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Possible origin of the infamous 5min fight scene

posted 5 years ago by MichaelJPollock (649)
4 replies | jump to latest

Just rewatched Arthur Penn's 1962 'The Miracle Worker', and there's a long 'fight scene' between Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke's characters that feels very similar in tone and length to the 5 min fight scene between Nada and Frank in 'They Live'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crV5q2j9DBI

Both fight scenes are about 5 min long and feel ridiculously long, both feature wrestling moves as well as use of the environment to hurt the other, and the stakes in both scenes are similar (to get the other to understand something about the nature of the world: put the Hoffman lenses on and see the world for what it is / understand that words stand for objects in the world).

Carpenter being the cinephile that he is, would no doubt have seen this two oscar winning film...

[–] Moonglum9 (10699) 5 years ago

I wonder if Peter Vs the Giant Chicken fights also had the same source of inspiration?

[–] Druff (1446) 4 years ago

I mean, sure, it's possible.

But it's a huge, huge fucking stretch.

Besides, Carpenter has explained at length exactly how that fight scene came to be, in behind-the-scenes interviews and such... and rest assured he never said anything about it being inspired by The Miracle Worker or any other film. So believing your theory would also mean believing Carpenter is a bald-faced liar.

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

[deleted]

[–] [deleted] 4 years ago

It turns out the scene you are talking about is on youtube at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dvq5aQr1eh0

It's pretty physical scene... today I think social services and restraining orders would be the result.

I thought you were trolling, but there are definitely some parallels now that I watched it.

i. Both involve a long, drawn out fight between a person 'with sight' and a person who is 'blind'. Helen Keller (Patty Duke) was physically blind while her teacher, Anne Sullivan, was sighted. In They Live, Keith David is metaphorically blind to the aliens around him while Roddy Piper is the sighted one because of the glasses.

ii. Each fight involves one person trying to force the other to do something against their will. Helen Keller doesn't want to eat properly at the table, and Keith David doesn't want to put on the glasses.

So, I'm gonna give this one to you, even if Carpenter has never said anything to this effect.

I've never heard of this being a source of inspiration but it did give me pause for consideration.