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The authenticity of this movie impressed me a lot. The haircuts, the dialogue, everything just reeked of the real old west and I LIKE that in a western. They filmed it in Montana and even mentioned a couple of Wyoming towns (my old stomping grounds). Now, Marlon took a beating over this for his character's eccentricity but I disagree thoroughly on that critisism. Lee Clayton is not over the top as far as I'm concerned. He's always alone, except for his horse, and he kills people. Why would he act normally? Anyway, I say, Marlon Rules, no matter WHAT! He looks beautiful in this movie and is still THE premier actor no matter who thinks differently. Nicholson is very good as the horse thief being hounded by Clayton. His crew, featuring the extreme talents of Randy Quaid and Harry Dean Stanton, is understandably nervous as they seem to be dying on a regular basis.......... and the actors are just marvelous besides. Give this flick another chance now that we're adult and looking for the good stuff in it. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll kiss 3 bucks goodbye. The Missouri Breaks. Saddle up. |
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This flick has been give short shrift down the years and I wish to correct that. This is a wonderful movie for a number of reasons: For one thing, it is rich with the standard stock of fine Mexican actors who delivered, and then some, in every movie they were ever in. In those days, these actors got all the parts for Mexicans; you saw them in everything because of the Hollywood way of usually casting whites in every ethnic part. The "pistoleros" in Chuy's gang, Mateo's relatives, the cantina bunch . . . absolutely sterling character actors, everyone. The main players - John Saxon, Marlon Brando, and Anjanette Comer gave up excellent performances. Director Stanley Lumet did an outstanding job of giving this flick it's beauty. Some say it's slow, I say, there were NO wasted scenes.  |
Check out the tiny, shy little girl who looks right at Brando and tells him he smells like a goat. Marlon as "Mateo" is marvelous (I think Marlon can do NO wrong, anyway) and Saxon is simply doing the best role of his life. He is beautiful, dangerous, and sometimes, quite humorous as "Chuy Medina", the man who, because of his wounded pride, steals Mateo's fine appaloosa stallion - the hope of a new life for Mateo and his little adopted family. The actors were allowed a lot of input and creativeness. The scene in Chuy's cantina with the scorpions and the arm wrestling is absolutely classic and I've seen it plagerized in one form or the other a lot over the years. The interaction of the actors is so intense, you just KNOW there's more to the story than is being presented up front. You can feel the tension between Chuy and his girlfriend and his main henchman, Lazaro. I once actually asked Mr. Saxon about this, but he didn't give me any insight into it. Maybe I'll try asking again. . . . . |
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This is NOT the Clint Eastwood flick of a few years back, so pay attention. THIS movie stars Burt Lancaster, Audrey Hepburn, Lillian Gish, and Audie Murphy. There's also an exotic, very interesting horse wrangler, Johnny Portugal, played by one of my very faves, a young and beautiful John Saxon. More on this later. The story is pretty raunchy for it's time period (1960), and deals with family lies and cover-ups amidst conflicts with the native Americans. The Indians are done fairly well (although played mostly by white people) and although there is conflict between the homesteaders and the Indians, it isn't necessarily a stereotypical representation as much as other westerns seemed to be. I liked the story, and if Saxon hadn't had his part cut so drastically, this would have made the list of my top movies of all time. As it is, it's still pretty fine. |  Lancaster is always marvelous (and wonderful looking) and Hepburn is very young and gorgeous. This is probably the best role I've seen Audie Murphy in and Saxon's Johnny Portugal is just flat out beautiful. The cutting was done poorly throughout, and they didn't just cut Saxon's part, they cut it at the strangest points, which annoys me to this day. Lillian Gish, famous silent movie star, is just brilliant as Lancaster and Murphy's mom. She hangs a guy, too. Go, Mom! This movie is THE Unforgiven, not UNFORGIVEN. Pay no attention to the scrappy cutting. It's Americana! Check it out! |
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The movie also features Slim Pickens as a sheriff and Katy Jurado as his wife. Jurado was terribly under-rated as an actress, I feel, and to see her mourn Slim's passing while Dylan's Knockin' on Heaven's Door plays in the background still pulls tears from me just thinking about it. She is marvelous. Also, she guns down a lot of guys during the shootout. Too cool! There are so many excellent scenes in this film, it would be ludicrous of me to try to relate them. One of my very favorite scenes is where Chill Wills and his customers are menaced by Coburn (Garrett) when he tries to get them to tell where Billy is. Absolutely wonderful. And when Billy shoots the jail deputy, "Bob" with Bob's own shotgun loaded with 16 thin dimes....... well, it's pure Pekinpah. Watch for Charles Martin Smith going out with a bang. No actor is a wasted actor in this little jewel. Don't miss this; If you can, score the Director's Cut, for sure - and when you've seen it, come on over to MY FORUM and tell me what you thought. We love it in there! I'll be waiting. |
What a great story! Set in the turn of the century when a lot of cowboys were having a harder time finding meaningful work and have taken jobs as mercenaries in the turmoil of the Pancho Villa revolutions in Mexico. Robert Ryan, Burt Lancaster, and a young, spectacularly muscular Woody Stroud are hired by Ralph Bellamy to rescue his kidnapped bride, the stunning Claudia Cardinale. Also featured is Jack Palance as a Mexican revolutionary leader who has kidnapped Claudia. It's action/adventure to the max, but with horses and dynamite. There are some real fun characters in this flick. Don't miss Carmelita, an old flame of Lancaster's character. She's a doozy. Their final scene is a killer. I've featured Claudia in this column once before and she didn't get any uglier since then. What a beauty this woman was! Burt is just hilarious and all the actors are top notch. Gritty, fast-paced, and probably a very strong influence on the later Peckinpah hit, The Wild Bunch. Yeah, you better see it, or you'll hate yourself in the morning. If your video place doesn't have it, tell'em to GET IT!!! |  |