La sombra de Chikara

...that said, if you are fond of those kind of odd, strange little gems, The Shadow of Chikara may perfectly well be made/suitable for you!

In other words: Yes, be prepared, this is NOT your typical spooky horror tale!

Indeed, the director of this intense and weird "Western that turns out to be closer to other genres like a chiller, horror and even fantasy" Earl. E. Smith (who wrote The Legend of Boogey Creek too) did a great job (even, admittedly, with its own flaws): This film stats on common, well-known ground (what we call in France La Guerre de Secession/the Secession War -The American Civil War) and explores after an action-packed overture other ways: When our three leading protagonists (a Confederate, his friend and allied Indian, a geologist) try to find some hidden stones (they may be diamonds, if refereed to their owner who died on the battlefield) in a desolate mountain, things get strange and spooky: as a matter of fact, the Indian feels a "presence" following them. Things get even more complicate when these three stressed men discover the place were a real slaughter took place; they also quickly find out that only a girl (played by Clint Eastwood's former wife Sondra Locke) survived in this tragedy. Can they reasonably left her behind? Yeah, the tension grows and grows!

This is Mister Smith first and only movie, and he manages for his once and never again directorial achievement to create a realistic, menacing and scary atmosphere as they loved it in the 70. No effects of any kind, no jump scare etc... Wow!

So yep, of course, this isn't an action packed Super Hero Movie, nor even a "13 Ghosts CGI overkill" nor a gory splatter-film. It may even be somehow predictable (not too easy to find out what's going on, isn't it?). But this is a great, tense and very well acted effort. At the end, when I sit back and thought about the whole story, it made definitely even more sense and so I must admit that I found it even more profoundly disturbing. A haunting performance, indeed.

Jo Don Baker is perfect as always and Ted Neeley and Joy N. Houck Jr. Gave fine performances too. What else can a film freak ask for?

So in my humble opinion, this is all in all a real treat and really need to be revaluated.

N.b.: If you manage to find this gem somewhere, be careful: it has been reedited from 114 min to a 90 min cut with bleeps... Whatsoever, this movie is so hard to find nowadays, don't hesitate. Even then, with a poor SD quality, you won't regret it if you are fond of this kind of movie, believe me!

After one of the last battles of the Civil War, a captain and his half-breed scout (Baker and Joy N. Houck Jr.) team-up with a college geologist (Ted Neeley) to find a deposit of diamonds in a cave in the Ozarks. On the way, they are joined by a woman (Locke), but are hindered by shadowy pursuers.

"The Shadow of Chikara" (1977), also known as "The Curse of Demon Mountain" (amongst other titles), is worth seeing because of the unique locale for a Western, as well as the quality cast. Speaking of which, Locke and John Davis Chandler (in a small part) previously appeared together in "The Outlaw Josey Wales" from the year before. Sondra's new beau from that flick, Clint Eastwood, visited the set a few weeks into the shoot for a respite, checking out the area and doing some fishing.

I've heard this referred to as a cheap production, but it's not. For instance, the opening Civil War battle scenes are convincing, not to mention the characters are fleshed out and well acted. The second half does get tedious though, yet there's a nice surprise at the end.

The blurry version currently available on streaming runs 1 hour, 31 minutes, but the original cut runs 23 minutes longer, which explains the abrupt (amateurish) editing in the short version. It was shot in north-central Arkansas at Bull Shoals State Park; and Yellville, which is a dozen miles to the southwest, as well as Buffalo National River, which is 15 miles further south.

GRADE: B- (if I saw a quality print of the original version, I might rate this higher)

Offbeat western in which an ex-confederate captain (Baker), his Indian friend(Houck) and a professor (Neeley) joined forces to find a treasure of diamonds buried in a haunting mountain. Low budget production has some charming moments but the outcome is just a forgetable tale of horror blended with western style. Miss Locke, Eastwood's ex-wife, is the girl on the spot. I give this a 05 (five).

Watch Predator Watch this

Familiar isn't it, Jungle coming to life, invisible enemies, a lone girl who has experienced the terrible thing that comes from the trees. The brave Indian tracker, its all there. Predator by any other name, and worth watching. Forget the other reviews, this was blockbuster (popular soundtrack The Band, horror, fear , scares, b grade cast?)

Great cast they are familiar.

Just watch it, its good.

The director should have made more films, he had a talent and I think it was wasted, I loved it Earl, you did well

I love this forgotten gem of a film - so atmospheric and haunting. Sure, it's maybe not even a 'good' film in most people's definition of the term - it's low budget and a little rough around the edges, but it has a strange, uncanny quality that's hard to put your finger on, and that few films have. Magic caught in the film grain. If you're on the right wavelength, and have some imagination, there's really nothing else around like it.

I'd agree with the other reviewer who calls it 'The Greatest Horror Western Ever Made' (and I'd put the fantastic 'Bone Tomahawk' in second place).

Tragically, the only version that is available is of such incredibly bad quality - missing 20 minutes, censored swearing, 4:3 aspect instead of the 2.35:1 cinemascope it was filmed in, and truly HORRIBLE image quality. In fact, I'd say it's fair to call this a 'lost' film.

Where, oh where, is the uncut widescreen blu ray?