One of the Best

I love a good leading man. Someone who is tough as nails yet sensitive to his leading lady. Someone smooth, good dresser yet can get down and dirty when he needs to. I'm talking about Steve McQueen. I adore this man.

A young McQueen stars in one of my favorite "B" movies, The Blob. From the entrance music to the Blob oozing through the theater, you will be at the edge of you seat for the leading male. The story is very simple, alien life force comes to Earth, kids find out about it and try to stop it. The police and army aren't near as smart as Steve McQueen. He comes in and saves the day with his dashing good looks and nerves of steel. This movie was a huge hit, which surprised McQueen. It continues to be a cult horror classic.

 I'm not a huge western movie fan but The Magnificent Seven is one of those movies that breaks the general western movie genre. Maybe it was because it was an American version of The Seven Samurai.  A bandit threatens a small Mexican town and the villagers decide to get find gunmen to defend them. They come up with seven. Steve McQueen plays Vin Tanner and although his part was smaller, he stood out as a leading man. A little trivia-he absolutely hated Yule Brenner and tried to steal the scene every time they were on screen together.

As his career progressed, the smoother he got. He was already known as an action hero but Hollywood was worried about putting him in the role of  the sophisticated man. The Thomas Crown Affair showed that he could be rugged and debonair all at the same time. Steve plays a mulit-millionaire that is suspected by an insurance investigator (Faye Dunaway looking mighty fine herself) of pulling off a bank heist. Lines are crossed in this cat and mouse game.

There are so many other great Steve McQueen movie, Bullitt, The Great Escape, The Hunter-just to name a few. Steve played by his rules, which was practically unheard of at that time. He was a a broken child who not only achieved greatness but was one cool man. The smile, the voice-everything about him would just melt the coldest heart. Men like Steve McQueen are a lost breed.