Dustin Hoffman, Harry Dean Stanton and Gary Busey get into a car to go rob a jewelry store. Right there, you owe it to yourself to see Straight Time. But it's also a gripping genre piece and gut-punching character study both at the same time, smack dab in the 70s golden age of paranoid crime pictures. If you consider yourself an avid fan of heist movies about volatile criminals, if Reservoir Dogs is your cup of tea, if you've seen and liked The Driver or Dog Day Afternoon, and you haven't seen or heard of Straight Time, then you're in for one of the more under-appreciated highlights in the genre and you should familiarize yourself with it, pronto.

Dustin Hoffman is absolutely mesmerizing in this, what might just be his best role. Such an amazingly realistic depiction of crime and prison life, STRAIGHT TIME immediately rockets up near the top of the best crime films I've ever seen. Pretty ungodly in its harrowing intensity, with Theresa Russell, Harry Dean Stanton and Gary Busey all absolutely bringing it. M Emmett Walsh plays a total prick like nobody's business, and the scene where Dustin Hoffman makes an unbelievable choice that affects the outcome of the rest of the movie is so shocking, I'm not even sure Walsh knew what was going to happen despite having read the script. Fucking phenomenal.

In honor of Dustin Hoffman's 80th birthday... 

Pleasantly surprised with how much I loved this one! Although flawed and messy-- the outstanding performances, entertaining and engaging plot(s), and Dustin Hoffman's subtle (and uncredited) directorial touch makes this one worth watching. I didn't feel bored for a second and the thrilling action sequences stressed me out enough to bite my nails and want to pull my hair out so uh yeah this is criminally underrated and you need to watch it!!

Wow, how is this gem not discussed more often in conversations about Dustin Hoffman's work of the 1970s? Great character piece has Hoffman as an ex-con, just out after six years in the hoosegow, trying to integrate himself back into the day-to-day, and spiraling downward as the obvious limitations on his opportunity reveal themselves one by one.

I was recently reading Elmore Leonard's entertaining novel Freaky Deaky, in which a character makes a reference to the 1978 film Straight Time. So I looked it up and decided that the Dusitn Hoffamn vehicle that also boasted Harry Dean Stanton, E. Emmet Walsh, and Gary Busey should be worth watching. The late Roger Ebert had the "Stanton Walsh Rule"-which states that: "No movie featuring either Harry Dean Stanton or M. Emmet Walsh in a supporting role can be altogether bad". And this is true of the little crime film about bank thief (Hoffamn) who gets hassled by his parole officer (Walsh) and returns to his criminal ways with two of his criminal friends (Stanton and Busey). There is s a love interest played by Theresa Russell in her first major role at the age of 20. It was a well-made film with deft direction by Ulu Grosbard and excellent performances form the impressive cast.

Harsh, depressing movie.

40th anniversary viewing.

#18 on my list “The Renaissance Period of Film – the 1970’s: My Ranked Viewings from 1978”

Underrated, influential, yet rarely seen, Straight Time is based on No Beast So Fierce, a crime novel by Edward Bunker. It influenced Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs (having Eddie Bunker in it is an obvious nod) and Michael Mann’s The Jericho Mile, Thief, and Heat. Tarantino once said about Straight time, “It's one of the greatest crime movies ever made.” Mann, who had a hand in rewriting the script, based Jon Voight’s character Nate in Heat on Eddie Bunker. Dustin Hoffman’s performance is one of his finest, and the supporting cast of Harry Dean Stanton, Gary Busey, and M. Emmet Walsh, is even better. No other film of the 1970’s spends its first half developing sympathy for its main character only to purposely demolish it in its back half.

This movie coming on the tube made an unbearable hospital stay enjoyable for a coupla hours.
Acting is stellar.

"so what are you gonna do?"

you can see it in Max's eyes its a "never forgive myself".

going through his mugshots through the years as a curtain close nearly brought a tear to my eye this time.

Beautifully melancholy character portrait of a shabby anti-hero that shows a great deal of empathy without glamorizing or condoning his violence or sociopathic tendencies. Harry Dean Stanton and Theresa Russell are especially great.

This has got to be one of the best and little mentioned crime dramas of the 70's. The slow boil to point of no return pace of this is so fantastic. Not only does this movie have an incredible who's who of great character actors and young or first appearances by future big names, but it also has for my money Dustin Hoffman's best performance. I always enjoy him, but he is an actor where when I see him on screen it's always Dustin Hoffman. Here, I see the character completely. M. Emmet Walsh is such a prick in this I love it.

Tough, sweaty and hot. One of Dusty's top 4 perfs ever. This gem has somehow escaped everybody's knowledge. Well made narrative and action keeps you really at bay. Excellent camerawork and acting completers this 70's crime yarn.