Not only does the stock audio clip that gives this blog its name show up every now and then in TV and movies, now we’re starting to see repeated appearances of locations as well, and I’m not just talking about the really iconic ones like the Hollywood Sign or the Brooklyn Bridge.
I’ve talked before about the appearances of the most cinematic airport walkway in history, connecting LAX’s terminal 6 rotunda with baggage claim. So what a pleasant surprise to see it again, in 60s classic revenge thriller Point Blank, starring Lee Marvin.
When antihero Walker (Marvin) returns to LA on the trail of his wife Lynne and scumbag former friend Reese (a ridiculously young John Vernon) after they’re ripped him off from the score on Alcatraz Island, he arrives through the airport, walking down the famed hallway.
It’s different from every other appearance of the Terminal 6 hallway I’ve seen because director John Boorman filmed down the hall as Marvin approached the camera – every other time I’ve seen it has been from the side or on an angle – and it’s given a menacing air because the soundtrack has the sound of what might be the ticking of a clock in time with Walker’s footsteps, seeming to reflect Reese and Lynne’s time running rapidly out as he comes for them.