Garden of Evil

Some people complained about the Indian's role.I think that the first thing to bear in mind is that this western is more a fable than a realist story:the Indians ,whom we almost never see -a little more than the Arabs in Ford's "the lost patrol" or Duvivier's "la bandera",but not much more-:they are silhouettes in the landscape .The real danger is man's endless greed who ,were the earth made of gold,would die for a handful of it.That's what Gary Cooper's character says.

I think that Hathaway's 1957 movie "Legend of the Lost" is more convincing than "Garden" .This search for a treasure in the desert does not need an outside threat:no hostile tribe here.Men are finally on their own and madness is around the corner.

Try to see both movies in a row,mainly if you do not think that Henry Hathaway is an auteur.He is.

Gary Cooper, Susan Hayward, and Richard Widmark are on a trip through the wilds of Mexico in search of gold. Hayward's husband was injured in a cave-in at the mine, and she has offered the party a share of the wealth if they will help her injured husband. It sounds simple enough, but there's only one small problem--a band of Apaches that are on the hunt for white scalps. However, the lure of the prospects of wealth spur the group on to the mine, and they reach the mine, save the husband, but now face the dangers posed by the Apaches.

Each character offers some sense of presence to the film; Cooper is able to portray the silent, strength of character person, while Widmark adds a philosophical, yet cynical, view of life in his role as Fiske, a gambler. Cameron Mitchell and a Mexican guide are along, with each hoping for the gold, and the good life it will bring. And, each person has to face the danger posed in the "Garden of Evil." Susan Hayward manages to keep the group together, but only till they reach the mine. After that, it becomes a tale of who will survive.

A trio of American drifters formed by a veteran ex-sheriff named Hooker (Gary Cooper) , a card player named Fiske(Richard Widmark) and a gunfighter , Luke Daly (Cameron Mitchell) going to California and marooned in rural Mexico are recruited by a beautiful woman named Leah Fuller (Susan Hayward) who offers a strong reward to rescue her husband named John Fuller (Hugh Marlowe) from vengeful Apaches . Fuller is wounded in a gold mine on a territory occupied by Indians. The three adventurers accompany the woman , but for the trip their feelings are turning .

Leisurely and deliberately paced , at times thrilling and tense classic Western whose plot follows hazardous trails , though sometimes is slow moving. Based on a story by F. Freiberger and Tunberg was filmed in Mexican scenarios , for that reason play some Mexican actors as Victor Manuel Mendoza and Rita Moreno as gorgeous dancer in her film debut. It's considerably boosted by the main cast formed by a perfect trio as Cooper , Hayward and Widmark who add stature to the screenplay . The amusing results to be the guessing in which order the main roles get killed off . This was the only Gary Cooper film shot in Cinemascope and his partenaire was Susan Hayward , both of them had formerly played when were very young ¨Beau Geste¨(1939) . Colorful cinematography perfectly remastered by Milton Krasner and Jorge Sthal , spectacularly filmed on Mexican landscapes , though also contains some matte paintings of the cliffs . Impressive and suspenseful musical score by the classic Bernard Herrmann , Alfred Hitchcock's usual . ¨Garden of evil¨failed in Box office and did't obtain success as public as reviews ; however , being today best considered .

The motion picture is professionally directed by Henry Hathaway . Henry was a craftsman and expert on Western genre as he proved in ¨Shoot out , True grit , Five card stud , Nevada Smith , Sons of Katie Elder , How the West was won , Rawhide , Brigham Young , Buffalo Stampede¨ and of course ¨Garden of evil¨. Rating : nice Western that will appeal to Gary Cooper fans.

This brooding western has an uneven pace and meanders in places but is no less interesting because of the star power of Gary Cooper, the film's centerpiece. The movie is a grim, spare adventure of a party of mercenaries who journey into Indian country for the promise of gold to save a woman's husband who's trapped in an abandoned mine. Susan Hayward has her own personal demons and searches for redemption for destroying her husband's self-esteem and private demons weigh her down throughout the picture. The film tends to preach at times and has a moral about gold, greed and sacrifice. Richard Widmark has a role that seems to have been tailored for him as a cynical cardsharp and quick-draw loner who's as much a mercenary as is Cooper but not quite as noble. Cameron Mitchell has a thankless role as a weak-willed bounty hunter who seems tough enough until his bluff is called. Rita Moreno appears briefly and warbles a pretty tune in a saloon, and Bernard Herrmann contributes a fine music score.

... and I always round up when I'm at the halfway mark, just to explain. This is a fine watch in spite of the choppy script.

Cooper and Widmark's characters' boat breaks down on the way to the California gold fields--they have to stop in Mexico. They head to a local cantina. Susan Hayward comes in and says she is offering one thousand dollars in gold to anyone who will help her save her husband, who was trapped in a cave-in. She says the mine is right in the middle of cursed country called "Garden of Evil" - The film proceeds from there.

The uneven screenplay is credited to Frank Fenton. Bernard Herrmann contributed a score that supplies more drama than the screenplay; the handsome cinematography is credited to Milton Krasner and Jorge Stahl. Jr.

Widmark is especially good as the man who's not used to being a good guy. Cooper and Hayward are as effective as the script allows. The rest of the cast is adequate. Look for a young Rita Moreno in the cantina.

Critics yawned when the film was released, but it made a healthy profit, especially considering it cost around two million dollars to film. This is probably the most beautiful film Cooper made in the 1950's, and the most underrated.