Who was Curly in 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[edit]

  • 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.
  • 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[edit]

Dialogue[edit]

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[edit]

  • Thunderbolt... the man with the reputation. Lightfoot... the kid who's about to make one!
  • He has exactly seven minutes to get rich quick!

Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

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Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot

1974, Comedy/Drama, 1h 54m

32 Reviews 5,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

This likable buddy/road picture deftly mixes action and comedy, and features excellent work from stars Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges and first-time director Michael Cimino. Read critic reviews

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    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Thunderbolt and Lightfoot Photos

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

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    Movie Info

    While stealing a car, free-spirited drifter Lightfoot (Jeff Bridges) crosses paths with legendary thief Thunderbolt (Clint Eastwood) in the midst of his own escape. Thunderbolt's old partners in crime, Red (George Kennedy) and Eddie (Geoffrey Lewis), believe he double-crossed them after they robbed a Montana bank vault several years ago. After Thunderbolt successfully pleads his innocence and is let off the hook, Lightfoot rallies them together as a group to rob the very same bank again.

    • Rating:

      R

    • Genre:

      Comedy, Drama

    • Original Language:

      English

    • Director:

      Michael Cimino

    • Producer:

      Robert Daley

    • Writer:

      Michael Cimino

    • Release Date (Theaters):

      May 23, 1974  original

    • Release Date (Streaming):

      May 5, 2015

    • Runtime:

      1h 54m

    • Distributor:

      United Artists

    Cast & Crew

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Clint Eastwood
    Thunderbolt

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Jeff Bridges
    Lightfoot

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    George Kennedy
    Red Leary

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Geoffrey Lewis
    Eddie Goody

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Catherine Bach
    Melody

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Gary Busey
    Curly

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Jack Dodson
    Vault Manager

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Vic Tayback
    Mario Pinski

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Dub Taylor
    Station Attendant

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Bill McKinney
    Crazy Driver

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Michael Cimino
    Director

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Michael Cimino
    Screenwriter

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    Robert Daley
    Producer

    Show all Cast & Crew

    News & Interviews for Thunderbolt and Lightfoot

    Who was Curly in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

    David Gordon Green’s Five Favorite Films

    View All

    Critic Reviews for Thunderbolt and Lightfoot

    All Critics (32) | Top Critics (7) | Fresh (28) | Rotten (4)

    Full Review… Richard Brody New YorkerFull Review… Keith Phipps The DissolveFull Review… Variety Staff VarietyFull Review… Ian Freer Empire MagazineFull Review… Howard Thompson New York TimesFull Review… Dave Kehr Chicago ReaderFull Review… Sean Axmaker Stream on DemandFull Review… David Sterritt Christian Science MonitorFull Review… Jason Shawhan Nashville SceneFull Review… Christopher Lloyd The Film YapFull Review… Dick Lochte Los Angeles Free PressFull Review… Matt Brunson Film Frenzy

    View All Critic Reviews (32)

    Audience Reviews for Thunderbolt and Lightfoot

    • Aug 02, 2019

      It starts as a sort of lighthearted character study that tips it's hat to the good-old-boys vibe ("aw shucks, ma'am, ah didn't mean anythin' by whut ah said!"), morphs into an "A-murica shore is be-yew-ti-ful country!" road trip, that finally settles into the heist film it means to be. Although Michael Cimino gambles with losing your interest by taking his sweet time, the gamble pays off by the dramatic ending. Clint, Bridges, and Kennedy are all up to par.

      Kevin M. W Super Reviewer

    • Oct 19, 2010

      A smashing directorial debut for Michael Cimino who also wrote the spirited screenplay of this tough extremely enjoyable crime melodrama. Clint Eastwood and a young Jeff Bridges make a dynamite team, they have a breezy chemistry together. Clint Eastwood delivers a cool superlative performance as a prairie preacher and ex-veteran thief, John "Thunderbolt" Doherty, a member of an earlier heist where the money was hidden and never recovered, he has been hiding out from his former partners. Eastwood meets a fun-loving drifter named "Lightfoot" who is game for anything, Jeff Bridges gives a luminous scene-stealing performance that earned him his first Oscar nomination, Bridges is at his quirky best here. They strike-up a friendship and decide to pull a heist, with the help of two previous associates, played superbly by a menacing George Kennedy as Red Leary, and a very funny Geoffery Lewis as Eddie Goody, special kudos must go to George Kennedy performance, his villainous character is one of the meanest S.O.B. in screen history. Well-choreographed action and stunningly beautiful cinematography by Frank Stanley. Exquisite supporting performances by Gary Busey, Catherine Bach, Dub Taylor; and a standout turn by legendary character actor Bill McKinney. A well-crafted exciting film with equal moments of hilarity and pathos. Highly Recommended.

      Danny R Super Reviewer

    • Apr 05, 2009

      Outstandingly average.

      Marcus W Super Reviewer

    • Oct 23, 2007

      Great, great movie. Eastwood and Bridges in fine form. Interesting script, with some depressing moments and a moving ending. Watch out for the naked woman too!

      Who was the woman in the window in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

      Actress June Fairchild, who appeared in Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke and Clint Eastwood's Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, died on Tuesday at a convalescent home. She was 68.

      What was wrong with Lightfoot in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

      The beating gradually paralyzes Lightfoot's leg (castration), complimenting Thunderbolt's damaged leg (we get a glimpse of his brace in the beginning). Once castrated, Lightfoot can only die. After another symbolic exchange of cigars, he expires, his face contorted in an ugly grin as he says he feels like a hero.

      Who played Melody in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

      Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) - Catherine Bach as Melody - IMDb.

      What cars were used in the movie Thunderbolt and Lightfoot?

      Buick Riviera (Thunderbolt and Lightfoot) Clint Eastwood teams up with Jeff Bridges in a heist film from the 1970s. They barely stay ahead of George Kennedy in his Mercury by Bridges driving the wheels of a Buick Riviera.