Bobby Deerfield

PG

1977

2 hr. 4 min.

Romance

List

29%

14 Reviews

Tomatometer

45%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

American race car driver Bobby Deerfield (Al Pacino) has become a success on the European Formula One circuit. He is also egotistical and relentlessly determined, until a terrible racing accident injures other drivers. In the hospital, Deerfield meets Lillian (Marthe Keller), who is suffering serious health problems. She wants to have more excitement in her life and gravitates toward the racer. Although Deerfield is resistant at first, he begins to fall for her as well.

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Red T

Easily one of Pollack's worst. The acting is just ok. Pacino for most of the runtime never is intense and feels like he is sleepwalking through most of this performance. The main culprit here for the mediocre acting is the fact his love interest he has no chemistry at all with and everyone else is just forgettable ok. I never once bought these two were in love. The music wasn't good either because on top of barely being used and being generic, it was really tiring more than anything. The cinematography is just ok also. The camerawork is actually really good in this and the settings are very memorable. The problem is though your never interested with anything that is happening with the characters because nothing actually going on 90% of the time contributes to the plot and it just becomes tiring despite how pretty it is to look at. Worst of all is the editing and pacing which are horrifically bad. Once they meet at the hospital, stuff just happens with them. While the transitions flow well, and we are always focused on Pacino, the actual scenes never contribute anything tot eh story for 90% of the runtime. On top of that were made to believe this is going to be a racing movie at first and there is maybe 5 minutes of racing action in what turns out to be a boring love story. There is the subplot of uncovering what happened with the racing accident that put the other driver in the hospital, and him actually being a driver and it feels like none of that ever amounts to anything and is pointless. I seriously don't know what the point of making him a race car driver was. The racing scenes while done well contribute nothing and comes after being bored to death. It is also not hyperbole to state for 90% of this film I seriously don't know what the point of the scenes were because it never goes anywhere. This gets insanely boring and than it decides in the last ten minutes to try and actually tell the story. This isn't even really bad as much as a giant waste of time. If you want a real racing movie that works love and racing together watch Rush (2011) instead.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

05/12/23

Full Review

steve d

Pacino is one of my favorite actors but this was just ok for me.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

I don't understand why this movie has such a low rating. The performances are beautiful, the writing and the story is interesting (much more interesting than I was expecting it to be) and the female character was interesting and dynamic. I am seriously at a loss.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

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delysid d

It's a Goddam Chick Flick!

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

09/20/18

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Audience Member

Al Pacino as a conceited race car driver. This drama is messy and has little to offer.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

anthony j

This is Terrible! Everything from the acting, pacing and story was just awkward. This is a passion project that probably looked good on paper. The biggest problem is that everyone looks so bored. It's hard to get into a movie when the people involved in it seem to be on auto-pilot.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Sydney Pollack

Director

Al Pacino

Bobby

Marthe Keller

Lillian

Walter McGinn

The Brother

Anny Duperey

Lydia

Romolo Valli

Uncle Luigi

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Bobby Deerfield is a big, slick melodrama that knows exactly what it wants to accomplish and does so with great craft.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 2, 2018

Full Review

Variety Staff

Variety

A brilliantly unusual love story, told in a European fashion which makes the Sydney Pollack film at first irritating, then intriguing, finally most rewarding and emotionally satisfying.

May 26, 2008

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Dan Callahan

Slant Magazine

Pacino is at his best: precise, internal, magnetically cute, and expert at capturing the fear in this man's turtle-like existence and his longing for change.

Rated: 2.5/4

Mar 9, 2008

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

This forgettable mess will remain one of Pacino's most unknown pictures.

Rated: 2/10

Aug 27, 2020

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Bernard Drew

Gannett News Service

Sydney Pollack, who once took the unlikely materials that made up The Way We Were and pulled them together to come sailing triumphantly home, has done it again in Bobby Deerfield.

Oct 17, 2019

Full Review

Jesús Fernández Santos

El Pais (Spain)

Sydney Pollack here doesn't go beyond the vulgar soap opera. [Full Review in Spanish]

Jul 25, 2019

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Synopsis

American race car driver Bobby Deerfield (Al Pacino) has become a success on the European Formula One circuit. He is also egotistical and relentlessly determined, until a terrible racing accident injures other drivers. In the hospital, Deerfield meets Lillian (Marthe Keller), who is suffering serious health problems. She wants to have more excitement in her life and gravitates toward the racer. Although Deerfield is resistant at first, he begins to fall for her as well.

Director: Sydney Pollack
Production Co: Columbia Pictures Corporation
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 21, 2019