Thunderbolt and Lightfoot

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is a 1974 crime film about a bank robber and his irreverent young sidekick who get his old gang back together to organize a daring new heist. Directed and written by Michael Cimino. Thunderbolt... the man with the reputation. Lightfoot... the kid who's about to make one! (taglines) Thunderbolt I don't wish to be forward, but we'd like to exchange cars with you. So the faster you get out, the better it'll be for your ass. Lightfoot You ain't no country preacher, Preacher. [to a woman riding a motorcycle in shorts] Hey where did you get those pants? [the womans pulls out a hammer, pounds his truck and rides off] You freak! I love you, come back! Red Leary Go... fuck... a duck. Dialogue Melody: I didn't get your name. Lightfoot: Well, I didn't give it to ya'. My name is Lightfoot. Melody: "Lightfoot"? Lightfoot: That's right. Melody: That's a dumb name. I mean, what kind of person would name a kid that, ya' know? Lightfoot: What's your name? Melody: Melody. Lightfoot: "Melody"? That's not a dumb name?... Hey, maybe we had the same father? Thunderbolt: What's your name, boy? Lightfoot: Lightfoot. Thunderbolt: You Indian? Lightfoot: Nope. Just American. Red: Does he know everything? [at the same time] Thunderbolt: No. Lightfoot: Yes. Lightfoot: Thunderbolt! Thunderbolt and Lightfoot. That sounds like somethin'. Thunderbolt: You're forgetting I'm a lot older than you. Lightfoot: There are plenty of guys twice my age who don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. Thunderbolt: I won't fault you there. [a woman runs out of a motel crying rape] Woman in car: You really want to stay here? Husband: [smiling] Why not? [Lightfoot shows up with the van, newly dented by the girl on the motorcycle] Red Leary: Where'd you get the dents? Lightfoot: Progress. I dreamt about you last night. Red Leary: What about? Lightfoot: I dreamt you said hello to me. Red Leary: Don't you get smart with me. I'll break both your arms. Lightfoot: I'll keep that in mind. Red Leary: Remember what I said. John and me go back a long way. But you don't mean nothin' to me, understand? Nothin'! Lightfoot: What'd you try and kill him for then? Red Leary: Because we were friends. Lightfoot: [John Doherty, aka Thunderbolt, dressed in preacher's garb, has jumped into Lightfoot's stolen Trans-Am] I thought you were the heat. John: Do I look like heat? Lightfoot: You look like one crazy son-of-a-bitch for a preacher, I'll tell you that. Lightfoot: Howdy. How's business? Station Attendant: In this business, you're always one step away from bankruptcy. Funny money, credit, speculation... Somewhere in this country's a little old lady with $79.25. The $0.05 is a buffalo nickel... If she crashes in her investment, whole thing'll collapse. General Motors, the Pentagon, the two-party system and the whole and the whole shebang... We're all running downhill. Got to keep running faster or we'll fall down. Thunderbolt: In small-town banks, they leave the telephone off the hook in the vault at night so the local operator can listen in. Lightfoot: People walk into these banks with paper sacks, fill 'em with money and walk out. Anybody can do it. Thunderbolt: Bullshit. The newest bank vaults have walls of reinforced concrete five feet thick, backed by six inches of steel. The vault door is stainless steel-faced. It's an inch and a half of cast steel, another 12 inches of burn-resisting steel, and another inch and a half of open-hearthed steel... A vault door has 20 bolts, each an inch in diameter. Eight on each side, two top and two bottom. This holds the door into a 16-inch steel jamb set in 18 inches of concrete. It's crosshatched by steel bars running both vertical and horizontal. This door is precision-made so you can't pour nitro between the door and the vault. If that isn't enough, there's microphones, electric eyes, pressure-sensitive mats, vibration detectors, tear gas, and even thermostats that detect the slightest rise in temperature. Still interested in banks? Lightfoot: I knew you weren't a preacher! Lightfoot: You know... you know somethin'? I don't think of us as criminals, you know? I feel we accomplished something. A good job. I feel proud of myself, man. I feel like a hero. Thunderbolt: Are you all right, kid? You don't look too well. Lightfoot: I believe you're right. [Slumps over] Thunderbolt: Lightfoot! Taglines Thunderbolt... the man with the reputation. Lightfoot... the kid who's about to make one! He has exactly seven minutes to get rich quick! Cast Clint Eastwood - John "Thunderbolt" Doherty Jeff Bridges - Lightfoot George Kennedy - Red Leary Geoffrey Lewis - Eddie Goody Gary Busey - Curly Catherine Bach as Melody Jack Dodson - Bank Manager Gregory Walcott - Car Salesman Vic Tayback - Construction Company Owner Bill McKinney - Crazed Car Driver w/raccoon and rabbits Burton Gilliam - Welder Beth Howland - Bank Manager's Wife Dub Taylor - Gas Station Attendant Claudia Lennear - Secretary June Fairchild - Gloria External links 0072288 thunderbolt_and_lightfoot Category:Buddy comedy films Category:Road comedy-drama films Category:Films set in Montana Category:Heist films Category:Screenplays by Michael Cimino Category:Films directed by Michael Cimino Category:1974 American films Category:1974 English-language films Category:American chase films Category:American road comedy-drama films Category:Films about assassinations Category:Films about bank robbery