Cowards
Cast & Crew
Simon Nuchtern
John Ross
Susan Sparling
Will Patent
Thomas Murphy
Philip B. Hall
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Philip Haller, who opposes American involvement in Vietnam, is about to be drafted when his parents, Gregory and Nancy, find him a job that will qualify him for a deferment. Philip rejects this solution, however, and Joan Boyd, a Greenwich Village coffeehouse waitress who becomes his girl friend, puts him in touch with a group of draft evaders who are planning to emigrate to Canada. Philip grapples with the question of whether to escape across the border or to continue to resist the draft at home. A series of events combines to influence his decision: his father accuses him of cowardice for evading the draft, and word arrives that Joan's brother has been killed in Vietnam. Later, Philip visits his friend, Peter Yates, in a military hospital. Peter, the son of a zealous patriot, was wounded almost immediately after his arrival in Vietnam and returned home a hopeless invalid. Philip decides to remain in the United States to fight the draft. He joins Father Reis and an anti-war group in the destruction of a draft board office and is arrested and sent to jail.
Director
Simon Nuchtern
Cast
John Ross
Susan Sparling
Will Patent
Thomas Murphy
Philip B. Hall
Alexander Gellman
Edith Briden
Stephen Snow
George Linjeris
Spalding Gray
Kelly Houser
Larry Hunter
The Merry-go-round
Linda Southern
Daniel Nugent
Crew
Karl Hansen
Sidney Knight
Stephen Lerner
Robert T. Megginson
Robert T. Megginson
Lewis Mishkin
Lewis Mishkin
William Mishkin
Nigel Noble
Simon Nuchtern
Simon Nuchtern
Simon Nuchtern
Jay Robins
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
According to reviews, Cowards was shot on location in New York City. Although the picture was initially released in 1970, at a running time of 89 minutes, details in the 1972 Filmfacts and an November 8, 1971 Box Office review of Love-In '72 confirm that it was a somewhat altered version of Cowards. Love-In '72 was listed at a running time of 86 minutes and, according to the Box Office review, was to be released in November 1971, but no public screenings have been confirmed under that title.
Production credits for Cowards list Simon Nuchtern as the film's sole producer, director and screenwriter, while reviews for Love-In '72 credit Lewis Mishkin as the producer, Sidney Knight and Karl Hansen as the directors and Jay Robins as the screenwriter. It is possible that Simon Nuchtern was a pseudonym for Mishkin, Knight, Hansen and Robins. As noted in the Box Office review, Mishkin was the son of veteran exploitation film distributor William Mishkin. The film marked the feature film debut of character actor Spalding Gray.
The cast list for Cowards and Love-In '72 are the same, except that Love-in '72 adds two actors: Linda Southern, who is listed first in the cast in Filmfacts, as a character named "Sunny," and Daniel Nugent as "Steven Hilton." The summary of Love-In '72 in Filmfacts suggests that Southern and Nugent were featured in a framing story in which Steven related the story of "Philip Haller." At the end of Philip's story, Sunny comments on the futility of war and encourages Steven to remain in the Canadian hippie commune and accept its pleasure-seeking lifestyle. It has not been determined what parts of Cowards were edited out of Love-In '72 to make room for the scenes featuring Southern and Nugent.
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States 1970
Released in United States 1970
