Barquero

Barquero is directed by Gordon Douglas and written by George Schenck. It stars Lee Van Cleef, Warren Oates, Forrest Tucker, Kerwin Matthews and Mariette Hartley. Music is by Dominic Frontiere and cinematography by Gerald Perry Finnerman.

When is a Spaghetti Western not a Spaghetti Western? When it's Barquero is the answer. It has the feel of a Pasta Oater, from the colour photography and musical scoring, to the pungent dialogue delivered in various guises of grizzle and accents, Barquero clearly takes its lead from Europe. Which as it happens is absolutely fine because this is a hugely enjoyable exercise.

"I would give anything in the world to spend the night with you... Except my barge"

Plot basically involves a cat and mouse scenario played out on each side of a river. On one side is a gang of thieves led by Warren Oates' Jake Remy, who after executing a robbery in town are trying to leave the country. On the other side is the townsfolk headed by Cleef's Travis, who is the most important man in the play because he owns the ferry barge that is apparently the only means of crossing the band of water.

"Back east I read books about men taming the wilderness. I dreamed about those men. They weren't like you. They weren't like you, they were statues that people could look up to. The only resemblance you bear to a statue is pigeon droppings"

What unfolds is a twin telling of the character dynamics at work in either side of the camp. Remy is a mercenary bastardo who rules his gang with a rod of aggressive iron, Travis is hard bitten by life and actually doesn't care much for the townsfolk he serves. The two men are battling for supremacy not just of the "barge" situation, but of their psychological well beings. Hostage situations come into play, there's plenty of scowling at each other across the water, some piercing violence and it builds to a grand finale with a battle fit for some viking based epic!

Casting aside the cheese laden dialogue, and it's best just to run with it to fully enjoy the picture, it's a production of some serious quality. With two of the genre's best brooders leading the cast, the acting side of things is in good hands. Backing up Cleef and Oates (both excellent) are Tucker (Travis' comic side-kick but still hard as nails) and Matthews (Remy's voice of reason), and although she's under used, the adorable Hartley hits the right notes for the key female role that tempts and taunts Travis' core masculinity.

The Colorado location photography is gorgeous, the beautiful shimmering landscapes alive in De Luxe Color. Frontiere's (Hang 'Em High/Chisum) score is dynamite, blending Spaghetti style clangs with military percussion, it swells and explodes at all the key points of plotting. Douglas (Rio Conchos) is unfussy in direction, maintaining interest during the talky character expansion scenes. And finally I simply have to mention the sound mix (Robert Miller and Ben Sad), it's tremendous, the thunder of hooves and the crack of gunfire literally splinters the ears, joyously so. I viewed this in HD on UK TCM on my home cinema system, suffice to say if possible I recommend you see it that way as well!

Awash with caricatures and the sort of tongue in cheek scripting that lends it a vibe to not be taken serious, it's clearly not a hidden masterpiece, but this is fascinatingly muscular fun that also looks and sounds tremendous. 7.5/10

Lee Van Cleef had already become an international star late in his career, following his success in the Sergio Leone Spaghetti Westerns, when he starred in "Barquero", made in 1970. The film is clearly influenced by the Spaghetti tradition, most clearly displayed in the drugged-up, psychotic villain, Jake Remy, who bares similarities to the character of Indio in "For a Few Dollars More". However "Barquero" is far superior to the many "Spaghetti" imitators and deserves to stand on its own as a great Western.

The plot is fairly simple, beginning with the massacre and plundering of a peaceful town by Jake Remy and his crew of assorted bandits. Their only escape from capture is to cross the river to safety but the only person who can help them is the Barquero, played by Lee Van Cleef, who refuses, and a violent stand-off ensues.

The film is aided immeasurably by the performance of Warren Oates as Jake Remy, in one of his best roles. Remy makes even most the evil Western characters look saintly in comparison, as he kills and butchers anyone who gets in his path (check out the scene in which he sleeps with a woman and then casually kills her) and his only redeeming feature is his loyalty to his men. This is perhaps the only Western in which the bad guy is given more screen time than the hero and is one of the most complex villains ever seen on screen. Remy has a past which he is haunted by, and is slowly driven mad by his determination to cross the river and by the stubbornness of the Barquero.

The film does not really have a hero, as the only two characters to resemble this are the Barquero and Mountain Phil, a truly bizarre character, excellently played by Forrest Tucker. The Barquero is prepared to help the endangered townsfolk against Remy, but only because he wants to bed one of the women and Mountain Phil does not help out of kindness but more so because he is slightly insane.

"Barquero" was directed by the undistinguished Gordon Douglas, although he did direct the classic 1954 Sci-Fi/horror "Them". Fans of Sam Peckinpah will be pleased to see the villainous pairing of Warren Oates and John Davis Chandler, although Van Cleef fans may be disappointed as he is given little to do, besides having to wear one of the worst shirts ever committed to film.

"Barquero" should be seen by anyone who is serious about Westerns and is required viewing for fans of the great Warren Oates.

Finely crafted production by Aubrey Schenck, with most of its action confined to a spot on the Rio Grande where a bunch of "squatters" have set up a primitive frontier town and a man (the "barquero", Van Cleef) has built a barge connected by rope to cross the river. When a bandit leader (Oates) and his group plunder and burn a nearby town, killing everyone, they make fast tracks to the barge, only to find the town evacuated and the barge on the other side of the river, with Cleef and his woodsman friend (Tucker) reluctantly defending the mostly nebbish townspeople. The script's sardonic tone is probably indebted to contemporary Italian oaters, but its ferocious drive and its focus on a personal confrontation between to determined, opposed strangers is very effective. Cleef is good at showing that he has no real concern for the villagers, but is absolutely set on not letting Oates' bandits burn his barge. Oates is a bit over the top (method acting is the worst type to go over the top with), especially in the poorly-conceived scene where he shoots the river. Solid action film with a significant difference going for it.

The Quick Pitch: Remy (Warren Oates) is the leader of a band of outlaws. He wants to cross a river on his way to Mexico. The titular barquero, Travis (Lee Van Cleef), isn't going to let him use his barge. He knows it will be destroyed to prevent others from following. A stand-off ensues.

Until I stumbled on this last night, I had no idea Barquero even existed. What a find! Warren Oates and Lee Van Cleef in the same movie. These guys just ooze machismo. Throw in a supporting cast featuring Forrest Tucker and Kerwin Mathews and there was no way I wouldn't enjoy Barquero. The opening shootout as Remy and his men slaughter everyone in a small town to steal a wagon load of guns is an over-the-top joy to behold. And the last act where Remy and Travis are drawn into their final, inevitable showdown is just plain old awesome.

The problem with Barquero is the bits that come between the beginning and the end. Unfortunately, the second act really drags with Remy and Travis separated by a river. They shout back and forth, but there's really not much else that happens. Too bad, because with this kind of cast, some fantastic locations, and plenty of blood and violence, Barquero had the potential to be legendary.

6/10

Beautiful Colorado scenery and a fine attention to detail in this western set in the late 1860s.

Several American attempts at a spaghetti western surfaced in the late 1960s: this one is a much more compelling film than Eastwood's "Hang 'Em High", in that all of the lead characters are well-drawn and mysterious.

Van Cleef, in his finest lead, plays the title character, a man more interested in protecting his barge than in the well-being of the "squatters" who populate the town. Oates is a bit hammy as Remy, but an effective psychotic villain nonetheless.

Tucker practically steals the film in a role that would have gone to Edgar Buchanan two decades earlier, that of Mountain Phil, a man loyal enough to put his life on the line for his best friend, and who holds the "squatters" in even more contempt than the barquero does.

Should be on DVD by now. An overlooked gem that anticipated "Tom Horn", "Unforgiven", and other stripped-down westerns that would follow over the next 25 years.