grace, dignity and good spirits.

It almost goes without saying that the movie is one of technical mastery and wizardry – and, long before the advantage of digital effects. Peckinpah, working on a constrained budget for his first movie in three years, drove himself and his crew, never settling for anything less than the excellence demanded. It is said, that, upon the conclusion of the shooting, he walked quietly to a corner of the set and wept.

Many critics feel that “Ride the High Country,” an earlier and gentler work, is Sam Peckinpah’s finest film. As excellent as “…High Country” is, I vote for “The Wild Bunch.” It’s an epic, with very large “moments” of incredible visual power combining elements of drama, and action with overpowering, ballet-like movement. At times particularly during the opening robbery, Lucian Ballard’s wide Technicolor screen is Bosch-like in its frantic portrayal of a demonic underworld being cut loose in a quiet, dusty, Western town – and, all this during a Christian revival meeting!

The failed bank robbery.

But the movie marks its excellence and its greatness when Pike (Holden) says to the remaining “Bunch” (Oates, Johnson, Borgnine) – “Let’s go!” and they start the walk to its bloodbath of a conclusion. 

And, upon each viewing, I am with them every step of the way!