The leader, a member of the National Guard, described how they had the "power" because everybody else ("folks without suntans") had left, and he had little faith in the military.She made him become what he always wanted to be - a lover, a hero, a rich man...and a killer!Laugh, Cry, and Dream...There were varying dates given for the film (1980 and 1981), due to a number of factors:it was filmed in 1979it was shown at the Venice Film Festival in late August-early September 1980it was then released in France, Italy and Germany in 1980its first US showing was April 2, 1981 at the Los Angeles International Film Exposition (Filmex)its official US premiere was April 3, 1981, with nationwide showings beginning a week laterThe film was praised at the time by the Academy of Motion Pictures with five major nominations: Best Picture, Best Director (Malle), Best Actor (Lancaster with his fourth and last career nomination), Best Actress (Sarandon with her first nomination), and Best Original Screenplay (John Guare), but went away empty-handed.Low on funds, Rocky drove to the waterfront docks to speak to his brother-in-law Paulie, and offer to sell him his Trans-Am sports-car, rationalizing with the excuse: "I have a hard time making these right turns with my bad eye.My father had kept their wedding cake in the freezer for ten whole years.After the funeral, he gave it to the yardman.He tried to act cheerful, but he could never be consoled by the little stranger he found in his house.Erik vainly attempted to stop Shaw by holding on to the retreating submarine, although he nearly drowned trying to raise it up.