Set in 1885, the film follows a bank robber, whose partner reluctantly abandoned him during a showdown between them and Mexican mounted police forces, who escapes a Mexican prison with a fellow cellmate as they travel to Monterey, California with a couple of men to rob a bank as well as get revenge on his former partner. It is a film that explores a man who felt cheated by his former partner who had ended up making a decent life for himself as a sheriff in Monterey while he spends five years in prison waiting to get revenge. The film’s screenplay by Guy Trosper and Calder Willingham, with un-credited contributions from Sam Peckinpah and Rod Serling, follows the journey that Rio goes through as he is first seen taking part of a bank robbery with his partner Dad Longworth (Karl Malden) and another robber in Doc (Hank Worden) in Mexico that is successful until Rio and Longworth are chased by the mounted police as they’re stuck on a hill with Longworth leaving to get new horses yet he never returned as Rio gets captured and spent five years in a prison which he would escape with Chico Modesto (Larry Duran).
Upon meeting Bob Emory (Ben Johnson) and his partner Harvey Johnson (Sam Gilman), Rio and Modesto travel to Monterey, California upon learning that Longworth is the sheriff in the town as he has married a Mexican woman in Maria (Katy Jurado) who has a daughter of her own in Louisa (Pina Pellicer). Though the plan is to rob the bank in Monterey, Rio decides to meet Longworth without stating his intentions while falling for Louisa as he spends time with her during a fiesta the next day. Yet, things get complicated where Longworth learn about what the two did where Rio gets punished as he and his gang are forced to leave as they shelter themselves in a beachside village as it plays into Rio’s sense of uncertainty about wanting to rob a bank. Even as Maria learns more about her husband’s past as well as what happened with Rio and Louisa that would complicate matters.
Marlon Brando’s direction is filled with gorgeous compositions as it is shot on various locations in California with Big Sur and the Monterey Peninsula being key locations along with Sonora, Mexico for the scenes set in Mexico including its mountains. Brando’s approach to wide and medium shots add to the beauty of these locations with all of these meticulous attention to detail in the ocean waves that Brando captures to play into a world that feels new to Rio as it is also this escape from the rugged nature of Mexico that Longworth wants to leave behind. Brando also maintains some intimacy in the close-ups and medium shots in the first meeting in five years between Rio and Longworth as it play into the tension as Brando creates unique compositions in these moments. Notably in Rio’s infatuation towards Louisa as he would say some lies in order to woo her but eventually realize that she’s a good young woman whom he doesn’t want to take advantage of.
By the time the film moves into the second half where the tension between Rio and Longworth come to ahead despite the former’s action in saving a woman who is being abused by a man. It would allow Longworth to punish Rio in front of the town as revelations occur as it relates to Rio’s original intentions as he retreats to the beach as regrets come into play along with other revelations as it relates to Rio’s love for Louisa. Even as Maria begins to piece out Longworth’s issue with Rio during the film’s third act where a showdown would occur where the idea of vengeance shifts towards guilt with Rio realizing of what Longworth is trying to hold on to that only makes Longworth much worse. Overall, Brando crafts an exhilarating and mesmerizing film about a gunslinger going after his former partner for abandoning him following a bank robbery.
Cinematographer Charles Lang Jr. does incredible work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of Technicolor film stock to capture the beauty of the exteriors in the beaches and mountains while John P. Fulton provides some special photographic effects for some scenes on the beach as backdrops for a few of the film’s conversations including one between Rio and Louisa. Editor Archie Marshek does excellent work with the editing with its usage of straight cuts to play into the suspense and drama as well as knowing when to allow shots to linger to help amp up the suspense. Art directors Hal Pereira and J. McMillan Johnson, with set decorators Sam Comer and Robert Benton, do amazing work with the look of Monterey as well as the cantina in Sonora where Rio and Longworth went to after the robbery early in the film. Costume designer Yvonne Wood does fantastic work with the costumes in the dresses that the women wear along with the ragged look of Rio as well as the refined look that Longworth has as sheriff.
The makeup work of Yvonne Wood and Wally Westmore, with hair stylist Nellie Manley, do terrific work with the makeup from Longworth’s rugged look early in the film to the mustache he would have as sheriff as well as the look that Rio would have including the aftermath of a beating he would take from Longworth. The sound work of Hugo and Charles Grenzbach do superb work with the sound as it play into the natural elements as well as the sounds of gunfire from afar or up close. The film’s music by Hugo Friedhofer is wonderful for its bombastic orchestral score as it plays into the sense of adventure and suspense as the soundtrack also include a flamenco piece for a key moment in the fiesta sequence.
The film’s marvelous ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from Mina Martinez as a young woman Rio flirts with early in the film following the bank robbery, William Forrest as a bartender in Monterey, Hank Worden as Rio and Longworth’s robbery partner Doc, Philip Ahn as the owner of a beach hostel where Rio would recover in the film’s third act, Ray Teal and John Dierkes as a couple of deputies, Joe Dominguez as a corral owner, Tom Webb as the corral owner’s son, Joan Petrone as a flower vendor Rio flirts with to buy her necklace, Rodolfo Acosta as a Rurales captain, Margarita Cordova as the flamenco dancer, Timothy Carey as a local from Monterey who would be pushy towards the dancer at a bar, Miriam Colon as Longworth’s lover from Sonora whom Rio would meet five years later, and Elisha Cook Jr. as the banker who runs the bank at Monterey that Rio considers robbing. Sam Gilman is terrific as Harvey Johnson as a gunslinger Rio meets in Mexico as he is eager to rob a bank while Larry Duran is fantastic as Rio’s prison mate Chico Modesto who is sort of the film’s conscience as he is willing to help Rio while also knowing the conflict he’s dealing with.
Pina Pellicer is excellent as Louisa as Longworth’s step-daughter who falls for Rio though she is unsure about his intentions while learning about why he’s in Monterey where she begins to see things about Longworth that makes her uncomfortable. Slim Pickens is brilliant as Longworth’s deputy Lon Derrick as a man who doesn’t like Rio while is also infatuated with Louisa despite the fact that she thinks he’s a total creep. Ben Johnson is amazing as Bob Amory as a gunslinger Rio meets in Mexico who joins him on their journey to Monterey while also being someone who has issues with Rio over when to do the robbery as often finds a way to push Rio’s buttons. Katy Jurado is incredible as Longworth’s wife Maria as a woman who is given a great life in her marriage to Longworth only to become suspicious about Rio where revelations about Longworth’s past has her questioning things while discovering some things about Louisa’s relationship with Rio.
Karl Malden is phenomenal as Sheriff Dad Longworth as Rio’s former partner who had abandoned Rio following a showdown between him and Mexican mounted police forces as he creates a new life for himself only to deal with Rio where he is filled with guilt but also not wanting to reveal his own dark past that would eventually alienate him from his family. Finally, there’s Marlon Brando in a tremendous performance as Rio as a bank robber who seeks revenge on his former partner as he is hell-bent on getting revenge until he meets Louisa which complicates things. Brando brings this sense of restraint as a man that is conflicted in his actions but is also someone who is seeking justice of his own while also realizing the complications he is dealing with in his revenge plot as it is one of Brando’s finest performances.
One-Eyed Jacks is a sensational film from Marlon Brando that features incredible performances from Brando, Karl Malden, Katy Jurado, Slim Pickens, Ben Johnson, and Pina Pellicer. Along with its gorgeous visuals, its unconventional study of vengeance and guilt, and an exhilarating music score. The film is a fascinating western that doesn’t play by many of its tropes in favor of exploring the path of two men who were once partners as it leads to this eerie world of vengeance and the revelations of how the past can affect someone’s future. In the end, One-Eyed Jacks is a spectacular film from Marlon Brando.
© thevoid99 2023
Directed by Sam Peckinpah and written by Rudy Wurlitzer, Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid is the story of an aging Pat Garrett who is hired by wealthy cattle barons to hunt and kill his friend Billy the Kid. The film is an exploration of friendship and betrayal in the Old West as well as the final days of the West as James Coburn plays Pat Garrett and Kris Kristofferson stars as Billy the Kid. Also starring Jason Robards, Slim Pickens, Katy Jurado, Richard Jaeckel, Chill Willis, and Bob Dylan. Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid is a wondrous and evocative film from Sam Peckinpah.
Set in 1881 in New Mexico, the film is about Pat Garrett being asked by forces with political ties to hunt down and kill his friend Billy the Kid. While it is a simple story, the film is more about a sense of change that looms in the American West where Billy the Kid is a representation of someone that doesn’t play by the rules as he spends much of the film trying to live his life and find ways to play under his own rules. Pat Garrett meanwhile is a man that is conflicted about hunting the Kid down as just wants him to go to Mexico or deal with him by himself instead of letting others kill him. Even as he meets with individuals who are part of a secret ring of cattle barons who not only want the Kid dead but want to do things their way to the world that is the West.
Rudy Wurlitzer’s screenplay opens with Garrett’s death as he is gunned down by a group of mysterious men as it adds some ambiguity into why he is killed. It plays into not just the sense of change that Garrett didn’t want to be a part of but a change that already happened as it inter-cuts with a time where Garrett had just become a sheriff where he meets the Kid as they shoot down the heads of chickens. It plays into a moment where things were simple as Garrett and the Kid are friends though Garrett knows he is now the law and he is instructed to capture the Kid. Yet, Garrett tells the Kid on what he has to do where he wants him to be safe and not be killed in the hands of the law. However, the Kid is a freebird that just refuses to do what anyone tells him as there is someone who admits to killing some people whether they were good or bad.
The script also plays into that sense of changing times where Garrett is forced to uphold the law as he struggles to do things his way but finds himself coping with these changes. Especially as he would be forced to work with men who are part of this secret ring as they do things in ways that not only disgusts Garrett but also the Kid who would encounter some of these things on his way to Mexico which would force him to seek refuge in the place in Old Fort Sumner. It is in that moment where both the Garrett and the Kid are forced to realize that the ideas of the Old West is coming to an end where Garrett would have to make a decision to either adapt or die. A decision that the Kid wouldn’t stand for as the inevitable is to come.
Sam Peckinpah’s direction is very entrancing for not just the way he pictures the American West but also into how its sense of mythology and codes are being pushed aside in favor of greed. The film is very stylized in not just the way Peckinpah shoots some of the violence but also in the way people lived in those times. There is a looseness to the direction where Peckinpah puts in some humor over some of the situations the Kid would get into but also play into someone that would kill someone when he didn’t want to but had no choice. With its usage of wide and medium shots along with some close-ups, Peckinpah takes great stock into the world that surrounds these characters but also plays into a sense of change that is looming. Most notably a scene where Garrett and an aging sheriff in Colin Baker (Slim Pickens) try to confront a gang only for things to go wrong as it plays into a world that is changing.
The direction has these tense moments in the drama such as a meeting Garrett would have with New Mexico’s leader in Governor Lew Wallace (Jason Robards) who would introduce Garrett to this group of cattle barons who are part of a secret ring in New Mexico. Most notably as it plays into the sense of change that would emerge that the Kid would later see when he encounters a group of men killing a friend and raping his wife to show an ugliness in a new world that he doesn’t want to be a part of. It would all play to the inevitable as the climax where Garrett would do what has to be done since it plays into a new world that neither he nor the Kid could be a part of. Overall, Peckinpah creates a mesmerizing film about two friends who are both forced to go against each other in an ever-changing world.
Cinematographer John Coquillon does brilliant work with the film‘s cinematography from the usage of lights for some of its nighttime interior/exterior scenes along with some gorgeous and naturalistic images for the scenes in the day including a shootout involving Sheriff Baker. Editors Roger Spottiswoode, David Berlatsky, Garth Craven, Tony de Zarraga, Richard Halsey, and Robert L. Wolfe, with additional editing by Paul Seydor for the 2005 special edition, do amazing work with the editing in creating some unique slow-motion cuts for some of the action along with rhythmic cutting for some of the drama and suspense. Art director Ted Haworth and set decorator Ray Moyer do excellent work with the design of the sets from hideout that is Fort Sumner as well as the look of Lincoln where the Kid was supposed to be hanged until his escape.
The sound work of Harry W. Tetrick and Charles M. Wilborn is superb for the naturalistic sound it captures along with some sound effects in the sound of gunfire and knives that are thrown. The film’s music by Bob Dylan is fantastic as the soundtrack album features some country-folk instrumentals and a few songs including one of Dylan’s greatest songs in Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door that is played in one of the film’s most poignant moments.
The casting by Patricia Mock is great as it features notable appearances from such noted Western character actors like L.Q. Jones as a bandit Garrett confronts in a shootout with Sheriff Baker, Jack Elam as Garrett’s ragged deputy Alamosa Bill Kermit, Emilio Fernandez as the Kid’s Mexican friend Paco, Chill Wills as a saloon owner named Lemuel Jones who knows Garrett, screenwriter Rudy Wurlitzer as a friend of the Kid in Tom O’Folliard, Luke Askew as a cattle baron that is part of a secret ring in Santa Fe, Richard Bright as a member of the Kid’s gang, Rutanya Alda as a prostitute who lives in Fort Sumner with the Kid and his gang, Charles Martin Smith as an early member of the Kid’s gang who encounters a horrifying shootout, and Aurora Clavel as Garrett’s wife Ida who appears in the film’s 2005 reconstructed special-edition version. Other notable small roles include Harry Dean Stanton as a member of the Kid’s gang in Luke, Matt Clark as a deputy sheriff the Kid befriends, R.G. Armstrong as a sheriff who despises the Kid, and John Beck as a hired gun for the secret Santa Fe ring who is eager to kill the Kid.
Barry Sullivan is terrific as a cattle baron named Chisum that the Kid used to work for as the Kid learns what Chisum’s men would do that would disgust the Kid. Slim Pickens is fantastic as the aging sheriff Colin Baker who aids Garrett in trying to find the Kid while Katy Jurado is wonderful as Baker’s wife who helps them both while being great with a shotgun. Richard Jaeckel is superb as a friend of Garrett in Sheriff McKinney who helps Garrett late in the film to capture the Kid while Jason Robards is amazing in a brief but memorable performance as Governor Lew Wallace who tells Garrett what is at stake in capturing the Kid as he is part of a new world order. Bob Dylan is excellent as a young bandit named Alias who joins the Kid during the film’s second act as he proves to be very handy with a knife.
Finally, there’s the duo of James Coburn and Kris Kristofferson in phenomenal performance in their respective roles as Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Coburn brings a rugged yet weary role to Garrett as a man who is now part of the law as he deals with the new rules of his role as well as times that are changing which adds to the conflict in capturing the Kid. Kristofferson brings this sense energy and joy into the role of the Kid as someone who is a total free spirit that doesn’t believe in rules as he copes with a world that is very difficult and troubling. Coburn and Kristofferson have great rapport together in how they both share similar views towards the world as they’re both being pulled into different directions.
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid is a remarkable film from Sam Peckinpah that features exhilarating performances from James Coburn and Kris Kristofferson. The film is definitely one of Peckinpah’s finest films (whether in its preferred 1988 122-minute preview version or the 115-minute special edition version) as it plays into the myth of the American West and how it would change. Especially as it features an incredible soundtrack from Bob Dylan that plays into the mythological elements of those times. In the end, Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid is a riveting film from Sam Peckinpah.
Sam Peckinpah Films: The Deadly Companions - Ride the High Country - Major Dundee - Noon Wine - The Wild Bunch - The Ballad of Cable Hogue - Straw Dogs - Junior Bonner - The Getaway - Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia - The Killer Elite - Cross of Iron - Convoy - The Osterman Weekend - The Auteurs #62: Sam Peckinpah
© thevoid99 2015
Directed by Fred Zinneman and screenplay by Carl Foreman from a story by John W. Cunnigham, High Noon is the story about a retired marshal who finds himself having to take a stand against a group of vengeful criminals in order to save his town. The film plays into a man reluctantly taking part in a stand against a villain and his gang as it’s told in real time. Starring Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Ian MacDonald, Lloyd Bridges, Katy Jurado, Lee Van Cleef, and Robert J. Wilke. High Noon is a gripping yet mesmerizing film from Fred Zinneman.
The revolves around the release of a criminal named Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald) who is about to arrive at the town of Hadleyville in order to get revenge on the man that put him to prison in a marshal named William Kane (Gary Cooper). Once Kane hears the news on his wedding day and that Miller will arrive town at noon, trouble brews as Kane is about to retire and live the quiet life with his bride Amy (Grace Kelly). Kane reluctantly decides to stay to face Miller and his gang as he suddenly realizes he’s all alone with no one willing to take a stand with him. Even Amy reluctantly decides to leave Kane to take the train out of town along with a former lover of Kane and Miller named Helen Ramirez (Katy Jurado) who is currently with Kane’s deputy Harvey Pell (Lloyd Bridges) who also decides not to help out Kane. Once noon comes in, it all comes down to this showdown between Kane and Miller with his gang.
What makes this film so engrossing isn’t just the fact that it’s told in real time but the way time is used to create this sense of tension and dread about the return of a notorious criminal who had brought chaos to this small town until a man named Kane brought law and order back to the town. Miller’s return causes worry as they’re all afraid of him and his gang forcing Kane to do everything by himself. Carl Foreman’s screenplay definitely plays to that sense of tension and dread as time is a real drive to the story. A lot of it features Kane having to go back to town and gather whatever posse he can get only to be turned down as many of the locals have no faith in the aging Kane despite what he’s done for the town. Still, there’s those who feel like Miller’s return will help things as Kane finds his back against the wall.
The script also plays into the people around Kane such as Amy and Helen as both of them each offer weight to the story. Amy is a Quaker who is worried about being a widow and doesn’t want to see Kane killed but also doesn’t want to deal with the sense of violence as she had horrific encounters with violence in the past. Helen is a woman was once a lover of Kane and Miller in the past as she had just made a new life for herself but Miller’s return forces her to flee in order to not just see Kane killed but also avoid Miller. Frank Miller doesn’t appear in the story until the moment the train arrives exactly at noon but still carries a presence that is disconcerting as he brings fear to this small town as the locals are unsure whether to take a stand against him or just let him and his posse take over.
Fred Zinneman’s direction is truly engrossing for the way he presents the film. Notably in the way he maintains this sense of tension in the film as time slows down where the pacing has this unsettling tone over what is coming. Zinneman uses a lot of close-ups and medium shots to play out the tension while always finding a way to put the clock in the frame to emphasize that time is a key proponent in the story. Zinneman also creates the sense of drama to help drive Kane’s decision of whether to face off against Miller or to run with Amy and hide from him. Yet, Kane is not a coward but he is aware of how dangerous Miller and his gang is.
Zinneman also employs an intimacy in some of the drama as well as scenes of the locals talking about Kane and Miller to help play into that sense of time as they all await for the showdown. It does add to that sense of dread where everyone is waiting for the train arrive including Miller’s gang as they wait at the station. Once the climatic showdown is coming, the suspense definitely amps to see what will happen and how will Kane go face to face against Miller and his gang. Overall, Zinneman creates a very intense and riveting film about a man taking a stand against a chaotic criminal.
Cinematographer Floyd Crosby does brilliant work with the film‘s gorgeous black-and-white photography in the use of shadows against the sun while creating low-key lights for some of the film‘s interiors. Editors Elmo Williams and Harry W. Gerstad do fantastic work with the editing as it plays to the sense of suspense and dread along with a few rhythmic cuts to play out some of the dramatic reactions and fights. Production designer Rudolph Sternad, along with set decorator Murray Waite and art director Ben Hayne, does excellent work with the set pieces from the look of the town to the hotel that Helen stays in.
The sound work of John Speak is superb for the atmosphere is created in the saloons as well as playing up to the suspense with the sound of clocks and train horns. The film’s music by Dimitri Tiomkin is amazing for its low-key yet somber score that is a mixture of country-western and orchestral music while using some orchestral music to play up the suspense and drama while the film’s title song co-written with lyricist Ned Washington and sung by Tex Ritter is a wonderful piece that helps tell the story.
The casting by Jack Murton is phenomenal for the ensemble that is created as it features some notable appearances from Harry Morgan as a friend of Kane who refuses to help out, Eve McVeagh as that friend’s wife who reluctantly lies to Kane, Otto Kruger as the judge who tells Kane to leave town, Lon Chaney as Kane’s old mentor who also tells Kane to leave, Morgan Farley as the town’s local minister and as Miller’s gang, there’s Robert J. Wilke, Sheb Wooley, and Lee Van Cleef as they bring a unique presence to the film. Ian MacDonald is terrific as the film’s antagonist Frank Miller as he appears late in the film but brings a great presence in the way he arrives to the film.
Lloyd Bridges is excellent as Kane’s successor who feels slighted by Kane as he abandons his post while trying to get him to flee. Katy Jurado is amazing as Helen Ramirez as a former lover of Kane and Miller as she is aware of the danger that is coming as she tries to get Kane to flee town as well. Grace Kelly is radiant as Kane’s new bride Amy as a woman who urges her husband to flee while dealing with the possibilities of what would happen as she would play a key role in the showdown. Finally, there’s Gary Cooper in an outstanding performance as William Kane as an aging marshal who is forced to face the man he put in prison while realizing how alone he is as it’s a performance that is truly engaging in the way Cooper maintains a sense of humility and determination to a man wanting to do what is right for himself and his town.
High Noon is a tremendous film from Fred Zinneman that features a brilliant performance from Gary Cooper. Along with noteworthy supporting performances from Grace Kelly, Katy Jurado, and Lloyd Bridges, it’s a film that is truly one of the defining films of the western genre. Particularly in the way it builds tension and suspense in real time as it doesn’t falter in its pacing while maintaining a sense of excitement. In the end, High Noon is a magnificent film from Fred Zinneman.
Fred Zinneman Films: (Redes) - (That Mothers Might Live) - (Stuffie) - (Forbidden Passage) - (Kid Glove Killer) - (Eyes in the Night) - (The Seventh Cross) - (My Brother Talks to Horses) - (The Search) - (Act of Violence) - (The Men (1950 film)) - (Benjy) - (Teresa) - From Here to Eternity - (Oklahoma!) - (A Hatful of Rain) - (The Nun’s Story) - (The Sundowners) - (Behold a Pale Horse) - (A Man For All Seasons) - (The Day of the Jackal) - (Julia) - (Five Days One Summer)
© thevoid99 2013
