Cry Blood, Apache

The major theme of Cry Blood Apache is the worthlessness of human life outside of civil society. This nihilistic tale takes place in the mythic old west, around the time of the goldrush, and is about as inaccurate as possible. Nevertheless, the story fermented some interesting ironies and a few fairly predictable but entertaining plot twists. Unfortunately, only the Native American characters are in any way sympathetic and even the Euro-American protagonist is more of a survivor than a hero.

Amoral cowboys rape, pillage and massacre a small Apache village, leaving two survivors, a raped woman and her vengeful brother. The woman becomes attached to the one cowboy who is decent toward her (McLure), but out there in the wild somewhere her brother awaits his opportunity to attain vengeance.

Cry Blood Apache is one of two films released by the late profilic b-movie director Jack Starrett (Dukes of Hazzard, First Blood, etc) in 1970. Starrett also managed to act in at least one film per year during the 1970s, including a memorable performance in Blazing Saddles. Although Starrett's directing is often heavily criticized in reviews of this film, I believe that the film's budget had much more to do with its generally poor reception than the directing did. The film was obviously rushed through production and some of the acting (including star McLure) left much to be desired. Lastly, Cry Blood Apache was made at a time when the hallmark of western films was exquisite and often lavish cinematography - and Cry Blood Apache has neither. Despite all of this, the method of storytelling and the story itself had some merit. Had the film been better-supported, it might have fared better.

Recommended for hardcore western addicts. Not recommended for others.

Poor little programmer of a western, tries to ride in the trail of the Eastwood-Leone "Man With No Name" series and fails. There is an intensely 1960s feel the the performances that make the performances awkward and unconvincing. In addition, the prints have a washed-out look.

Even a graceful opening with Joel McCrea playing the lead character in later years -- the lead is played by his son, Jody -- serves only to make the rest of the movie more awkward.

Poor Joel McCrea who couldn't leave the screen on a high note like Randolph Scott in Ride the High Country. He had to come back to play a cameo in a film his son Jody produced and starred in.

Jody had a minor career in the 60s in those beach films. He had gotten a break playing a deputy in a short-lived television series called Wichita Town that starred his father as a sheriff. He never really established himself and I guess Cry Blood, Apache was a last effort.

IT's just bad all around, bad acting, bad directing, lousy script that god awful music that punctuates all foreign made westerns.

Joel should have just stayed on his ranch.

If there are any tears to be shed with Cry Apache Blood they will be from the abused souls who end up watching this pitifully soulless movie! My first mistake was thinking that because it had Joel McCrea's name on it, perhaps it should at least be looked at out of curiosity but, not so. I doubt that Joel would have looked at this mess & if he did - would have been ashamed of it. What is clearly a charitable act of lending his name to help promote his son's production (who displays less character than his dads shadow) turns out to be a sad blotch on his own sterling career. This thoroughly sordid mess offers no redeeming features, it's wretchedly written, acted and photographed - vile in every department. Even if found in an op shop for $1- stay away from it lest ye be brain damaged forever after. For the desperately easily pleased only. Note: Joel (who has top billing!) has all of approx three minutes - within a worthlessly tacked-on- top-and-tail that can only qualify as the ultimate, shameful exploitation. If you want to see him in one last quality attempt take a look at "Mustang Country" from '76 - where it appears more likely he may have been coaxed out of retirement, one last time, in an attempt to redeem himself from his son's moronic disaster.

Even though he only appears in the movie for scant minutes and scarcely says a word, this has to easily qualify as Joel McCrea's worst film. His otherwise notable career is tarnished by his appearance in this dreadful mess (a favor, one has to assume, for his son who produced the disaster.) The story, if one can even call it that, concerns a band of repugnant, annoying, filthy drifters who terrorize and mostly kill off a small family of Indians. They keep one girl alive so that she can show them to a place where gold exists. The audience can tell that Jody McCrea (utterly lacking in any screen charisma) is the "good guy" of the piece because instead of raping, butchering or torturing any of the Indians, he sits on a rock and watches it all. He develops sympathy for the female hostage as the gritty group fights amongst itself on the way to the gold. Two of the actors in the film also directed and assistant directed it. Starrett apparently couldn't say goodbye to all his extended scenes of himself overacting and meandering around meaninglessly. The whole film has a plethora of shots of people walking or riding endlessly. Meanwhile, a lone Indian, who had been away during the slaughter, tracks the group. This tall native has an interesting outfit. He wears a long-sleeved peasant blouse over a very narrow loincloth that shows practically all of his behind. He lurches through the terrain with all the style and grace of say.......a filling station attendant at a Boron gas station in Columbus, Ohio. One hilarious sequence has him careening into a violent river. The film is uncomfortable to watch for various reasons. The opening scenes are sadistic and thoughtlessly cruel. The bulk of it is just amateurish and badly written, shot and directed. The one rather interesting aspect is the choice of revenge that the lone Indian chooses for his enemies. It is only in these various depictions of the payback he gives each of the men that the movie shows any amount of creativity or life. It is also rewarding for the audience since, by the time the Indian catches up to them, these characters have become positively unbearable. Henley, during his final sequence, is so agonizing that one wants to reach through the TV and kill him personally. The music is also abominable in the movie. The whole thing is ludicrous, trashy, cheap, choppy and worst of all boring.