The Rare Breed

Entertaining and pleasant western comedy with acceptable interpretation, though no much action . It stars the great James Stewart as an ageing cowboy hand who helps two English women , as he is still looking for a deep dream and blazing with determination . As a ranch hand agrees to escort a Hereford bull to Texas where the widow of an English breeder , the prissy Mauren O'Hara, and daughter , Juliet Mills , plan to crossbreed the big bull with longhorn cattle . Stewart acquires a a fanatical belief on the potential of the bull and he sets out in blizzard to prove it .

Amusing Western comedy including action , stampede , thrills , shootouts , fights , human as well as warm roles and a love story . The plot is plain and simple , as a widow insists that she and her daughter accompany Stewart on a dangerous trip which features every kind of Western calamity imaginable . James Stewart gives an attractive acting as an obstinate cowboy who stubbornly wishes to get the crossbread when all others believe the attempt to be failed and he sets out to prove them wrong . And charming performances from Mauren O'Hara , Juliet Mills, and a red bearded Brian Keith as an extravagant Scots-accented rancher who has a whisky bottle and a bagpipe on his hand instead of a gun , an acting that sticks in the mind long after . Support cast is frankly good such as David Brian , Don Galloway , Perry Lopez, Harry Carey Jr , Ben Johnson , Barbara Werle, and an ominus bit part, with special mention , for usual baddie Jack Elam .

Colorful and evocative cinematography by William Clothier , adding genuine wide open spaces atmosphere . Imaginative and enjoyable score by the maestro John Williams , who gives a nice musical realization , including catching leitmotif. This engaging and richly coloured motion picture was decent and professionally directed by Andrew V McLagen . He was an expert in all kinds of genres as Wartime such as Dirty dozen next mission, Sea wolves, On wings of eagles , Wild Geese, The Devil Brigade, Breakthrough and Western such as Chisum, Shenandoah, McLintock, The Blue and the Gray , The way west , Bandolero , Undefeated , Cahill United United States Marshal and this Rare Breed. Rating : 6 , acceptable and passable. Well worth watching . The motion picture will appral to James Stewart and Mauren O'Hara fans .

This western has much going for it: great stars (Jimmy Stewart, Maureen O'Hara, and Brian Keith), interesting plot twists (is Stewart's character a thief, after all), and some comedic moments (Brian Keith is a hoot as Scottish cattle baron). Take the movie as it is, an old western that is mediocre in script with star power holding it afloat, and you'll enjoy the movie. Start picking it apart for studio shots, etc and of course you'll not enjoy it. The storyline of how Herefords came to replace Texas Longhorns sounds plausible enough. It was cute how Juliet Mills (sister of Hayley) got that Hereford bull to follow her by whistling "God Save the Queen". Juliet added quite a bit to the movie, and she was a good balance to the humorous triangle of Keith, O'Hara, and Stewart. Some reviews are harsh, yet the questions remains--How could anyone not enjoy a movie with Jimmy Stewart in it?

Director Andrew V. McLaglen's "The Rare Breed" (1966) has a surprising amount of historical interest, both to students of the old west and to western genre film buffs. It is actually a fairly accurate (if fictionalized) account of the displacement of Longhorn cattle on the Texas range by intentional interbreeding with more conventional bulls (in this case a Hereford named Vindicator).

Just as interesting is the film's position as one of the early intentional parodies of the western genre. While less obvious than in "Cat Ballou" (1965), the self-reflexive elements and parody are there if you look close. The most obvious are Brian Keith's overplayed (almost expressionistic) Scotsman and McLaglen's juxtaposition of classic John Ford outdoor scenery with obvious sound stage shots-including matte paintings by Albert Whitlock. And McLaglen rounds out his cast with genre favorites Ben Johnson, Harry Carey Jr., and Jack Elam.

But "The Rare Breed's" real claim to fame is as the first "chick flick" western. It is likely to appeal more to women than men viewers as the story is told from the point of view of its heroine Hilary Price (Juliet Mills), who sets out with her parents to bring a small herd of cattle from Hertfordshire (England) to the American west. Unfortunately her father dies on the ocean voyage so Hilary and her mother Martha (Maureen O'Hara) are faced with the daunting task of completing what had been her father's dream.

Mills is wonderful in this role and it really suits her. She is a placid observer of the strange land in which she finds herself while her mother is almost savagely reactive. Yet Mills gets all the really good lines as Hilary injects a lot of wit and wry humor into the story. McLaglen gives real dimension to only two of the characters, Hilary and "Bulldog" Sam Burnett (Jimmy Stewart). Burnett is a cowhand who starts out to swindle the two women but ends up being completed by them; eventually becoming a father/husband replacement to Hilary and Martha respectively, as well as a complete believer in their mission to change the nature of the American cattle industry.

But Burnett has to come a long way to make this transition as he begins by calling the symbolically named Vindicator a muley bull (because it has no horns). His reaction does not get him off to a good start with the protective Hilary, who has raised Vindicator from a calf. The bull follows her around like a dog and is easily quieted with a verse from "God Save the Queen".

Entertaining but not riveting, this unique example of the genre is a nice change of pace. Unfortunately the scenes between Keith and O'Hara will make you think more of Disney's original "The Parent Trap" than the film you thought you were watching.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

RELEASED IN 1966 and directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, "The Rare Breed" chronicles events in St. Louis and Texas in 1884-85 when an English woman (Maureen O'Hara) and her daughter (Juliet Mills) conscript a lanky cattleman (James Stewart) to try and get their hornless British bull to mate with the longhorns of Texas, but they have to deal with venal thugs (Jack Elam), a curmudgeon ranch mogul (Brian Keith) and the harshness of nature itself.

The film meshes drama with lighthearted amusement in the manner of a screwball Disney family comedy, "fun" brawls reminiscent of John Wayne Westerns of that era, dead-serious sequences and romance. I didn't feel this inconsistent tone marred the movie; after all, doesn't real life include all of these things? The exception would be the "fun" brawling scenes which, while lively, are not true to life. In real fights people get broken noses, black eyes, bruises and broken bones. Anyway, the cast is great, but I didn't find the drama that engaging, especially the entire last act. Furthermore, the indoor sets substituting for outdoors are obvious and smack of old-fashioned movies & TV Western fare of the time period.

About a third of the way in there's an exceptional stampede sequence that includes a heart-stopping on-set accident involving the wagon carrying Martha (O'Hara) and Hilary (Mills) ahead of the stampede. The stunt women were supposed to be thrown clear, but the wagon rolled over them. Thankfully, the dipping ground underneath the wagon allowed the stuntwomen, Stephanie Epper and Patty Elder, enough room to survive without being crushed, although they did experience minor wounds and shock. In the same sequence a young man is forced to try to run UP the canyon wall in stark terror as the charging cattle threaten.

THE FILM RUNS 97 minutes and was shot in Jamestown, Mecca, Coachella Valley, Mojave Desert and Universal Studios, California. WRITER: Ric Hardman.

GRADE: C

Middle-aged cowboy James Stewart agrees to transport Maureen O'Hara's Hereford bull (the first in North America) to to it's new owner Brian Keith, while at the same time making an underhanded deal to deliver it to a rival cattleman. Things get complicated when O'Hara and her daughter take it upon themselves to accompany Stewart.

This light-hearted western is offbeat and original enough to provide some entertainment and Stewart is great as the reluctant champion of a new breed of bull, but the story just isn't as compelling as it should have been and sometimes pretty silly, especially Keith (under a mountain of hair!) as a backwards Scottish rancher.

Jack Elam and Ben Johnson make the most of their limited roles as a vicious saddle-tramp and Stewart's aging, crippled mentor.