THE SACKETTS -- Movie Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 11/26/09
 

 

There were other made-for-TV Westerns before it, but THE SACKETTS (1979) is the first big multi-part cowboy epic that I can think of. It came out a full ten years before the LONESOME DOVE series and, though it isn't nearly as good, it does lay the groundwork for this type of sweeping TV Western.

The story follows the adventures of the three Sackett brothers, Tell, Orrin, and Tyrell. Tell (Sam Elliott) is the loner of the bunch, and we're introduced to him as he is forced to flee his mining job after gunning down a crooked card dealer (James Gammon) who happens to be one of the dreaded Bigelow brothers.

Knowing that the other Bigelows will be after him for revenge, Tell disappears into the mountains, where he stumbles onto a rich vein of gold and starts his own one-man mining operation. When he totes a large bagful of the shiny stuff into the aptly-named town of Purgatorie to trade for cash, it doesn't take long for some of the less scrupulous denizens to try and surgically remove him from his new-found riches.

Meanwhile, his brothers Orrin (Tom Selleck) and Tyrell (Jeff Osterhage) have left their Tennessee homeplace to avoid a bloody feud between the Sacketts and another clan, and are headed West with a cattle drive. When they reach Abilene, Orrin falls for the golden-haired daughter of an ambitious politician named Pritts (John Vernon), who aims to drive all the Mexicans out of Sante Fe.

Tyrell, of course, falls in love with a lovely Mexican lass (Ana Alicia) whose father, Don Luis (Gilbert Roland), is the main stumbling block in Pritts' plans. When they all get together in Santa Fe, the situation soon turns deadly and guns start a-blazin'.

The script is a combination of two Louis L'Amour novels, "Sackett" and "The Daybreakers", and it isn't a very smooth blend, crosscutting between the two barely-related stories the way you might switch channels back-and-forth between two movies that are on at the same time.

The stories overlap only twice--once near the end of the first segment when the three Sacketts run into each other in Purgatorie, and again for the big finale as the Bigelow brothers finally catch up to Tell and he's reunited with Orrin and Tyrell to fight them off.

This awkward overlapping of the two stories bothered me the first time I watched THE SACKETTS, along with some jarring hand-held camerawork (no Steadicam here), an endlessly irritating and inept musical score by Jerrold Immel, and a strange performance by Mercedes McCambridge that makes Ma Sackett look like she's either perpetually tipsy or tetched in the head.

But further viewings have helped me to get over the various minus points and begin to appreciate all the good things about this movie. Despite its somewhat rough-hewn quality, THE SACKETTS is an engaging Western with lots of authentic atmosphere, good characters, and a terrific cast.

For starters, there's Sam Elliott and Tom Selleck, who I think are the two best Western actors of the past twenty or thirty years (with the exception of Clint Eastwood, of course), and Jeff Osterhage, a lesser-known actor who does a fine job here. Glenn Ford plays Tom Sunday, the ramrod of the cattle drive who later joins Orrin and Tyrell in their own cattle venture and eventually ends up as their enemy, and his intense, masterful performance (watch his face twitch in those close-ups!) is a joy to behold.

This can also be said for the great Ben Johnson as Cap Roundtree, who becomes Tell's gold-mining partner. Paul Koslo is a hoot as the blowhard would-be gunslinger Kid Newton. The Bigelow brothers are played by Jack Elam, Slim Pickens, Gene Evans, and James Gammon, and also appearing in the cast are the likes of L.Q. Jones, Ruth Roman, Pat Buttram, Shug Fisher, and Buck Taylor, in addition to the aforementioned John Vernon and Gilbert Roland. (Louis L'Amour himself does the opening narration.) If you're like me and you love great character actors as much as A-list stars, this is the kind of "all-star" cast that will put a smile on your face.

I can't give THE SACKETTS a super high score due to its various deficiencies, and the fact that it's not the polished effort that later TV Westerns like LONESOME DOVE would be, but it has enough going for it to get a solid three-and-a-half out of five spurs. The final shoot-out alone is worth waiting for--it's almost as much fun as the bullet-riddled free-for-all that ended OPEN RANGE. And that cast--awesome. There's one scene which features Sam Elliott, Tom Selleck, Glenn Ford, and Ben Johnson sitting around a campfire, and I thought "Damn...I wish I was sitting around that campfire, too."

 

THE SACKETTS -- Movie Review by Porfle

BONANZA: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON, VOL. 1 & 2 -- DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 9/3/09

 

One of my top five favorite TV westerns of all time, "Bonanza" certainly needs no introduction even for those who have never watched a single episode. If you fall into that category, then the release of BONANZA: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON, VOLUMES 1 & 2 is the perfect introduction to the wild and wooly world of The Cartwrights--Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe--as they lord it over the rest of the world from the lofty majesty of their massive forest-bedecked Nevada ranch, the Ponderosa. And if you're already a fan, then you'll want to slap your brand on these little dogies before sundown.

Ben Cartwright, played by silver-haired, dulcet-voiced Canadian actor Lorne Greene, is one of those TV characters to whom marriage is the kiss of death for his hapless brides. As we join the Cartwright clan, Ben's already gone through three wives and sired a son by each. Soulful, taciturn Adam (Pernell Roberts), whose mother was a member of New England aristocracy, is the "cool" one who lets his gun do the talking while casting dark, sultry glances at any beauteous ladies within glancing distance.

Hoss (Dan Blocker), the gentle giant who's slow to anger but quick to finish off an entire hog before anyone else has even made it to the table, comes from sturdy Swedish stock. The youngest Cartwright is impetuous, girl-crazy action boy Little Joe (Michael Landon), a New Orleans-born hellion who's always leaping into trouble. Even their Chinese cook Hop Sing (Victor Sen Yung) is pee-oh'd.

These guys live in the coolest ranchhouse ever (which Adam designed and built) on the biggest spread in the northern hemisphere, and in these early episodes they're bitterly at odds with the devious Virginia City silver tycoons who covet their vast tracts of forest land with which to shore up their mine tunnels. In later seasons, Ben and his brood chill out considerably and become friendly, socializing members of the community who prefer reasoned diplomacy to gunplay. But when we first see them, they're coarse, boisterous wild men bristling with guns and running roughshod over the countryside. Just try cutting across the Ponderosa to get to where you're going a little faster--before you know it, you'll be staring down the barrels of four guns while the Cartwrights terrorize you like Hell's Angels on horseback.

In the VOLUME 1 pilot episode, "A Rose for Lotta" (9/12/1959), this very thing happens to none other than guest star Yvonne DeCarlo (Lily from "The Munsters"), a leggy actress who's been hired by those silver tycoons (including George MacCready and Willis Bouchey) to lure one of the Cartwrights into town so that he can be held hostage. The very sight of her speeding carriage throwing up Ponderosa dust in the distance sets our heroes' blood boiling and their bloodlust blazing, and they give chase with guns waving.

After roughing up her mousey driver (Ned Glass), tying him up, and tossing him in the back of Hop Sing's buckboard, Ben graciously instructs a willing Little Joe to escort the lady into town. The young Cartwright is set upon by ruffians but escapes, gleefully managing to create fiery havoc in the Chinese part of town. Meanwhile, Ben, Adam, and Hoss confront their wealthy foes in a local saloon, where Adam has a cool, melodramatic shootout with black-garbed gun-for-hire Langford Pool (a creepy Christopher Dark) complete with closeups of their twitchy eyes and sweating foreheads.

Even at home, these guys are off the hook. The episode begins with Adam and Little Joe talking trash about each other's moms, with Adam referring to Little Joe's dueling epee as "that New Orleans monkey pick you got handed down to you by your French Quarter mother", to which Joe responds with murder in his eyes, "I've never been able to see myself being kin to anything whelped out of a thin-nosed, blueblooded Boston yankee!"

A bareknuckled debate on the subject ensues right there in the livingroom (with Landon and Roberts doing most of their own stunts) before Hoss breaks it up by beating them both senseless with a few swipes of his ham fists. When Ben arrives on the scene with a blustery "Fire and brimstone!" we find that Lorne Greene's early interpretation of his character is decidedly larger-than-life. Roaring and bellowing with manic laughter at his sons' antics as though he's playing to the back row, Greene really pours it on here and sells this pilot with all he's got. To those used to the more sedate later episodes of the show, it's a pretty amazing sequence.

Before long, though, the Cartwrights begin to settle down and interact with their environment on a less hostile basis. (After all, it's hard to come up with interesting stories if you throw all of the guest stars off your land at gunpoint.) As Ben tells Adam: "Son, we can't ignore the rest of the world. We're the only stabilizing influence in the country." So he and the boys start using their influence to develop the town, help the poor, settle mining disputes, and try to keep the Indians and the settlers from killing each other.

The latter is forcefully depicted in "The Paiute War", in which a peaceful tribe is wrongfully blamed for some killings and the army is called in, resulting in a needless slaughter which horrifies the cavalry officer in charge. Definitely not your usual Cowboys vs. Indians stuff. Inadequate safety measures in a silver mine are a concern in "The Philip Diedesheimer Story", which sees Adam trapped in a cave-in while the mine's heartless owner (R.G. Armstrong) is more concerned with the bottom line than the lives of his workers.

The Cartwright curse rears its head again (and not for the last time) in "The Newcomers" when Hoss falls in love with a beautiful woman (Inger Stevens) who turns out to be dying of an incurable disease. In "Enter Mark Twain" the Cartwrights meet the soon-to-be-famous writer (Howard Duff), whose inflammatory political articles in the local newspaper spark a blazing gun battle in the streets of Virginia City. The scene in which the Cartwrights disarm a gunman and deliver him to the office of the crooked politician who hired him is cool as hell--they file imperiously out of the room like they own the place as Hoss empties the man's gun and flings it onto a desk without even looking.

Aside from the occasional comedy episode, these stories are thoughtful morality plays that mix hardbitten Western action with intense human drama. "The Truckee Strip" (which marks the first appearance of Joseph Messerli's famous end-credits watercolor paintings) is a Romeo-and-Juliet tale in which Little Joe falls in love with the daughter (Adrienne Hayes) of a rancher with whom Ben has had a long, bitter feud over a patch of land. Little Joe's growing disgust with the endless fighting and collateral damage leads him to pull a gun on his father at one point, which in turn prompts Ben to question his own unwavering convictions. Here, as well as in many subsequent episodes, it's interesting to see these characters grow and develop beyond their original one-dimensional qualities.

The show is consistently well-written and directed, with some early scripts by future "Star Trek" story editor Gene L. Coon and Christian Nyby (THE THING) directing several of them. The first television Western filmed in color, it's visually sumptuous and makes good use of sweeping outdoor locations. The sets and costumes have an authentic feel even though there's a storybook quality to them as well. Each episode is enhanced by a robust score by the prolific David Rose.



The first episode of VOLUME 2, "The Outcast", guest-starring a young Jack Lord and Susan Oliver, begins the tradition of announcing each episode's title with a musical fanfare. This set also continues the show's attention to racial issues with "The Fear Merchants", expanding Hop Sing's character beyond the usual stereotype as he and his people are menaced by violent bigotry in Virginia City. When a man (Frank Ferguson) accidentally shoots his daughter during an argument, a Chinese boy is accused of the deed and the Cartwrights are deputized to protect him from a lynch mob stirred up by a hatemongering mayoral candidate (Gene Evans).

This bunch contains some of my favorite episodes from the public domain DVDs I've bought over the years, only now in near-pristine condition. "Blood on the Land" features Everett Sloan as a ruthless old sheep farmer who stakes a claim on Ponderosa land and is willing to go to war with the Cartwrights to keep it. One of my favorites,"Desert Justice", boasts a great performance by Claude Akins as a hardcore U.S. Marshall bent on bringing one of the Cartwrights' ranch hands in for murder, even if it means killing anyone who gets in his way.

"The Stranger" marks the Cartwrights' growing acceptance by the citizens of Virginia City, as Ben is proposed as the new governor of the state of Nevada until a lawman from New Orleans (Lloyd Nolan) shows up with a warrant for his arrest on a murder charge. An especially exciting episode, "San Francisco Holiday", finds the Cartwrights and Hop Sing in the titular city where some of their ranch hands are shanghaied. Ed Wood regular Tor Johnson guest stars.

One of the series' best comedy episodes is "The Gunmen", in which Hoss and Little Joe (who are so much fun together that they'll be teamed many times) are mistaken for lookalike outlaws, the notorious Slade brothers, and must convince the terrified denizens of a small Texas town that they've got the wrong guys. The opening scene in which Landon and Blocker, as the Slades, gun down an entire saloon full of men in cold blood, is pretty startling.

The impressive roster of guest stars in volume one includes Ida Lupino, James Coburn, Ruth Roman, Barry Sullivan, R.G. Armstrong, Harry Carey Jr., John Beal, Mala Powers, Buddy Ebsen, Fay Spain, Alan Hale Jr., Anthony Caruso, Michael Forest, Jack Warden, Jane Greer, Alexander Scourby, Don Megowan, Hal Smith, Whitney Blake, Arthur Hunnicutt, Bill Quinn, Mort Mills, Barbara Luna, Raymond Bailey, Jose Gonzales-Gonzales, and Ralph Moody. Peter Coe of HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and THE MUMMY'S CURSE makes a surprising appearance as an Indian.

Volume two's more familiar faces include Vic Morrow, Gene Evans, Christopher Dark (as yet another sleazy hired gun), Patricia Medina, Joan Staley, Sebastian Cabot, Hazel Court, Bert Freed, Ellen Corby, John Anderson, Philip Ahn, Frank Ferguson, Helen Westcott, Cameron Mitchell, Henry Hull, Paul Picerni, Stafford Repp, Gloria Talbott, Grant Williams, Richard Devon, Nestor Paiva, Kathleen Crowley, James Hong, Richard Deacon, Merry Anders, Don Dubbins, Rhys Williams, Gregory Walcott, and Morgan Woodward.

Both volumes are in original 4.3 full-screen with English mono sound. Each set contains four discs with four episodes per disc. Volume one bonus features include extensive photo galleries for most episodes, some episodic promos, original NBC logo, bumpers, and RCA spots for the pilot, Joe Messerli's original sketches for the closing credits paintings, and creator-producer David Dortort's 2002 personal recollections of Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, and the creation of that iconic flaming Ponderosa map through which the stars ride in the opening titles. There's also a wonderfully cornball half-hour 1953 "Fireside Theater" segment with Bruce Bennett called "Man of the Comstock", written by Dortort, which was sort of a forerunner to "Bonanza." Lastly, we get to see a bizarre alternate ending to the pilot in which the Cartwrights ride off singing the "Bonanza" theme song! (And not too well, either.)

Volume two contains more photo galleries and episodic promos, original NBC logo, bumpers, and RCA spots for "The Avenger", and David Dortort's reminiscences about Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Victor Sen Yung, and how the Ponderosa got its name.

BONANZA: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON, VOLUMES 1 & 2 are available seperately or together. For fans of the classic television Western, this rock-solid, robust series is great entertainment and is rightfully remembered as one of the finest shows of all time.

BONANZA: THE OFFICIAL FIRST SEASON, VOL. 1 & 2 -- DVD Review by Porfle

John Wayne: The Singing Cowboy (video)

John Wayne as "Singin' Sandy"?

Here are some of the attempts by various movie studios in the 30s to turn John Wayne into a singing cowboy.  (Dubbed, that is.)

Scenes used are from:

"Riders of Destiny" (1933)
"Westward Ho!" (1935)
"Lawless Range" (1935)
"Man From Utah" (1934)

Originally posted on 11/26/18
I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

John Wayne: The Singing Cowboy (video)

Two Modern Vehicle Bloopers In "Shane" (1953) (video)

It's one of the great westerns of all time...with two great modern vehicle bloopers.

The first one has been erased from the movie...but can still be seen in the trailer.
Look right past Shane as he approaches the Starrett ranch.

The second one happens later when Joey is talking to Shane. 
Look through the open window right behind Joey, right over the top fence rail.

And to think, the people in those vehicles never knew they were in this movie.

Originally posted on 9/10/18
I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

Two Modern Vehicle Bloopers In "Shane" (1953) (video)

John Wayne Eye-Poked By A Hat Brim: "Texas Cyclone" (1932) (video)

In "Texas Cyclone" (1932), John Wayne and Tim McCoy...

...deal with a lowdown cattle-rustlin' hombre (Wallace MacDonald).

Watch young Duke get a hat-brim poke in the eye for his trouble!


I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

John Wayne Eye-Poked By A Hat Brim: "Texas Cyclone" (1932) (video)

THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 2/27/18

 

Comedy westerns are tricky to pull off, especially if you're trying to please both western fans and comedy fans.  BLAZING SADDLES did it by being a merciless no-holds-barred burlesque of sagebrush sagas that skewered all the familiar tropes in hilariously irreverent and farcical fashion.  BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID succeeded by being delightfully witty while still delivering a genuinely gritty, slam-bang western that fans of the genre could appreciate.

What director John Sturges and company try to achieve with their sprawling comedy horse opera THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL (Olive Films, 1965) is no less than a spectacular blockbuster of epic proportions (with a running time of 165 minutes, no less) intended to inundate the viewer in an avalanche of eye-filling thrills and gut-busting laughter. 

As a sort of cross-country road picture filled with familiar faces and as much raucous action as he could squeeze out of an army of stunt people, it's as though Sturges were trying to come up with a western equivalent of the 1963 comedy free-for-all IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD.

Unfortunately, the man who was so adept at serious all-star epics such as THE GREAT ESCAPE and THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN comes up short when applying his considerable talents to the field of comedy.  THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL blusters, bellows, wheezes, and beats its chest in a desperate effort to make us laugh with a furious flurry of thundering action and mugging slapstick that barely has a single genuinely funny line of dialogue or bit of business in its entire running time. 

The pseudo-solemn narration by John Dehner sets a mock-serious tone that never really goes anywhere, as he describes the impending disaster faced by an 1800s Denver, Colorado that is about to spend a long, hard winter with no whiskey.  That is, until freight tycoon Brian Keith orders forty wagon loads of the stuff to be delivered from back East across the desert through Indian country. 

Naturally, that much firewater is hard to resist for Chief Five Barrels (Robert Wilke), his comic sidekick Chief Walks-Stooped-Over (Martin Landau), and the rest of his thirsty braves. If you think Wilke and Landau are either convincing or funny as hooch-happy Indians, I have some oceanfront property in Idaho that might interest you.

The whiskey train also attracts the attention of a pretty, charismatic crusader against alcohol, the twice-widowed Mrs. Cora Templeton Massingale (Lee Remick), who vows to lead her fervent female followers to head it off at the pass while Colonel Thaddeus Gearhart (Burt Lancaster) reluctantly leads a regiment of cavalry soldiers to ride guard on the whole thing. 

Lancaster is all bullish bluster as Gearhart, with nary a corpuscle of comic talent in his whole brawny body but with a boxer's determination to pummel laughs out of the mirthless screenplay. Jim Hutton and Pamela Tiffin have the thankless task of playing his callow captain and rebellious daughter, who are in love, while stone-faced character actor John Anderson is a startlingly unlikely choice as his comic foil Sgt. Buell.  

As hymn-humming Cora Templeton Massingale, Remick is utterly eye-pleasing but about as appealing as the whelp she and Gregory Peck churned out in THE OMEN with her sanctimonious teatotalism delivered with a suffragette's zeal (a deadly combination) that had me despising her pushy, self-righteous character from the git-go. 

With striking teamsters on one side and boozehound Indians on the other--not to mention Cora and the ladies' anti-fun brigade--Brian Keith stomps and screams his way through the role of whiskey tycoon Wallingham, abetted by none other than an almost unrecognizable Donald Pleasance as a skinny, bearded frontiersman named "Oracle" who supposedly foretells the future when primed by offerings of free whiskey. 

Other familiar faces include Denverites Dub Taylor and Whit Bissell, Noam Pitlick as an Army translator who only knows English, Hope Summers, Val Avery, and Bing Russell (Kurt's dad). Elmer Bernstein provides the bombastic score.

Once the various groups converge on the trail to Denver, director Sturges stages a succession of overblown action sequences--one of them during a full-scale dust storm in which none of the various combatants can see each other--and packs them with shooting, limb-flailing stunts, racing wagons, thundering hooves, and other doggedly unfunny action as characters commit acts of artless slapstick against each other with a rubber-faced fury. 

All of which adds up to one long, joyless, tediously unentertaining western romp that wants to be funny so bad you can almost see it sweating from the effort.  Even with an overture, intermission, and exit music and a running time of almost three hours, not to mention some prodigious talent on both sides of the camera, THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL fails to muster as many laughs as a humble episode of "F Troop."

Rated: NR (not rated)
Subtitles: English (optional)
Video: 2.35:1 aspect ratio; color
Bonus features: trailer

THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

THE BIG TRAIL -- DVD Review by Porfle

 Originally posted on 10/26/11

 

It's not every day you get to watch a 1930 blockbuster movie in widescreen, with enough sheer spectacle to leave even modern viewers breathless.  The movie in question is Raoul Walsh's Western epic THE BIG TRAIL, a young John Wayne's first starring role and a genuine treasure for Western fans.

Shot on 70mm film using an early widescreen process known as "Fox Grandeur", THE BIG TRAIL was expensive to shoot and expensive to project--new equipment had to be installed in theaters just to show it--and with the onset of the Great Depression, it seemed the "Fox Grandeur" process had come along at just the wrong time.  Only a couple of theaters in New York and Los Angeles ever exhibited the widescreen version, while everyone else saw a much less impressive 35mm Academy aspect ratio version that was filmed simutaneously.  It would be another two decades before Cinerama offered moviegoers such wide vistas again.

The story takes place as a cattle drive blazes the trail for a wagon train full of settlers bound to reach the land north of Oregon.  For five months, director Raoul Walsh and his crew filmed 185 full-sized Conestoga wagons (or "prairie schooners") and thousands of extras on a 2,000-mile trudge across five states, facing conditions much like those experienced by the actual pioneers.  The settings, including a bustling river town, a massive riverboat, and various outposts along the trail, are meticulously detailed and wonderfully authentic, as are the costumes, props, and all other aspects of the production. 



The 23-year-old John Wayne plays buckskin-clad Breck Coleman, a tall, good-natured frontiersman who hires on as the group's scout for two reasons.  One, he's infatuated with a lovely young pioneer woman named Ruth (Marguerite Churchill), who can't stand him, and two, he's sworn revenge against the burly bullwhacker Frack (a Bluto-like Tyrone Power, Sr.) and his weaselly henchman Lopez (Charles Stevens) for murdering his best friend in order to steal his valuable stock of wolf pelts.  To complicate things, these skunks are in cahoots with a lowdown riverboat gambler named Thorpe (Ian Keith), who is also smitten with Ruth and is looking for an opportunity to shoot Breck in the back somewhere along the trail.

The actors, from the stars down to the extras, all look and act as though they belong in that era, despite the sometimes stilted acting styles (a leftover from the silent era, along with the expository intertitles).  And when the settlers encounter various tribes of Indians along the way, both friendly and not-so-friendly, they definitely aren't refugees from central casting--they're the real thing.  Much of this film is like a window into the past because the Wild West as we know it still existed at the time this was made, and Walsh's cameras were there to record it in its gloriously uncivilized state.



Breathtaking scenery and amazingly rich tableaux fill the screen throughout the film, with wagons, horses, and cattle often stretching as far as the eye can see.  One sequence shows the wagon train during a harrowing river crossing, while another details the grueling task of lowering the wagons, livestock, and people down the face of a sheer cliff by ropes.  We also get the obligatory "circling the wagons" scene (never as well-done as it is here) as the hostile Cheyenne attack and the settlers fight desperately to repel them. 

The excitement comes from knowing that these events are actually taking place and not being simulated by special effects or augmented by CGI.  From the rolling hills and mountains of the midwest, through miles of burning desert, and finally to the lush, majestic redwood forests (with a brief stop-off at the Grand Canyon along the way), the genuine locations used for THE BIG TRAIL are a non-stop feast for the eyes.

As Bill Cooke recently stated on the Classic Horror Film Board, "John Wayne may be a little rough in his first acting role, but was never more charming."  The financial failure of THE BIG TRAIL would relegate Wayne to a long string of B-movies until his breakthrough role as "The Ringo Kid" in John Ford's 1939 classic STAGECOACH, but his Breck Coleman character is just as likable and appealing as any he ever played.  He's earnestly convincing whether palavering with his friends the Indians, bashfully courting the gal of his fancy, or stalking his best friend's killers with deadly determination.



Marguerite Churchill, whom I always liked as Otto Kruger's sassy secretary in DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1936), is winsome as the girl Breck must try his darndest to win over.  As the loathesome Frack, Tyrone Power, Sr. is almost cartoonishly villainous, but he's a formidable bad guy nonetheless.  Tully Marshall is outstanding as Breck's pal, the aging frontiersman Zeke, while vaudeville comedian El Brendel provides love-it-or-hate-it comedy relief as a Swedish doofus named Gus who is constantly being harangued along the way by his tyrannical mother-in-law.

20th Century Fox's 2-disc DVD of this restored version of THE BIG TRAIL is a real treat for fans of John Wayne and of Westerns in general.  Despite some rough patches here and there, the film looks great and is always visually impressive.  Four informative featurettes and some photo galleries make for interesting supplemental viewing, although the same can't be said, unfortunately, for Richard Schickel's boring commentary track.  The second disc contains the standard fullscreen version, which is interesting for comparative purposes although you probably won't care to sit through the whole thing after watching the widescreen version.

For me, the combination of a great Western adventure with the novelty value of seeing a beautiful widescreen film shot in the early days of talking pictures is a thrill that's hard to beat.  Add to this the opportunity to watch John Wayne shine in his starring debut and director Raoul Walsh at the height of his creative skills, and you've got THE BIG TRAIL--surely one of the most spectacular and irresistibly entertaining Westerns ever made.  To borrow another quote from Bill Cooke:  "By the time this one is over, you actually feel as if you've taken a wagon train out West."

THE BIG TRAIL -- DVD Review by Porfle

Failed Stunt Used In John Wayne Western "The Trail Beyond" (1934) (video)

Lone Star studios hated to waste footage...

...so failed stunts were worked into the action whenever possible.

Here's an exciting one from John Wayne's 1934 western THE TRAIL BEYOND, performed by either Yakima Canutt or Eddie Parker. (Looks like Eddie.)

 

Video by Porfle Popnecker. I neither own nor claim any rights to this material. Just having some fun with it. Thanks for watching!

Failed Stunt Used In John Wayne Western "The Trail Beyond" (1934) (video)

Wyatt Earp and "The Walk" To The OK Corral ("Tombstone", etc.) (video)

Just about any story of Wyatt Earp and the gunfight at the OK Corral must feature "The Walk."

"My Darling Clementine" (1946)
"Stories of the Century: Doc Holliday" (TV, 1954)
"Gunfight at the OK Corral" (1957)
"Hour of the Gun" (1967)
"Star Trek: Spectre of the Gun" (TV, 1968)
"Wyatt Earp" (1994)
"Tombstone" (1993)

I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

Wyatt Earp and "The Walk" To The OK Corral ("Tombstone", etc.) (video)

The True Measure Of A Man: William S. Hart, "Wagon Tracks" (1919) (video)

Western legend William S. Hart plays a heroic yet humble wagon train leader.

The people and animals are consumed with thirst, the nearest water miles away.

Yet he shares what precious water he is given...

...a noble sacrifice for which he asks no reward.


I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

The True Measure Of A Man: William S. Hart, "Wagon Tracks" (1919) (video)

How "Tombstone" Should Have Ended (video)

 

"Tombstone" is pretty much the perfect Western...right?

Well, maybe and maybe not. Because after much extensive research and development... 

...we have come up with a way to actually improve the ending of this classic. 

Video by Porfle Popnecker. I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it. Thanks for watching!

How "Tombstone" Should Have Ended (video)

THE GREAT SILENCE -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

 Originally posted on 5/12/18

 

In 1968, the same year Italian director Sergio Leone unleashed his western masterpiece ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, his compatriot Sergio Corbucci (DJANGO, NAVAJO JOE) gave us this very different take on the usual "spaghetti western"--THE GREAT SILENCE, aka "Il grande silenzio" (Film Movement Classics).

It's a fascinating change of pace from the usual lurid, bombastic entries in the genre with sweaty men fighting and dying amidst much sound and fury in the blazing heat of the desert.  Corbucci's film takes place in a snowbound setting with dark figures riding their horses over plains of stark white or walking down the streets of a town glazed with frost.

Like the setting, everything's muted in this film, including its hero, The Great Silence (French actor Jean-Louis Trintignant, ...AND GOD CREATED WOMAN, Z, IS PARIS BURNING?).  His backstory, seen in familiar flashback form, tells of him having his throat cut as a child by the same bounty hunters who just killed his parents as his father was surrendering to them. 

Silence, with his rapid-fire automatic pistol (the story takes place near the turn of the 20th century), is a hero who's also atypical in that, in addition to having deep feelings, he isn't the stoic, emotionally distant figure we see in Clint Eastwood's self-centered mercenary. In fact, he's a bit of a white knight, avenging women whose men have been murdered by bounty hunters. (Although he's not above charging a fee for his services.)

This time, in another departure from Leone, all of the bounty hunters in the story--namely, sadistic thrill-killer Loco (Klaus Kinski, FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE) and his motley cohorts--are the bad guys, preying upon a haggard group of outlaws hiding out in the mountains until word of their amnesty comes through from the government. 

Some decide to give themselves up and are picked off, while the rest will eventually be lured to town only to fall into the bounty hunters' ambush.  It's here, with Silence going up against Loco and his crew as they hold their captives hostage in the saloon, that the film's shocking finale will take place.

But before that, Corbucci lingers upon Silence's increasingly fond relationship with the beautiful widow Pauline (Vonetta McGee) after she pleads with him to avenge her husband's murder by Loco.  Their scenes are thoughtful, contemplative--a respite from the bursts of bloody violence that erupt from time to time.

We also follow the tale of seriocomic sheriff Gideon Burnett, played by Frank Wolff (the ill-fated "Brett McBain" in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST) who is tasked by the governor to solve the bounty hunter problem but finds it quite a handful.  How Loco manages to outwit him as he's being transported in chains to the nearest prison is almost enough for him to earn a smidgeon of our admiration.

More than anyone else, this is Klaus Kinski's film.  In the cheerfully vile Loco he gives us a delightfully low-key villain, and deftly underplays the role.  Loco never heard of "dead or alive"--his pleasure is in luring errant felons into surrendering and then gunning them down with great satisfaction. 

This tendency will reach its peak in the film's final sequence, which suddenly turns into a bloodbath as the story ends on an incredibly nihilistic note.  I was floored by it, and left unsure how I felt about the movie as a whole as the final music of Ennio Morricone's haunting score began to swell.  And I don't know if that's a bad thing or a good thing.

Corbucci filmed two alternate endings (included in the Blu-ray extras), one of which is exactly how I wanted the film to end.  But regardless of all that, THE GREAT SILENCE is a haunting, beautifully-rendered, and very offbeat western that should stay with you for some time after experiencing it. 


Buy it at Film Movement Classics

Tech Specs:
New 2K digital restoration
1.85:1 widescreen
Italian and English soundtracks, English subtitles
Stereo

Extras:
"Cox on Corbucci"--Alex Cox pays tribute to the maestro
"Western, Italian Style"--1968 documentary on the Italian film industry, western style
Two alternate endings
Illustrated booklet with the essay, "Ending the Silence" by Simon Abrams
Original and new trailers

THE GREAT SILENCE -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

Pickup Truck Blooper in John Wayne Western "THE UNDEFEATED" (1969)

Originally posted on 11/30/17

Pickup trucks were a pretty rare sight back in the 1860s.

But we get a quick glimpse of one off in the distance at the end of the John Wayne western "The Undefeated" (1969). 

Either it's a blooper, or some very ingenious inventor was way ahead of his time!

Video by Porfle Popnecker. I neither own nor claim any rights to this material. Just having some fun with it. Thanks for watching!

Pickup Truck Blooper in John Wayne Western "THE UNDEFEATED" (1969)

Estelita, Charlita, and John Wayne* (video)

*(And Howard Hawks and William Beaudine)

Cuban actress Estelita Rodriguez appeared with John Wayne in Howard Hawks' "Rio Bravo" (1958).

In 1966, Estelita co-starred in "Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter"...which was directed by William Beaudine.

Beaudine had earlier directed Bela Lugosi, along with Sammy Petrillo and Duke Mitchell in "Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla" (1952), featuring actress Charlita.

Beaudine also directed "Billy the Kid Meets Dracula" in 1966--again with Charlita. 

And in 1967, Charlita appeared with John Wayne in Howard Hawks' "Rio Bravo" remake, "El Dorado." 


I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

Estelita, Charlita, and John Wayne* (video)

Shatner Vs. Shatner: Duel To The Death ("White Comanche", 1968) (video)

For half-breed twins Johnny Moon and Notah (William Shatner)...

...mortal enemies in a clash of good against evil...

...the time has come for a duel to the death.



Which Shatner will win?


I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it.  Thanks for watching!

Shatner Vs. Shatner: Duel To The Death ("White Comanche", 1968) (video)

ZULU DAWN -- Blu-Ray/DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 3/12/13

 

The Battle of Isandlwana is known as history's worst defeat of a "modern" army by native forces, and you'll see why when you watch Severin Films' Blu-Ray/DVD release of the rip-roaring ZULU DAWN (1979), a disheartening portrait of a pointless and utterly wasteful military massacre.

It's 1879, and the supremely arrogant Lord Chelmsford (Peter O'Toole), who commands the British Army in South Africa, is eager to declare war on the Zulu Empire for fun and profit.  He sends an unreasonable ultimatum to the Zulu king, Cetshwayo, which is rightly refused, giving Lord Chelmsford an excuse to go on the offensive.

"My only fear is that the Zulus will avoid an engagement," Chelmsford haughtily remarks, and a successful initial skirmish with a small band of Zulus reinforces his false confidence.  But unknown to him, King Cetshwayo has 30,000 fierce warriors ready to bring the fight to the advancing enemy, and when they clash with the unsuspecting British forces it quickly escalates into a terrifying one-sided slaughter.

Before this, however, ZULU DAWN takes its sweet time building up to the action as we watch the overconfident British forces at work and play in the town of Natal.  We see them as sophisticated gentleman soldiers dashing around self-importantly on horseback or engaging in spirited training exercises and bonding rituals as though living some curdled version of the "Boys' Adventure" tales.  Only Col. Anthony Durnford (Burt Lancaster) seems to have any understanding of the Zulus and how dangerous it is to underestimate them, but Chelmsford dismisses his warnings.

An elegant garden party gives officers and their families a taste of proper English life as realistic characters rub shoulders with familiar caricatures such as the achingly genteel Fanny Colenso (Anna Caulder-Marshall, WUTHERING HEIGHTS).  The party ends with the declaration of war and before long, horsemen and infantry are marching toward Zululand as their keen anticipation of battle grows.  "What a wonderful adventure we're undertaking!" one of them beams while riding briskly along on horseback.    

Meanwhile, we're given a preview of what they're up against when we see King Cetshwayo impassively viewing a fight to the death and reacting to Lord Chelmsford's ultimatum with a calm dismissal.  He's cruel and unyielding, ordering executions without trials and ruling with an iron fist, but we can't help but see his side of the issue and sympathize, as the film clearly aims to throw our loyalties for either side into conflict.  On one hand, the Zulus are protecting their homeland from outsiders and are portrayed as brave, loyal comrades.  On the other, honorable soldiers are being sent unprepared into a hopeless battle at the behest of unworthy superiors. 

When the two forces finally meet, it's like Custer's Last Stand multiplied by ten.  Current filmmakers like Peter Jackson can give us millions of CGI-generated soldiers in conflict, but there's still nothing quite as impressive as seeing thousands of actual people going at it on an expansive cinematic battlefield that's roiling with furious action. 

The clash of fighting styles is woefully evident as the smartly-dressed British line up in neat rows and fire in an orderly fashion while the Zulus stampede toward them by the thousands like a human avalanche.  Almost the entire second half of ZULU DAWN consists of such an overwhelming defeat of the British that there's barely even any suspense save the question of how long the massacre will last. 

Scattered vignettes depict small instances of valor that are somewhat redeeming, such as the attempt of Lt. William Vereker (Simon Ward) to rescue the battalion's colors and carry them to safety, and the heroism of C.S.M. Williams (Bob Hoskins) as he fights to the death in hand-to-hand combat alongside a callow young soldier with whom he has formed a fatherly bond.  We get to know some of the Zulus as well, as they're captured by the British and tortured before giving false information and, eventually, managing to escape as their erstwhile captors are then led into an ambush.

Peter O'Toole and Burt Lancaster are superb as they lead a remarkable cast including Denholm Elliott (RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK), Simon Ward, Bob Hoskins, John Mills, Freddie Jones, Ronald Lacey, Nigel Davenport, Phil Daniels, Michael Jayston, and Anna Calder-Marshall.  Composer Elmer Bernstein (THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, THE GREAT ESCAPE) contributes a score that's passable but not up to his usual standards.

Director Douglas Hickox (THEATER OF BLOOD, THE GIANT BEHEMOTH) handles first unit photography in a consistently interesting and imaginative way, with the initial scenes evincing a drollness and dry wit that evolves into an epic grandeur that's often bracing.  The main drawback is that much of the film's first half is almost too dry and conservatively paced, although this is more than made up for by the continuous action that follows the halfway mark.
 
The Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack from Severin Films is in widescreen with Dolby Digital 2.0 sound and full HD resolution.  No subtitles.  Extras consist of "The History of the Zulu Wars" and "A Visit to the Battlefield" with author Ian Knight ("Zulu Rising"), "Recreating the War" with historical advisor Midge Carter, a theatrical trailer, and outtakes. 

Fans of British colonialism will probably want to skip ZULU DAWN lest they find it an ultimately dispiriting experience.  Anyone who gets off on seeing a "primitive" indigenous population repelling a superior invading force, on the other hand, should have a ball.  But those interested in military history and warfare, and war-movie fans in general, will be best served by this vivid and sweeping depiction of one of the most unsual battles ever fought.

ZULU DAWN -- Blu-Ray/DVD Review by Porfle

THE SHAKIEST GUN IN THE WEST -- Movie Review by Porfle

(This is part three of my look at the "Don Knotts Reluctant Hero Pack", a two-sided DVD containing four of Don's best-known movies: THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN, THE RELUCTANT ASTRONAUT, THE SHAKIEST GUN IN THE WEST, and THE LOVE GOD?)

The years 1966-68 saw the appearance of three Don Knotts comedies in quick succession--THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN, THE RELUCTANT ASTRONAUT, and 1968's THE SHAKIEST GUN IN THE WEST--each of which dealt with Don's nervous-guy character by placing him in hazardous situations that forced him to somehow overcome his natural cowardice. In the latter entry, he was swept all the way back to the rip-roarin' Old West of 1870, complete with gunslingers, outlaws, and marauding Indians. Which, I would think, would be a pretty nerve-wracking place for a coward to be.

Don plays Jesse W. Haywood (a nod to Don's actual name, Jesse Donald Knotts), a dentist whose dream is to spread dental health throughout the West. After a rib-tickling main titles song by The Wilburn Brothers, the film gets off to a rousing start as we see Jesse trying to examine a fiercely-unwilling patient, Miss Stevenson, during his final "pass-or-fail" dentistry exam, which turns into a UFC-style fist-flying brawl. "How's it going, Haywood?" asks rival dental student Phelps ("Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman"'s Greg Mullavey, in one of this film's few running gags), to which Jesse responds "Fine...just fine" even as his fingers are being chomped. Once he gets his diploma, he bids a tearful farewell to his mother (Ruth McDevitt), then hops a train and it's westward ho.

Meanwhile, the notorious bandit Penelope "Bad Penny" Cushings (Barbara Rhoades) has just been captured after a long career of cattle rustling, stagecoach robbing, etc. But the sheriff (Ed Peck) offers her a deal--she must go undercover and travel West on a wagon train suspected of carrying smugglers who are supplying rifles to the Indians, and if she discovers their identity and nabs them, she'll get a pardon. But there's a catch--no unaccompanied women are allowed on the wagon train, and the agent who was to pose as her husband (John Wayne stock player Ed Faulkner) just got killed. So she needs to find a husband fast. Guess who she picks? Right--the duded-up, derby-wearing "tender ninny" (as she sneeringly refers to him during their first encounter), Jesse.

Her seduction of Haywood, when she comes to him for a feigned dental complaint and lets her cleavage do the talking, is still high on my short list of things that jump-started my puberty. Whether dressed in denim and rawhide and packing six-guns, or tarted up like a dancehall girl, Barbara Rhoades made my hormones yell "Yee-haaa!" But enough of my personal problems...

On the way West, the wagon train is attacked by Indians. Penny secretly disposes of them all, but Doc Haywood mistakenly thinks he's the big Indian fighter. So as soon as they get into town, he buys the standard black gunfighter outfit and goes swaggering around, revelling in his new status as a dead-shot Indian fighter. But the rifle smugglers (Don "Red" Barry and "The Addams Family"'s Uncle Fester, Jackie Coogan) hire a feared gunfighter named Arnold the Kid to challenge Doc Haywood to a shootout. Can you guess what happens?

Finally the truth comes out and Jesse realizes he's been duped, which leads to a great "Don gets drunk" scene in the local saloon. But just as things look their worst, Penny is kidnapped by the rifle smugglers and taken to a nearby Indian camp, and Jesse realizes he's her only hope. So he sobers up, straps on his six-gun, and goes to her rescue, resolving to save her from the bad guys even if it means dressing up as an Indian maiden and getting hit on by some horny Indian dudes. And when she finds out how brave he really is, Penny at last finds herself smitten by the "tender ninny", giving hope to all of us nerds who always dreamed of having the hottest babes in school fall for us somehow.

Once again, the cast is populated with familiar faces. Jim Begg of THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN reappears as a deputy who lives for excitement ("I just love this kinda stuff!" he exclaims in another running gag). The great Carl Ballantine ("McHale's Navy") and a surprisingly-young Pat Morita play storekeepers who cheat Jesse out of his every last cent as he attempts to equip himself for the journey West. Frank McGrath of THE RELUCTANT ASTRONAUT reappears as one of the people on the wagon train. MASH's William Christopher shows up as a hotel clerk, Eddie Quillan (the elevator operator from THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN) is a train porter, and Burt Mustin makes his third straight appearance in a Don Knotts comedy. Legendary character actor Dub Taylor even shows up as Penny's outlaw accomplace early on, before he decides to go to Boston to open up a little dress shop.

As in Don's previous two flicks, James Fritzell and Everett Greenbaum ("The Andy Griffith Show", THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN, THE RELUCTANT ASTRONAUT) are involved in the screenplay, along with Edmund L. Hartmann and the redoubtable Frank Tashlin, in this update of Bob Hope's classic comedy THE PALEFACE. Vic Mizzy is on hand once again to provide an appropriately lighthearted musical score. THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN'S Alan Rafkin ably directs. And aside from Fritzell and Greenbaum, the "Andy Griffith Show" connection here includes an appearance by Hope "Clara Edwards" Summers.

A worthy addition to the Don Knotts oeuvre, THE SHAKIEST GUN IN THE WEST is an endlessly fun romp that should please his fans. It's Don Knotts at his best, and that's pretty much as good as it gets.

THE SHAKIEST GUN IN THE WEST -- Movie Review by Porfle

DAMON AND PYTHIAS -- DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 8/14/12

 

I was expecting the usual comic-book-level sword 'n' sandal yarn with DAMON AND PYTHIAS (1962), but this Italian/USA co-production--released by MGM--aims to be a sober, respectable historical tale and in its own relatively modest way manages to hit that mark pretty well.

When the ruler of Athens dies, Pythias (Don Burnett) is sent to Syracuse to fetch his replacement, a missionary named Arcanos (Andrea Bosic) who is there preaching brotherhood and equality while being hunted by the guards of tyrannical emperor Dionysius (Arnoldo Foà).  Pythias falls victim to and then befriends a charismatic street thief, Damon (Guy Williams), who finds inspiration in Pythias' bravery and beliefs. 

When Pythias is captured and condemned to death by Dionysius, Damon offers himself as a substitute so that Pythias may return to Athens to visit his ailing wife Nerissa, with the promise that he will return in two months' time.  Dionysius agrees, confident that Pythias will never return and thus disprove the Greek's liberal philosophies in the eyes of the people when Damon is publicly executed. 

Filmed partly at Cinecitta studios in Rome, DAMON AND PYTHIAS is colorful and eye-pleasing, with attractive sets and some scenic locations along with several impressive and authentic-looking subterranean interiors.  While the sword 'n sandal flicks that this closely resembles seem inherently juvenile, this production succeeds in presenting its story with maturity and restraint but can't avoid also being rather dry and slow-moving.  Only when the substitution deal is made does the plot take a suspenseful turn that puts some spark into it. 

With so much dialogue, it's good that the writing is fairly sharp and most of the cast are able to carry it all off well.  Arnoldo Foà's subtlety and lack of the usual villainous traits make his Dionysius interesting to watch--he even bursts out with delighted laughter at an insult the captive Damon levels at cruel head guard Cariso (Carlo Giustini), and shows fatherly love for his son even while earnestly teaching him the most vile philosophies.

It's fun to see Guy Williams of TV's "Zorro" and "Lost in Space" as one of those cheerful rogues who constantly taunt and elude authority figures while running around doing roguish things.  His evolution into a more thoughtful and responsible person under Pythias' influence is touching.  As Damon's steady gal Adriana, the beautiful Liana Orfei proves as adept at playing a fiesty peasant woman as she is at being the Queen herself, as in HERCULES, SAMSON, AND ULYSSES a year later. 

Don Burnett makes a rather bland Pythias, especially next to Ilaria Occhini as his emotional wife Nerissa. Her deliciously overwrought performance is a delight, with Occhini becoming wonderfully unhinged during her final scene with Burnett, perhaps the film's dramatic highpoint.  Fans of THE GREAT ESCAPE will recognize Lawrence Montaigne as Damon's flute-playing accomplice in thievery.

German director Curtis Bernhardt, whose other credits include MISS SADIE THOMPSON, THE MERRY WIDOW, and KISSES FOR MY PRESIDENT, gives the entire production a stately veneer but manages a few effective action sequences.  In the film's final moments, Pythias attempts to return to Syracuse only to be headed off by Dionysius' guards, later engaging in a hand-to-hand clash with Cariso himself. 

Best of all is the sequence midway through the film in which Damon, Pythias, and Arcanos flee from a band of guards via horseback and horse-drawn cart, staged thrillingly by Bernhardt with some amazing stuntwork (including, alas, one of those cringeworthy horse-tripping stunts).

The "manufactured on demand" DVD from the Warner Archive Collection is in 16x9 widescreen with Dolby 2.0 sound.  No subtitles or extras.  The print used looks pretty good to me, although as I've said before I'm not nearly as picky about such things as the usual videophile. 

What might've been a much more emotional ending is simply cut short abruptly--there's no follow-through to send DAMON AND PYTHIAS home with a genuine emotional catharsis.  Then again, the film doesn't gush all over us to get its message across, but states it simply and succinctly before bowing out.  I may not have been deeply moved, but I felt pretty good overall about having watched this surprisingly thoughtful and mature film about the true meaning of friendship and brotherly love.

DAMON AND PYTHIAS -- DVD Review by Porfle

BEN-HUR -- Blu-ray/DVD Review by Porfle

 

Originally posted on 12/13/16

 

First things first--there's this Best Picture-winning classic from 1959 called BEN-HUR, and any remake of it is likely to suffer in comparison.  As will anyone else who plays the title role besides the great Charlton Heston, or anyone else who plays Judah Ben-Hur's adoptive brother Messala besides Stephen Boyd, or any other spectacular climactic chariot race that isn't the original spectacular climactic chariot race.

If, however, you can manage to get past all that (which I myself eventually managed to do to one degree or another), while remembering that the 1959 version is itself a remake of the equally spectacular silent version with Ramon Navarro and Francis X. Bushman, then the 2016 remake of BEN-HUR (Paramount Home Media Distribution) can be a rewarding as well as delightfully entertaining experience.

Based on General Lew Wallace's wildly-successful 1880 novel "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ", the story takes place in A.D.33 Jerusalem and is all about the loving yet highly competitive relationship between Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston, SHROOMS), a Jew, and his adoptive brother Messala (Toby Kebbell, WILDERNESS), a Roman, during a time when the Roman occupation is becoming ever more oppressive.

Complications ensue when Judah and his family are blamed for an attempt on the life of Pontius Pilate (Pilou Asbæk, LUCY), and Messala, now an officer in the Roman army, is forced to take sides against them.  With the brothers now mortal enemies, Judah's family disappears into captivity while he himself begins the drudgery-filled dead-end life of a galley slave. 

But a twist of fate allows Judah to escape during a sea battle against the Greeks, whereupon he is taken in by African entrepreneur Ilderim (Morgan Freeman, THE DARK KNIGHT, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION) and allowed to enter the man's chariot in a thrilling race which will pit him against his brother Messala, the Roman champion. 

If that chariot race is the main thing you're curious about, you're not the only one.  I was chomping at the bit throughout the entire film leading up to it, and when it finally got under way, it proved to be exceptionally well-done and exciting.

 

The oval track itself was built on the Cinecittà Studios lot in Rome (much of the rest of the film was done at Cinecittà as well) and filled in with CGI to create a suitably majestic backdrop for this breathtaking sequence.  Jerusalem itself is an actual city in Italy that serves as a stunning representation of the ancient setting.

As always, the use of digital effects detracts from the kind of real-world splendor and excitement we got in the pre-CGI days, but here, the effects are integrated well enough into the live footage to augment it very well. 

As for the stunts, the sequence is loaded with visceral thrills that make it, if not superior to previous versions, at least worthy to stand alongside them. Younger viewers unfamiliar with the story will no doubt see here the inspiration for the podrace sequence in THE PHANTOM MENACE.

 

The film boasts other notable action scenes as well.  Earlier in the story, we see glimpses of furious battles during which Messala rises within the ranks of the Roman military.  Later comes the spectacular sea battle, most of which we see from Judah's limited point of view as the galley slaves, toiling at the oars, experience a grueling ordeal of terror and death while unseen carnage rages around them.  Again, the CGI in this sequence is superb. 

There's a modicum of romance, mainly between Judah and his great love Esther (Nazanin Boniadi, IRON MAN), the daughter of a slave.  Most of the film's true sentiment, however, is focused upon the relationship between the two brothers, Judah's attempts to locate his missing mother and sister, and, most importantly, his spiritual awakening. 

Here, his life intersects poignantly at key points with that of a humble, peace-loving carpenter named Jesus Christ, whose eventual crucifixion as an enemy of Rome gives the film one of its most heartrending sequences.

As Judah, Huston is no Heston, but for this more modest version of BEN-HUR--relatively speaking--it makes sense to have more of a smaller-than-life hero.  Morgan Freeman plays his usual "sage old mentor" character while looking a bit like a cross between Whoopi Goldberg and the alien from PREDATOR.  The rest of the cast perform adequately. 

Direction by Timur Bekmambetov (ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER) is good although I would've preferred less "jittery-cam" and more traditional camerawork.  As mentioned before, the Italian locations are stunning, and well-served by their digital augmentations.  There are some amusing anachronisms in the dialogue, as when Judah cries out during some early horseplay, "ARE WE HAVING FUN NOW, BROTHER?" and later when a dazzled Messala exclaims "Wow!"

The Blu-ray/DVD combo pack from Paramount Home Media Distribution contains a Blu-ray disc with special features, a DVD disc with the film by itself, and access to a Digital HD version of the film.  The Blu-ray is presented in 1080p high definition with English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles.  The DVD in the combo pack is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles.

Extras consist of the featurettes "Ben-Hur: The Legacy", "The Epic Cast", "A Tale for Our Times", and "The Chariot Race", along with deleted & extended scenes and related music videos.

While seldom on the same epic scale as its predecessors, this latest retelling of BEN-HUR does benefit from an earnest sincerity in its dramatic scenes, even when they don't quite move us to the degree intended.  And--most importantly, of course--the action scenes deliver exactly what we're looking for when we watch a movie like this, and plenty of it.

BEN-HUR -- Blu-ray/DVD Review by Porfle

Modern Vehicle Blooper In John Ford's "Fort Apache" (John Wayne, 1948) (video)

Right around the one-hour mark in John Ford's western cavalry classic "Fort Apache" (1948)...

...the camera pans right along a line of mounted Indian warriors. 

When it stops, watch the lower right of the screen...

...to catch a modern vehicle driving by in full view.  Oops!

Originally posted on 6/1/19
I neither own nor claim any rights to this material.  Just having some fun with it. Thanks for watching!

Modern Vehicle Blooper In John Ford's "Fort Apache" (John Wayne, 1948) (video)