[size=12pt]The far Country - 1954 - Anthony Mann[/size]
Nice western from the prolific team Mann/Steward who gave us so many good westerns. This one is no difference.
A good story with some nice characters that can be linked to other famous westerns. I especially liked a very gritty and dark Jimmy Stewart in an anti-hero type of part not so common from him, thinking only of himself, in a every man from himself mode. The character development is the usual, but it was well made and works, even the villain was nice if I can say so.
The final duel (and ending) is a bit rushed, but well done, with the most important point of conflict in the film, the relation between Jimmy character and Ruth Roman, with Stewart finally becoming hero and the femme fatale making the ultimate sacrifice for her love.
The cinematography and scenario are excellent, so in the end a quite interesting and nice to follow “regular” western, mostly because even if consistente, it was well made.
Viewed this one in the past and did not really get what was going on most of the time. Viewed again today and still of the same opinion ;D . But the recently purchased Hi Definition VHS looks super on my shelf . Nice Wild Bunch style ending to the film though.
Viewed this one in the past and did not really get what was going on most of the time. Viewed again today and still of the same opinion ;D . But the recently purchased Hi Definition VHS looks super on my shelf . Nice Wild Bunch style ending to the film though.[/quote]
I seem to remember that one, Bilitis meets the Bunch. A few tits, lots of slomo violence.
Sometimes that’s all you need. But I also remmeber remember that it was quite a mediocre affair.
I don’t remember the story, a total blanc, so I can’t say if it made sense to me or anybody else.
[quote=“scherpschutter, post:11423, topic:141”]A few tits, lots of slomo violence.
Sometimes that’s all you need. But I also remmeber remember that it was quite a mediocre affair.[/quote]
Spot on there ! And yes this film is a clear example of having these things and just does not work.
Last night: The Unholy Four (Barboni, 1970). Great story, flawed film. Riz Ortolani’s bouncy (and massively overused throughout the movie, although aren’t they all?) theme tune was completely inappropriate. It belongs in some sweet-but-saucy English 60’s comedy like Please Sir! or something. Look at the final scene: Dead men lie everywhere, a grieving father holds his son’s corpse, Chuck Mull walks away in a daze having had his origins explained to him… it’s all very grim, and… cheer up everyone! here comes the theme tune! Do doo-doo, do-do-doo! (duh der-der duh! Duh! Der-der, duh-derr!) And what was with Chuck’s voice? Did Michael Jackson do the dub? Very high voice. Very wooden, too. And the bad guy’s son seemed to walk about everywhere without moving his arms.
Heh, sounds as though I didn’t like The Unholy Four, but that’s not true. It’s just that these silly flaws I feel have stopped a pretty good movie from being a really good movie, maybe even a great movie. It’s an enjoyable story as I said, it’s well shot in the main, it both opens and closes very strong (bank robbery/asylum fire and then the final shootout), and Woody Strode and George Eastman were very good indeed, Eastman in particular.
Watched two good movies last night (and a coincidental Gilbert Roland double feature) Sartana Does not Forgive Italian DVD which is obviously burned from VHS since there are visible tracking lines (!) at times. I really enjoyed the film although my Italian is not very good. Also The Ruthless Four German DVD. This is a great SW! I’ve read good things about it and it really is a classic.
Oh, that his actual voice? ;D Damn. Not much of a “Leading Man” voice there, imo. “Leading Lady”, maybe! Perhaps he jabbed his knackers jumping on his horse too quick, or something.
Custer of the West is indeed a muddled and unfocused film. It looks like a too-many-cooks-spoil-the-broth film. 5/10
I recently re-watched De Mille’s The Plainsman (1936), a film about the Wild Bill Hickock myth, which also features Buffalo Bill as the 2nd male lead. Often (but not always) naive, of course, but a sprawling epic with a great battle scene and some more well made shoot-outs. Unlike Custer of the West it is a cohesive whole. DeMille knew how to play on the Hollywood mainstream piano without striking the wrong notes. 8/10
Last night: Halleluja for Django aka The Greatest Robbery in the West (Lucidi, 1967). Not too bad at all. Hunt Powers is really good in this one, I felt. Nothing particularly outstanding to distinguish it and I’m sure I’ll have forgotten most of it by this time next week, but also there was nothing whatsoever particularly wrong with it, either. I’d be happy to settle down to this again on a gloomy Saturday afternoon or similar.
After hearing of James Garner’s sad demise last month, I revisited A Man Called Sledge recently and thoroughly enjoyed it again… But, I followed that with a long awaited rewatch of A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die - but this time it was Brother Autephex’s brilliant version - and what a difference! I loved it (and although I can see Phil’s point about the very end bit being a bit talky) and really appreciated this darker take.
So, when I can be arsed to get around to a new top 20 - AMCS will certainly be replaced by AMTP,ASTD.
The Ox-Bow Incident
-Western about posse taking law in their own hands when they capture a group of men they think are the culprits. Start of the film is very slow and unoriginal but when the chase starts it changes to very dark and intense film. Reminds me of another film with Henry Fonda, 12 Angry Men.
Today: California (Lupo, 1977). It’s a bit of a “game of two halves” as they say in terms of its structure but I enjoyed both parts of it. Mr. Gemma was as good as I’ve ever seen him, Raimund Harmstorf was fantastic as the principal antagonist and everybody else was strong too (well, Miguel Bose was a trifle over-demonstrative but I guess the role was calling for that). And it looked beautiful. I love that ruined look. Score was good if a little over-mournful and occasionally a little too 1970’s if that makes any sense but generally it complemented the picture well. Might just be my favourite Gemma movie (it’s either this or The Price of Power).
Two childhood friends end on the opposite sides of the law, which in this film means Rock Hudson is after Dean Martin. Martin plays his usual self with Hudson coasting through.The more interesting performance is by the very nice Susan Clark…an underated actress in my view. Martins last western and its not great but not bad, somewhere in the middle.
Two childhood friends end on the opposite sides of the law, which in this film means Rock Hudson is after Dean Martin. Martin plays his usual self with Hudson coasting through.The more interesting performance is by the very nice Susan Clark…an underated actress in my view. Martins last western and its not great but not bad, somewhere in the middle.[/quote]
No, not great, but I like it. Beautifully filmed and with a remarkably bloody ending. Rock shot in the bum is a nice detail too.
And Susan Clark is always worth watching, true.
Today: Silver Saddle (Fulci, 1978). Good performances all around, it looks as though it was made twelve years earlier than it was (I mean that in a good way) and it’s by far the best Spag-Featuring-A-Sickly-Sweet-Irritating-Boy I’ve seen so far, although in competition with just Kid Vengeance and a couple of sub-par Zanna Bianca pics that’s probably a bit of a back-handed compliment. It hits the typically violent buttons that I love from a Spag, unfortunately though it’s also a little too sappy as well. One minute people are getting shot in the face, the next minute kind-hearted hookers are tripping pants-less oafs in hallways with a wink and a catchy line. And I really didn’t like that score. These flaws keep it from the Spag Premier League but overall it was an enjoyable movie nonetheless.
. Nice Wild Bunch style ending to the film though.
