Chikara

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).

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)

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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

After the battle in American Civil War the dying Virgil Cane tells Confederate officer Wishbone Cutter about diamonds hidden in a cave along the Buffalo River.Coming back Cutter finds his wife and her new husband.After violent fight he sets out with his Irish-Cherokee companion Half-Moon O'Brian and geologist Amos Richmond to find the diamonds.Along the journey they meet a young woman Drusilla Wilcox in a nearly catatonic state and take her with them.As they head up into the mountain Half-Moon realizes that it is the Mountain of Demons,which is cursed by the spirit of Chikara who promised to kill all who ventured into its domain."The Spirit of Chikara" is an interesting mix of ugly western and eerie horror.The acting is believable and the climax is very surprising.The scene of two horses falling down from the slope is shocking and unsettling.8 out of 10.

Halcow international film (who was famous for making western in the 60's & 70's drive-in era) made this poorly put together film. Paramount Pictures picked it up in 1977 under the title SHADOW MOUNTAIN and released briefly before it disappeared and to re-appear in several diffrent video labels. Joe Don Baker stars as a Southern soldier who comes home to find his wife with a Northern Soldier after the Civil War ended. He, Ted Neeley (from Jesus Christ Superstar) and an indian goes and travels and finds a Sondra Locke who is hiding some secret. Pretty amateurish film with bad sound, bad lighting, and a cameo by Slim Pickens. A song from the rock group "The Band" is also heard in the soundtrack.