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First off, it's startling to see the unconventional, innovative Kovacs in a conventional 1960s' sitcom setting. Kovacs apparently did not care for situation comedies, but accepted the lead role in this pilot, because he had to — he owed a lot of money, especially to the IRS. At any rate, Kovacs plays an Old West conman, a role well-suited to him. He had played a similar part in the successful 1960 John Wayne comedy-western North to Alaska. At the time the Medicine Man pilot was filmed in January 1962, Kovacs was also starting to appear on screens as another shady character in the movie Sail a Crooked Ship, which had just been released. As it is, Medicine Man has some mildly amusing moments, with Kovacs and Buster Keaton a good team. As with many great classic sitcoms, the pilots are often lame compared to what came later with the series, so one should not dismiss Medicine Man as a misfire; there's every reason to believe it would have led to a solid series. If Kovacs had lived and this pilot had led to a spot on the fall 1962 CBS schedule, it's easy to see Medicine Man as one of the classic 60s' sitcoms, which, if it had lasted to 1965, would have changed to color. One of the writers of the pilot was Jay Sommers, who went on to create Green Acres. Medicine Man had potential, but filming ended Jan. 12 and Kovacs died that night in an auto crash.

This little film has a powerful, haunting final scene that gives me a chill, not only when I watch it, but when I think about it. An unusual film for 1912, particularly the ambiguity, the lack of a comforting ending. Reminiscent of the final scene in Hitchcock's The Birds — the uneasy ambiguity, of being on edge, of having the viewer fill in the finale. I am reluctant to write more, as I follow the view of Irish playwright Samuel Beckett, who said he refrained from producing more written works, because it was an "unnecessary stain on the silence." This is a short film that should be paid respect with an equally short review.

The musical score was at times interesting, at times odd and out of place. Martin and Mitchum are fun to watch. McDowell as the villain is not the best casting choice, but he does have a sniveling quality that works. It was one of the last westerns with a polished, studio look; at that time, westerns were beginning to take on a gritty, rough-around-the-edges, contemporary feel. Denver Pyle is always a welcome ingredient in any western. The plot is interesting: Who will be the last man standing? Some of the scenes were staged poorly, but some of the dialogue was snappy. There were a few leaps of logic, but I was impressed that ammunition was referred to correctly as "cartridges," not as "bullets."